The Foreign Service Journal, October 2014
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PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN FOREIGN SERVICE ASSOCIATION OCTOBER 2014 THE NEW SPECIALISTS FLYING MONKEYS IN THE EMBASSY WORKING WITH WOMEN IN AFGHANISTAN FOREIGN October 2014 SERVICE Volume 91, No. 10 FOCUS FOREIGN SERVICE SPECIALISTS AFSA NEWS Celebrating the Life of Career Ambassador Terence A. Todman / 49 The New Specialists / 21 State VP Voice: Conversions and Here is a look at the wide world of Foreign Service Specialists. the Foreign Service / 50 We explore who they are, the many critical things they do, and how their work FAS VP Voice: Member Survey Identifies Needed Changes / 51 has evolved with our changing times. Deputy Secretary Burns Meets AFSA BY FRANCESCA KELLY Board, Committee Members / 51 USAID VP Voice: The Cost of Longer CPC Tours / 52 Specialists Reflect on Their Work / 33 A USAID History Lesson / 53 A compilation. AFSA Holds Town Hall for State Constituency / 53 CFC: Support AFSA’s Fund for Best. Job. Ever. American Diplomacy / 54 BY WILLIAM MIDDLETON Adair Lecture Explores Diplomacy- Development Relationship / 55 King for a Day Active After Active Duty: BY W. PAUL MARGULIES JR. FSO Bikes Across the U.S. / 56 Congressman Seeks Insight A To-Do List from a Financial Management Ocer on FS Life / 57 BY AN FMO AT AN ASIA POST AFSA Program for Interns: Amb. John Limbert on Life in the FS / 58 Despite Challenges and Change, We Make a Dierence Book Notes: Writing as Therapy BY HENRY MENDELSOHN for PTSD / 59 AFSA Welcomes First HECFAA Intern / 59 DACOR Keeps Foreign Service FEATURES Community Connected / 60 A Conversation with FSO Author Learning from Women’s Successes in Afghanistan / 38 Matthew Palmer / 61 Family Member Matters: Sensitivity and technical know-how are at a premium when working Letter to My Global Nomads / 62 in these fragile and insecure environments. AFSA Awards Nearly $200,000 in Financial Aid Scholarships / 63 BY SANDYA DAS COLUMNS Flying Monkeys in the Embassy / 41 President’s Views / 7 Two Secrets of the Foreign Service For 24 hours, the most heavily fortified building in Colombo BY ROBERT J. SILVERMAN was compromised by a monkey. Letter from the Editor / 8 BY CHRISTOPHER TEAL Specialists Today BY SHAWN DORMAN Speaking Out / 17 FS KNOW-HOW What Specialists Want You to Know COMPILED BY Child Custody Issues in Foreign Service Divorces / 44 FRANCESCA KELLY Here is a primer on the custody issues involved in Foreign Service Reflections / 73 Refugee to Diplomat: A Journey divorces and how to approach them. BY TONY HORNIK-TRAN BY SUSAN KEOGH, ANN LA PORTA AND DIANE HOLT DEPARTMENTS Letters / 9 Talking Points / 11 Books / 68 Local Lens / 74 MARKETPLACE Classifieds / 64 On the cover: Diplomatic Courier Ed Bent, at right, manages pouches in Frankfurt, July 2009. Real Estate / 70 Photo courtesy of Inside a U.S. Embassy, 2011. Below, a school for Afghan refugee children. Index to Advertisers / 72 Photo: Embassy Islamabad. THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | OCTOBER 2014 5 FOREIGN SERVICE Editor Shawn Dorman: [email protected] Managing Editor Susan Brady Maitra: [email protected] Associate Editor Debra Blome: [email protected] CONTACTS AFSA Headquarters: LABOR MANAGEMENT Editorial/Publications Specialist (202) 338-4045; Fax (202) 338-6820 General Counsel Brittany DeLong: [email protected] State Department AFSA O ce: Sharon Papp: [email protected] Ad & Circulation Manager (202) 647-8160; Fax (202) 647-0265 Deputy General Counsel Ed Miltenberger: [email protected] USAID AFSA O ce: Zlatana Badrich: [email protected] (202) 712-1941; Fax (202) 216-3710 Labor Management Specialist Art Director FCS AFSA O ce: James Yorke: [email protected] Caryn Suko Smith (202) 482-9088; Fax (202) 482-9087 Senior Sta Attorney Neera Parikh: [email protected] Editorial Intern GOVERNING BOARD Sta Attorney Trevor Smith President Raeka Safai: [email protected] Robert J. Silverman: [email protected] Advertising Intern Sta Attorney Secretary Angela Dickey: [email protected] Allan Saunders Andrew Large: [email protected] Treasurer Hon. Charles A. Ford: [email protected] Labor Management Counselor Contributing Editor State Vice President VACANT Steven Alan Honley Matthew K. Asada: [email protected] Executive Assistant USAID Vice President Editorial Board Lindsey Botts: [email protected] Sharon Wayne: [email protected] Jim DeHart, Chairman USAID Senior Labor Management Adviser FCS Vice President Hon. Gordon S. Brown Douglas Broome: [email protected] Steve Morrison: [email protected] Stephen W. Buck USAID Sta Assistant FAS Vice President Ruth Hall Chioma Dike: [email protected] Maria C. Livingston David Mergen: [email protected] Richard McKee Retiree Vice President MEMBER SERVICES Beth Payne Lawrence Cohen: lawrencecohenassociates@ Member Services Director John G. Rendeiro Jr. hotmail.com Janet Hedrick: [email protected] Duncan Walker State Representatives Membership Representative Tracy Whittington Clayton Bond VACANT Clayton Bond (AFSA Governing Board liaison) Ronnie Catipon Retiree Counselor Todd Crawford Todd Thurwachter: [email protected] THE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS Chuck Fee Coordinator, Retiree Counseling PROFESSIONALS Neeru Lal and Legislation The Foreign Service Journal (ISSN 0146-3543), 2101 E Ken Kero-Mentz Matthew Sumrak: [email protected] Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 is pub- Ronita Macklin Administrative Assistant and O ce Manager lished monthly, with combined January-February and Elise Mellinger Ana Lopez: [email protected] July-August issues, by the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA), a private, nonprofit organization. Homeyra Mokhtarzada Material appearing herein represents the opinions of the Nancy Rios-Brooks COMMUNICATIONS writers and does not necessarily represent the views of Sue Saarnio Director of Communications the Journal, the Editorial Board or AFSA. Writer queries USAID Representatives Kristen Fernekes: [email protected] and submissions are invited, preferably by e-mail. The Director of New Media Journal is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, Jeri Dible photos or illustrations. Advertising inquiries are invited. Andrew Levin Ásgeir Sigfússon: [email protected] The appearance of advertisements herein does not imply FCS Representative Publications Manager endorsement of the services or goods o¥ered. Journal Shawn Dorman: [email protected] subscription: AFSA member–$20, included in annual William Kutson dues; student–$30; institution–$40; others–$50; Single FAS Representative Mark Petry Online Communications Specialist issue–$4.50. For foreign surface mail, add $18 per year; BBG Representative Andre de Nesnera Je¥ Lau: [email protected] foreign airmail, $36 per year. Periodical postage paid APHIS Representative Mark C. Prescott Special Awards and Outreach Coordinator at Washington, D.C., and at additional mailing o¨ces. Perri Green: [email protected] Indexed by the Public A¥airs Information Services (PAIS). Retiree Representatives Marshall Adair Speakers Bureau Director Email: [email protected] Hon. David Greenlee VACANT Phone: (202) 338-4045 F. Allen “Tex” Harris ADVOCACY Fax: (202) 338-8244 Hon. Edward Marks Advocacy Director Web: www.afsa.org/fsj STAFF Javier Cuebas: [email protected] © American Foreign Service Association, 2014 Executive Director Senior Legislative Assistant Ian Houston: [email protected] David Murimi: [email protected] PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. Executive Assistant to the President Professional Issues and Policy Adviser Postmaster: Send address changes to Patrick Bradley: [email protected] Janice Weiner: [email protected] AFSA BUSINESS DEPARTMENT SCHOLARSHIPS Attn: Address Change Director of Finance Scholarship Director 2101 E Street NW Femi Oshobukola: [email protected] Lori Dec: [email protected] Washington DC 20037-2990 Controller Scholarship Assistant Kalpna Srimal: [email protected] Jonathan Crawford: [email protected] Assistant Controller Cory Nishi: [email protected] www.afsa.org 6 OCTOBER 2014 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL PRESIDENT’S VIEWS Two Secrets of the Foreign Service BY ROBERT J. SILVERMAN his month let’s take a look at The legal team at AFSA is an agent for change, and the two institutions of the Foreign Senior Living Foundation helps retirees in need. Service that deserve wider T recognition and appreciation. e AFSA legal division and the Senior Over the years, AFSA lawyers, alongside gap and helps, from one-time grants for a Living Foundation of the American Foreign representatives from Gays and Lesbians wheelchair or hospital co-pay to monthly Service are each important to our careers in Foreign Aairs Agencies, continued to visits from a volunteer and support over the and our moral well-being. challenge homophobic biases. course of one’s retirement. e foundation e legal team at AFSA is an agent for Today societal views have changed, and helps a lot of Foreign Service folks, more change. In U.S. history, change often begins policies are catching up. At the start of my than 1,200 since it started in 1988. not through legislation or executive at Foreign Service career, that wasn’t the case. I have seen it intervene to prevent the but in case-by-case legal challenges that Personally, I wondered about the justica- eviction of a Foreign Service widow, who go beyond the individual context to alter tion for this policy, but like so many others I was selling her personal possessions to pay procedures, laws and eventually societal did nothing, unfortunately. And to be hon- her rent and medical expenses. In another consensus. at has been the way of the est, AFSA itself as an organization was not case, a retired FS Oce Management Spe- AFSA legal team. in the forefront of challenging this policy. cialist needed monthly assistance as her Here is one example from recent his- AFSA lawyers were. eir role in the diabetes worsened and she was paying for tory. Two decades ago, being gay or lesbian system is to advocate for individuals, and insulin out-of-pocket. in the Foreign Service could have led to they did their jobs well. In the end, they Here’s the problem: the Foreign Service a determination that one was an unac- also helped shape policy, under the old leadership of the foundation, people like ceptable security risk, resulting in the loss common-law approach of one case at a Joan Clark, Bill Harrop, Roz Ridgway, Alan of one’s clearances and the end of one’s time.