Here is part one of a new web series from Ecotone featuring Daryl Copeland.
Month: December 2012
We can’t do effective diplomacy from a bunker
iPolitics
Getting beyond “the bubble” requires more than social media skills and may involve risk, but that comes with the territory.
Diplomatic Security: A Necessarily Elusive Goal?
A few weeks ago I was asked by a journalist to comment on the role of military police guards at Canadian diplomatic missions. As I had never worked in an embassy or consulate under those circumstances, I was unable to be of much help.
Still, the query got me thinking about the matter of diplomatic security in general, and, more particularly, about the question of how much is too much.
The more that I reflect on that subject, the less certain I am about the prospect of reaching any hard or fast conclusions.
Clearly, the Government of Canada must accord high priority to ensuring the well-being of its employees. Occupational hazards must be mitigated and workplaces maintained to a high standard of safety and security. This applies anywhere, and nowhere more so than in the case of nationals posted to fragile or failing states, or in conflict zones.
That said, in an overly securitized environment the conduct of effective international political communication becomes very difficult.
Staying “in the bubble”, and especially a fortified bubble, is a prescription for isolation from the broader community.
For a diplomat, that spells disaster.
Simply put, you can’t do diplomacy from inside a forbidding, bunker-like chancery which few will feel comfortable entering if they must endure an ordeal of intrusive registration procedures and searches.
Outside of the embassy, the practice of public – let alone guerrilla – diplomacy is a non-starter in the company of a close protection unit.
When you turn diplomatic missions into something resembling Fort Apache, and when diplomatic practice is limited by inordinate restrictions arising from concerns over personal safety, the establishment of vital local connections, and of relationships based on confidence, trust and respect, is next to impossible.