bout de papier, Vol. 19, No. 2 (2002) — Summer/Fall 2002 // Été/Automne 2002, p. 3
A of bout de papier is devoted to cov- considerable proportion of this Issue erage of the PAFSO Award in recognition of excellence in the Canadian Foreign Service. At first glance, this might seem a bit self-congratulatory, but atter some reflection, perhaps even the most hardened of cynics among us might recognize that it isn’t. I actually do believe that it isn’t self-congratulatory to recognize the dedication and, corny as it may sound, the real sacrifices, that foreign service officers contribute to doing their jobs on a routine basis. And I think it’s useful to remind those not part of the daily foreign service grind just what is involved in doing this technical, specialized and complex work.
A number of themes were common in the speeches made by all four award-winners (for details on their individual accomplishments, please see the article on page 29). One of them was the sense of teamwork that, I am delighted to say, is pervasive in the foreign service culture. The award winners may have epitomized the best of what Canada’s foreign service has to offer, but all of the winners attirmed that they were part of a dense and interconnected network of foreign service practitioners (rotational, non-rotational, Canada-based, locally engaged) who together form a well-oiled (if, occasionally, idiosyncratically-designed) machine. It is this machine which permits us to represent all that is best about Canada to the world abroad, and to Canadians abroad.
Another theme which ran through the remarks by the winners is the sense of sacrifice involved in foreign service – not in a whining, self-pitying sort of way (we all had a pretty good idea of what we were getting into when we signed up), but rather, as a mark of respect for our spouses, children, parents, friends and relatives, who are themselves dragged along as part of the package. To paraphrase two of the winners, we thank our families and friends for putting up with our responsibility to help other Canadians at times when our families need us the most. And whatever the motivations that propel us through a foreign service career, we sure aren’t in it for the money.
Speaking of not being in it for the money, the PAFSO awards and annual dinner would not be possible without long volunteer hours being contributed by the organizers, among whom were Kathy Aleong, Vicken Koundakjian, Bob Peck, Debra Hulley, Susan Courville, Caroline Guimond, Geoff Gartshore, Larissa Blavatska, Ken Wong and George Grande, who I mention here because this is probably the only place they are going to be publicly thanked in writing. I would like to echo the special recognition (on page
35) of the judges for the Award, who put in many more Hours than Even They had expected in making the difficult décisions involved in winnowing the Field of exceptional candidates down to four winners. L’APASE a tenu son assemblée annuelle le 26 septembre, 2002, au cours de laquelle un rapport sur les activités de bout de papier a été déposé. Voici quelques points saillants de ce rapport pour ceux qui n’ont pu y assister. bout continue de fonctionner dans les limites de son budget, et ses recettes d’abonnement et de publicité augmentent (les annonceurs absorbent plus de la moitié du coût de production de bout). Nous espérons que les lecteurs pourront constater d’ici peu que nous avons adopté un calendrier de publication plus régulier et que la créativité inspirée de nos concepteurs, Acart Communications, continuera de soigner la présentation matérielle et l’âme du magazine. Malgré les lourdes charges de travail, les pressions familiales et l’attrait d’autres loisirs, bout continue de bénéficier de contributions bénévoles d’une qualité remarquable. Le présent numéro de bout illustre bien ce dernier point. Les responsabilités et les privilèges du service extérieur y sont examinées – par Andrew Caddell, dans son article « On Being Canadian Abroad », et par James Trottier et Liza Linklater, qui nous offrent un rare survol du Bhoutan. Susan Elliott, pour sa part, apporte un émouvant témoignage à notre regretté collègue Mike Shah, sous la forme d’une bourse commémorative d’études supérieures. Hector Mackenzie a déniché un autre joyau dans les archives du ministère, et Roger Lucy prouve de nouveau que, tout comme l’histoire, on a plutôt tendance à réinventer la politique étrangère qu’à l’inventer. Kurt Jensen poursuit ses critiques de livres portant sur le renseignement, tandis que les inconditionnels d’A Aalto resteront, comme toujours, médusés par sa plus récente énigme Enioy!
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Originally published in / Publié à l’origine dans bout de papier, Vol. 19, No. 2 (2002) — Summer/Fall 2002 // Été/Automne 2002, p. 3. Read the rest of this issue / Lire le reste de ce numéro →
