State Magazine 2003-01: Iss 464

43 Pages·20.8 MB·English

“UNITE DgighATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE
“; January 2008 >) ‘
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Time U a ils.d@ ites
A Community
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Dobriansky greets Kassie Neou, executive
of Democracies director of the Cambodian Institute of Human
Rights, at the Community of Democracies
SEER AOLkL l c Lisle)
State
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Contents
Department of State «© United States of America
10 Office of the Month: Art in Embassies
COLUMNS
They hang American culture on embassy walls.
: 15 Post of the Month: Banjul, The Gambia ee ee
A Africa’s smallest country is on the move. Direct from the D.G.
«* 18 Getting SMART
co
\ = The Department streamlines its messaging systems. DEPARTMENTS
“3 =
19 From Warthog to Warehouse
Lettto teher Edsito r
A former aircraft plant now holds household effects.
21 ‘Kamp Kabul’ Int heN ews
The amenities may be limited but the rewards are limitless. Medical Report
24 Pickering Fellows
People Like You
Program continues to attract talented candidates.
Personnel Actions
FSN Conference
Forum stimulates useful dialogue. Obituaries
Artist Valentina DuBasky and U.S. Understanding Across Cultures
Ambassador to Estonia Joseph Working with Americans has its challenges.
DeThomas discuss her work at
a reception in the ambassador's Hungarian Health Initiative
residence in Tallinn. ‘
The ambassador leads a cancer awareness campaign.
“6
Putting Art
Girls, as well as boys,
can now attend school
in Afghanistan. Under the
Taliban, girls over the age
of eight were denied an
education. Now, 30-35
percent of all students
are girls.
SPbHahyolo dltgyo s on
SECRETARY COLIN L. POWELL
Starting Off the
Jew Year Right
c January 2001, when I first addressed the men and women welcome facelift. The Associated General Contractors of
of the State Department, I said that I looked forward to America named the Foggy Bottom complex the best federal ren-
advancing President Bush’s foreign policy as well as to being ovation project in the Washington Metropolitan Area. The
chief executive officer of the Department and leading its dedi- Employee Services Center now has state-of-the-art communica-
cated employees. tions and office equipment. Soon, we will have a sleeker, more
In just two years, we have accomplished much together for modern look in the corridors that will improve aesthetics and
our country and the world. There is much more that we will ease navigation at headquarters. The 3,000 square-foot expan-
accomplish together in 2003. I want to devote this opening col- sion of the Columbia Plaza Child Care Center is near comple-
umn of 2003 to a subject near and dear to this CEO’s heart: the tion and we now offer a child care subsidy program for eligible
quality of life improvements that Under Secretary for employees here in the United States.
Management Grant Green and his team are making for our @ We have disbursed $2 million in student loan repayments to
employees here and abroad. more than 400 employees, making the Department’s program the
Deputy Secretary Richard Armitage, Under Secretary Green largest in the federal government.
and I believe that good management is good leadership. People @ We have entered a partnership with America Online to equip
are any organization’s most valuable asset, and good State U.S.-sponsored overseas schools with the latest learning tools.
Department managers help good people make diplomacy work @ In 2002, we hired record numbers—some 1,200 Foreign
for our nation. We want to see good management practiced Service and 700 Civil Service employees, a net gain of about 780
throughout the State Department, both at home and overseas. Foreign Service and 280 Civil Service employees over attrition.
And we are confident that the various members of our M family That’s more people to help us meet daunting 21st century chal-
will lead by example. lenges and relieve the stress of understaffing.
We depend on our first-rate administrators to equip and run @ To expand training opportunities for our employees across
our worldwide operations and our highly skilled information the globe, the Foreign Service Institute’s new FasTrac and
technology specialists to keep our communications systems up SmartForce distance learning programs offer thousands of
and running. Our human resources personnel and our instruc- courses through Internet or OpenNet.
tors at the Foreign Service Institute must work in close partner- We have awarded new contracts to improve performance
ship to get us the right people in the right places at the right time and customer service in handling household effects. Now, a
with the right training. Our resource management team must single company will handle all of an employee’s shipments.
ensure that we find the best match of money and policy priori- Liability also coverage has been increased significantly.
ties. Our consular officers must stand ever vigilant on the front- @ We obtained a new zip code for personal overseas pouch
lines of our homeland’s defense, helping us prevent the entry of mail, shortening delivery times and eliminating irradiation
those who would do harm, even as we maintain the fundamen- damage.
tal openness to the world that gives our country so much @ We have expanded access to business class for our employees
dynamism. In today’s heightened threat environment, our diplo- and family members when they must travel in excess of 14
matic security team must stand ready 24/7, protecting our hours. We looked at the provisions of the Fly America Act and
employees, information and facilities. made it easier to use foreign flag carriers between two overseas
Whatever the component of our M family, the goal of all the points, even if the trip originates or ends in the United States.
purchasing, planning, hiring, wiring, training, tracking, coordi- And we have updated our airfreight regulations to reflect the
nating and constructing is to create the most secure, efficient and needs of a modern American family.
hospitable conditions possible, so that the Department’s men and @ To reduce the disincentive of overseas postings to Foreign
women can best serve our country. Under Secretary Green and | Service employees nearing retirement, we have worked suc-
are working closely to ensure that this happens. Here are high- cessfully within the Administration and with Congress to enact
lights from 2002: “virtual locality pay.”
@ The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations has put in place @ And we are well on the way to meeting our goal of bringing
our first strategic capitalization plan for constructing new, secure all 30,000 of our employees onto the OpenNet Plus system, put-
facilities and rehabilitating existing structures at our foreign mis- ting Internet access and e-mail on each of your unclassified
sions. During 2002, 15 new embassy complexes were under con- workstations by the end of 2003.
struction and 45 rehabilitation projects were under way. These are just a few of the improvements we have made to
@ We are making great improvements in our domestic facilities. support our people. Others are in the works. Stay tuned for
At the Harry S Truman Building, the cafeteria has undergone a more in the New Year. @
2 State Magazine
OEO hrhmLmEEL L—ONSSS
RS TO THE EDITOR
Where Credit
enthusiasm made six months of total year career has been breaking the
Is Really Due immersion in the dismal science both bonds with those with whom we've
interesting and fun. He established a shared the “post” experience. But |
In the October issue, Warrick tradition of excellence that happily has also believe life abroad offers our
Elrod rightly notes in his letter to the been continued. children many advantages that far
editor the key contribution the late Intensive economics training is one outweigh the disadvantages.
Jacques Reinstein made in establish- of the most notable FSI success stories, Our biggest concern over the
ing the much-praised economics- but it would not have happened with- years was how our sons would
training program at the Foreign out Warrick Elrod’s contributions. adjust when they returned to the
Service Institute. United States. I recently asked both
Walter A. Lundy
He is too modest to mention his Retired FSO if they would have preferred to
own important role in setting up the Arlington, Va. remain stateside rather than spend
program—probably more noteworthy their early lives overseas. Their
than that of any other individual's. | More on Moving answer: a resounding “NO.”
was a member of the first FSI econom- Our sons, both college students,
ics training class that ran from January I enjoyed Ryan Uyehara’s article realize their experiences abroad,
through June 1966. Mr. Elrod did in the November issue describing a interacting with people of different
much of the teaching himself and was teen’s view of moving as a member religions and cultures cannot be
in daily contact with all 16 members of of the Foreign Service community. | equaled. They now have a “world-
the class. None of us had ever previ- am confident the article accurately view.”
ously studied economics seriously. portrays his attitudes and feelings.
Susan Street
His conscientious supervision and [ agree that the most difficult chal-
FMA
encouragement and his unbounded lenge we have faced during our 13-
Panama
From the Editor
The Art in Embassies program, our Office of the Month, permits
ambassadors to select outstanding examples of American art to display
in their official residences while they’re serving abroad. After a modest
beginning in 1963, during President Kennedy’s Administration, the pro-
gram now has approximately 3,500 original works of art worth an esti- A photograph on page
mated $85 million in some 180 embassy residences. 12 in November’s issue
The program offers American artists a unique way to become known shows April Spear
in other countries and, as the program’s first director, Nancy Kefauver, assisting a customer at
said, does “something constructive about those bare white walls in the the passport desk in
embassies abroad.” AAFSW’s housing sec-
Bare walls were pretty much what those returning to the former U.S. tion. The caption in-
Embassy in Kabul found last December after U.S.-led coalition forces correctly identified
defeated the Taliban. The quarters may have been cramped and the food her as Marguerite Fry.
undistinguished, but life at “Kamp Kabul” was anything but boring,
according to Sally Hodgson, a public diplomacy officer with the Bureau of In the article titled “Understand-
Population, Refugees and Migration, who spent six months there. ing the Past” by Valeria Brunori in
The incidence of breast cancer is rising in Hungary and the U.S. the November issue, we incorrectly
Embassy has joined that country’s government and others to forge a edited the text to say that Marcus
healthy nation program focused on prevention. This spring, the embassy Aurelius built the wall around the
will host an American scientist in residence who will help implement a city in the third century. Ms. Brunori,
healthy lifestyles program. Ambassador Nancy Goodman Brinker, who the embassy curator, corrects our
has spent most of her life fighting breast cancer, is leading the charge. error by reminding us that, “The for-
Finally, from all of us at State Magazine to all of you, Happy New Year. tified wall around Rome was begun
by Emperor L. Domitius Aurelianus
o;—s
in 271 AD and was completed under
the reign of Emperor Probus.”
January 2003 3
hetirees Honored
or Their Service
Known for his enjoyment of mingling with the “troops,”
Secretary Colin L. Powell recently presided proudly at a
special ceremony marking the retirement of 111 Depart-
ment employees with a combined service of 3,500 years.
“As you retire from the Foreign Service or Civil
Service, you take much with you, but you also leave
much behind,” the Secretary told the honorees gathered
Nov. 15 in the Benjamin Franklin Room before a crowd of
more than 100 guests.
Whether as passport examiners or political officers,
administrative assistants or assistant secretaries, the
Secretary said, “You made important contributions to the
success of American diplomacy.”
Ambassador Ruth A. Davis, director general of the
Foreign Service and director of Human Resources, con-
gratulated the honorees for having made the “A List”
through lifelong careers of dedicated puolic service reach-
ing back nearly a half century, to 1957. MGPbirhycoo hstasoe l
The group included eight ambassadors, an assistant Colleagues applaud Mildred Carter for her long, dedicated service.
secretary and employees from every bureau and nearly
every Foreign Service post. Secretary Powell observed that with so many languages represented among the
retirees, they could start a language school of their own.
While the retirees’ average length of service was 30
enor General Ruth Davis years, Mildred Carter, who started as a secretary typist in
Buliesses retirees and their 1957, took a bow as the longest-serving employee.
LSEi e AB. i
GPbMrhiyooc sthsoa el
KrPDbhaeyov cteko e
State Magazine
Videoconferencing: Dialogues
with Communities in Need
Preparing a post for a possible evacuation, whether the Family Liaison Office and representatives from the
authorized or ordered, is no easy feat. All members of the Office of Resource Management, the Office of
community must be accounted for. Who is staying? Who Allowances, the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, the
is leaving? How do employees and spouses get Operations Center and the military.
allowance payments? Who can apply to reside in a for- Ninety percent of the information about post evacua-
eign safehaven? What are the differences between tions is straightforward and available in FLO’s publica-
Department of State regulations and those of the mili- tions and on its web site. “It’s the remaining 10 percent
tary? Has everyone leaving post provided Washington that we worry about,” says Faye G. Barnes, director of the
with contact information? Who’s flying out on what Family Liaison Office. “I’m speaking of those little twists
plane? What about schooling for the kids? The details are and turns that aren’t answered in the Q’s and A’s, the
mind-boggling. interpretation of the regulations or special circumstances
When management at the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait held some families face and require careful attention on the
a contingency planning workshop to prepare their com- part of FLO,” she says.
munity for a possible evacuation, the exercise raised even The videoconference with Kuwait lasted one-and-a-
more questions. While printed material can prove a trust- half hours and with all assembled—in Washington and at
ed source, post management sought a more creative way the post—addressed many looming concerns and helped
to answer questions still pending in the minds of their to better prepare all involved in the event of a crisis. This
community. Working through community liaison officer is the second time the Family Liaison Office has hosted a
Lois Riffle, the post held a digital videoconference with videoconference with an overseas post.
Action officers on the Washington side
prepare to answer evacuation questions
posed by the embassy in Kuwait.
KrPbDheayov cteko e
January 2003
N THE NEW
Recycling Helps
and children up to 5 years old. Its curriculum promotes
strong language skills and social development with
State’s Families classes in computers, dance and foreign languages. If you
need additional information on Diplotots or tuition assis-
tance, call [phone].
Are you aware that the Department's recycling pro- k ’ , = = listing One Mi Ce Sac1k g CUapi l dys My
gram generates over $40,000 a year in tuition assistance y Fi r v4 = fe
for families with children at our Diplotots Child
Development Center? Child care can be a 20 percent bur-
den on some families’ incomes. Please remember that
when you recycle newspapers, mixed and white paper,
cans, plastics, glass and toner cartridges, you are really
helping deserving families and their kids. The Office of
Facilities Maintenance Services is seeking to expand the
recycling program beyond its current sites. If you do not
have access to recycling resources, call (202) 647-6544.
Your efforts make a difference for our kids.
Diplotots is run by one of the most highly rated child WPbKaahyrlo oktlioi nn a
care providers in the Washington area, and it provides
Bureau of Administration recyclers help Diplotots feed the frog contain-
full-time and drop-in care from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. for infants ing recycled cans.
Runners Raise Funds
In addition to the Race for Life, the United Nations
More than three dozen members of the U.S. Embassy held a health fair and distributed information about
community participated in a three-kilometer run through AIDS prevention. Several other races were held on the
the center of Kiev to raise money to fight Ukraine’s grow- same day in other cities around Ukraine.
ing AIDS epidemic. They joined 3,600 Ukrainians, includ- Combating AIDS and preventing discrimination against
ing the minister of health, several pop stars and an Olympic people with HIV in Ukraine are key embassy priorities.
gold medalist in the country’s first annual race of its kind. USAID provides grants to organizations that help educate
The race raised roughly $5,000 for equipment and the high-risk groups, supports a study of access to reproduc-
renovation of an AIDS hospice. Ukraine has an estimated tive health services for HIV-positive women and funds a
half million HIV-positive citizens and one of the fastest program to prevent transmission of HIV from mothers to
growing rates of infection in the world. AIDS awareness children. U.S. Department of Labor programs support non-
activities are relatively new to the country. discriminatory practices and services in the workplace.
6 State Magazine
IN THE NEWS
Department employees had been victimized by this
scheme. Some had not even realized there were fraudulent
charges on their Citibank credit cards. Special agent Tim
Pittman assisted Department of Justice trial attorneys dur-
ing the plea bargain phase of the case and the subsequent
investigation of Ms. Green for obstruction of justice.
The former contractor faces a maximum of five years in
prison and a $250,000 fine at her January sentencing hear-
ing. As part of her plea agreement, she acknowledged
that an increase in sentence would be appropriate for
obstruction of justice for acts she committed after her
indictment, including making a threatening phone call to
a potential witness. Her three co-conspirators have also
pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.
Diplomatic Security reminds employees to diligently
protect their personal information and pay close atten-
tion to their monthly credit card statements. Suspicious
charges on Department Citibank travel cards should be
reported immediately to Citibank and the Office of
BPbhoyod teon /Ledingham/Masterfile Financial Management and Policy. @
Former Contractor Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud
Liberty Dances on
Former State Department contract employee Crystal N.
Green pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to com- the Embassy’s Wall
mit wire fraud in the U.S. District Court for the District of
Columbia on Sept. 18. d
According to the plea agreement, Ms. Green, who
processed paperwork concerning employee travel credit
cards, used her position to defraud money from several
Department employees. She passed credit card and iden-
tifying information, under her control as part of her offi-
cial duties, to three co-conspirators.
On at least 18 occasions in May 2001, Ms. Green and her
co-conspirators posed as Department employees, provided
Western Union with the employees’ credit card and person-
al information, and then requested that money from those
credit cards be paid to them and others without the employ-
ees’ authorization. She and one of her co-conspirators even
used employee credit cards for personal purchases.
Green admitted in court documents to defrauding
employees and others of $12,303.
An alert Diplomatic Security employee in the San
Francisco field office learned of the scheme when
Western Union called her to verify approval for a wire
transfer from her Department Citibank credit card.
Apparently, someone with her credit card and personal
information was attempting to transfer funds to another
unknown individual. The employee notified the DS
Office of Professional Responsibility and the office start- Yamin Georgian, a Helsinki International School student, joins
ed an investigation. Ambassador Bonnie McElveen-Hunter next to a mural called
DS special agent Clay Swisher conducted a 13-month “Liberty Dancing.” Yamin painted her mural on a wall of the
chancery.
investigation that revealed at least 17 other State
January 2003
The State Department recently hosted
nine students participating in Columbia
University’s Serrano Scholars Program as
part of an initiative to prepare nontradi-
tional college students for leadership roles
in foreign affairs and national defense.
Human Resources recruiters briefed the
students about the different career opportu-
nities available in the Department, including
the Foreign Service and Civil Service, as well
as the various student programs State spon-
sors. Participants toured the Diplomatic
Reception Rooms and the Operations Center
and had a brief visit with Secretary Powell.
The Serrano Scholars Program is admin-
istered through a partnership with Hostos
Community College, the City University of
New York and Columbia University’s
School of General Studies and School of
International and Public Affairs. The pro-
gram honors José Serrano, U.S. representa-
tive for New York’s 16th District, who was Secretary Powell with Serrano Scholars.
instrumental in the program’s conception.
Last spring, the Department awarded a $1 million scholarships that include tuition and fees, plus stipends
grant to Columbia to start the program. This year, State for full-time study for six years—two at Hostos
awarded the university a $1.5 million grant. The program Community College and two each at Columbia’s Schools
is currently funded by grants from the Departments of of General Studies and International Public Affairs.
State, Education and Defense. There are four students from academic year 2001-02
The Serrano Scholars Program provides students with and five from year 2002-03.
President Signs Foti Bill
President Bush has signed a private bill granting
Anisha Goveas Foti eligibility for permanent residency
status. Anisha is the widow of diplomatic courier Seth
Foti, who was tragically killed in the crash of Gulf Air
Flight 62 off the coast of Bahrain on Aug. 23, 2000.
Seth and Anisha had been married only two-and-a-
half months. He was the sixth person killed in the line of
duty in the 82-year history of the Diplomatic Courier
_ my Service.
Pd
Congressman Tom Lantos (D-Calif.) was instrumental
in the passage of the bill the President signed Nov. 5.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Bahrain Johnny Young;
Kendall Montgomery, director of the Office of Casualty
PoAFcofhnot oiuitsr oht ae sy Assistance; and others in the Bureau of Diplomatic
Seth and Anisha Foti in Hong Kong. Security worked tirelessly on Anisha’s behalf.
8 State Magazine