John Cameron Monjo | |
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| 18thUnited States Ambassador to Pakistan | |
| In office November 10, 1992 – September 10, 1995 | |
| President | George H. W. Bush Bill Clinton |
| Preceded by | Nicholas Platt |
| Succeeded by | Thomas W. Simons Jr. |
| 11thUnited States Ambassador to Indonesia | |
| In office May 31, 1989 – July 18, 1992 | |
| President | George H. W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Paul Wolfowitz |
| Succeeded by | Robert L. Barry |
| 10thUnited States Ambassador to Malaysia | |
| In office June 10, 1987 – April 22, 1989 | |
| President | Ronald Reagan George H. W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Thomas P. Shoesmith |
| Succeeded by | Paul Matthews Cleveland |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1931-07-17)July 17, 1931 (age 94) Stamford, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Education | University of Pennsylvania (BS)[1] |
John Cameron Monjo (born July 17, 1931) is an American diplomat who served as theUnited States Ambassador to Malaysia from 1987 to 1989, theUnited States Ambassador to Indonesia from 1989 to 1992, and theUnited States Ambassador to Pakistan from 1992 to 1995.[1][2]
John Monjo served in theUnited States Navy from 1953 to 1956.[1] He began hisForeign Service career as apolitical officer atPhnom Penh,Cambodia from 1958 to 1961.[1] Monjo filled multiple consular roles before serving as special assistant to theUnder Secretary of State for Political Affairs (1969-1971), political officer atJakarta,Indonesia (1971-1976), principal officer forCasablanca,Morocco (1976-1978), country director in the Office of Philippine Affairs (1978-1979), andDeputy Chief of Mission inSeoul,South Korea (1979-1982).[1]
Monjo waschargé d'affaires ad interim at theUnited States embassy in Jakarta from November 1981 to February 1983.[2] He was appointed Deputy (1983-1985),[1] and then Senior Deputy Assistant Secretary (1985-1987) for theBureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.[3] In this capacity, Monjo responded to the decline ofPhilippine PresidentFerdinand Marcos's regime, testifying toCongress that he suspected a conspiracy behind theassassination of Ninoy Aquino,[4] organizing the exile of Marcos andhis family inHonolulu after thePeople Power Revolution,[3] and aiding thesubsequent accounting of Marcos's embezzlement.[5]
Monjo's portfolio at the East Asian Bureau also involved negotiating stronger copyright laws to protect American works inSingapore.[6]
Monjo arbitrated a dispute between the Malaysian government, union leaderV. David, and theAFL-CIO, the latter two having called for tariff reductions under theGeneralized System of Preferences to be stripped from Malaysia overworkers' rights.[7] The Malaysian government lifted its 15-year ban on unions in theelectronics industry, only to reimpose it one month later. Nonetheless, theBush administration rejected the AFL-CIO's petition and maintained Malaysia's GSP status.[8]
Monjo's visit on January 17, 1990 toDili prompted Timorese independence activist (and future Ambassador to the United States)[9]Constâncio Pinto to organize a student demonstration.[10] While Monjo insisted that authorities refrain from reprisals, the protestors were severely beaten by Indonesian soldiers when he departed.[11] For the rest of theIndonesian occupation of East Timor, violent retaliation was used to deter demonstrations during diplomatic visits.[12]
On September 9, 1990, Monjo became the first official American representative to meet withCambodian Prime MinisterHun Sen, catalyzing thenormalization of relations and adoption of theUnited Nations plan for new elections in Cambodia.[13][14]
Following international condemnation of theSanta Cruz massacre, Monjo met withWidjojo Nitisastro, advisor toIndonesian PresidentSuharto, on December 24, 1991, clarifying that the United States government intended to maintain military aid to Indonesia, in contrast with many other countries. However, the United States Congress cutIMET funding to Indonesia in 1992.[15]
Monjo's tenure coincided with a rift inPakistan-US relations, as thePressler Amendment withheld economic and military assistance overPakistan's development of nuclear weapons. Nonetheless, Monjo found several areas of security cooperation withChief of the Army StaffAbdul Waheed Kakar, namely when Pakistan managed the transition ofUN peacekeeping operations in Somalia, enabling US withdrawal after theBattle of Mogadishu.[16]
Seeking to limitIranian influence overAfghanistan, Monjo and his Pakistani counterpart met withTaliban leaders at their headquarters inKandahar in October 1994, eschewing permission fromAfghan PresidentBurhanuddin Rabbani.[17]
In response to the March 7, 1995 killing of two consulate employees inKarachi -CIA officerJacqueline Van Landingham and Gary Durrell - Monjo asserted the United States' prerogative toextradite the perpetrators for trial, prompting outrage from elements of the Pakistani press.[18] When six western tourists, including two Americans, werekidnapped by Kashmiri separatists in July 1995, Monjo pressed for their release in talks with PakistaniNational Assembly memberFazal-ur-Rehman, whom the militants asked to negotiate for the freedom of their imprisoned comrades.[19] One of the American hostages later escaped, while one body was found and the rest are presumed dead.[20]
Monjo created controversy during the2004 Indonesian presidential election. When an observation team from theCarter Center suggested documenting military intimidation inWest Papua, Monjo implied that this was unnecessary becausePapuans simply weren't inclined to vote, exclaiming "For god's sake, they're naked!"[21]
Monjo was listed as a senior advisor to Bluemont International, a global business consultancy firm founded inWashington, D.C. in 2004.[22]
Monjo's grandfather, Ferdinand N. Monjo Sr., was a wealthyNew York City-basedfur trader andshipowner as heir to theMonjo Company.[23][24] Monjo's brother, Ferdinand N. Monjo III (1924-1978), was an author ofhistorical fiction for children, who also worked as the editor-in-chief forLittle Golden Books as well aschildren's literature divisions atAmerican Heritage Press,Harper and Row, andCoward, McCann and Geoghegan.[25] Through Ferdinand III, Monjo is the uncle ofscreenwriter,television producer andactorJustin Monjo.[26][23]
Monjo's maternal great-great-grandfather wasLouis Joseph Bahin, a French-born painter who focused on the aristocratic class in theAntebellum South.[27][28][29]
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Malaysia 1987–1989 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Indonesia 1989–1992 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Pakistan 1992–1995 | Succeeded by |
| Ambassadors to theFederation of Malaya (1957–1963) |  | |
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| Ambassadors to theFederation of Malaysia (1963–present) | ||
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| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
