Following a meeting with Commission I of Parliament in Jakarta on May 20, Foreign Minister Sugiono insisted that the detention of Indonesian citizens aboard the Sumud flotilla should not be described as “kidnapping” or “hostage-taking.”

“This is not a case of kidnapping or hostage-taking,” Sugiono said. “This is a case of a humanitarian aid ship being intercepted because Israel prohibits any ship from entering the area.”

Nine Indonesians — four journalists and five activists — were detained by Israel. And yet the Indonesian government’s first instinct was not outrage, not legal protest, not an uncompromising defense of its citizens, but the policing of language considered too harsh toward Israel. It was disgraceful.

Sugiono’s use of the word “prohibition” was not some harmless diplomatic refinement. Words in international politics are weapons. They establish legitimacy. They define who possesses authority and who does not. And by choosing the language of “prohibition,” Indonesia’s foreign minister effectively accepted the premise that Israel had the lawful right to stop civilian vessels and detain foreign nationals in the waters where the operation occurred.