bout de papier, Vol. 29, No. 4 (2016), pp. 18–22
And Life is what happened to Kathryn Hewlett-Jobes as she began her third posting as a Canadian diplômât in 1983. She would become one of Canada’s first diplomats to give birth abroad and stay at post.
Having been told that she could never have children, the last thing Kathryn expected six weeks into her posting to Manila was to be medically evacuated, prégnant, out of Northern Pakistan, where she was participating in her first Asian Development Bank (ADB) mission.
Kathryn was suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum, a rare and sévère form of nausea associated with pregnancy. However. as a sign of the times, her first misdiagnosis by a Doctor on the ground in Pakistan was that she was simply missing her husband. After her condition worsened, resulting in the emergency évacuation, she stabilized back in Manila and received the news oi what she calls her miracle pregnancy.
Then came the décision as to what tc do next.
“This really wasn’t on anyone’s planning horizon,” says Kathryn. “We had just arrived at post and we weren’t going tc
Kathryn was prohibited by the F« médical or sick leave for pregnancy
to any maternity or parental leave week of annual leave at home with
two weeks of annual leave over the
turn around and go back home. I didn” quite see what the fuss was about. We jus dealt with it, because that’s what you do ir the Foreign Service. You just deal with it
But fuss there was as Kathryn’s ambassador tried earnestly to convince her tc follow established practice, cut her posting short and return to Canada.
“His first instinct was probably a
protective one, but at the time I thought he | | was determined to ruin my Life,” says » | Kathryn. “He told me that I would lose
housing benefits, plus he could déclaré me
– | in abandonment of my post if I missed 1 | any work.” Kathryn was prohibited by the Foreign Service Directives from using médical or sick leave for pregnancy-related absences 1 | and was not entitled to any maternity or parental leave abroad. She would go on to ; | take one week of annual leave at home with f | her newborn and spread her remaining two weeks of annual leave over the following ; | month by working Half days. “Tt sounds more heroic than it was,” she. | says modestly. “I had a very supportive 1 | husband, [who was a] following spouse, and 1 | also full-time help at home… The logistics f | were challenging because I breastfed as well. I was determined to do that.” Kathryn and her husband were becoming accustomed to forging new ground. Not only does she recount being the first married t | Woman to be hired into the Canadian) | Foreign Service in 1975 and the only female
oreign Service Directives from using -related absences and was not entitled abroad. She would go on to take one her newborn and spread her remaining : following month by working Half days.
t | officer working at the ADB when she started t | her posting in Manila, but her husband was 1 | also the first person to resign from the” | German Foreign Service. He did so to follow
– | his wife’s career. But like so much in Life, thèse groundx | Breaking décisions were not plotted step by step.
“T’m not entirely sure how it came about. It was a séries of fairly innocent décisions,” recalls Kathryn. “When we met, he was with the German diplomatic service and I was with the Canadian. Getting together would have meant one of us leaving our career. He chose to leave his. The Quick answer is because he had a broader skillset than I did. It was also the only way. I knew I didn’t have what it Took to be the following spouse in the German diplomatic service.”
While she may have been the first to stay at post to have her baby, Kathryn was not alone among her génération of Women Foreign Service Officers facing tough décisions in starting a Family. Up until the 1990s, staying at post meant foregoing maternity benefits and returning to full-time work just days after the birth. One dedicated colleague Even chose to use télex to work from her maternity Ward only Hours after giving birth abroad.
“Taking maternity leave back then meant stepping seriously off the career path. None of the Women who had babies back then did that,” says Kathryn. “You would have paid a serious career penalty.”
Maternity benefits were first included in the Unemployment Insurance Act in 1971 to give birth mothers 15 weeks of paid leave. Ten weeks of parental leave were then added in 1990 and, thereafter, several prégnant Foreign Service Officers would stay at post and receive benefits. It wasn’t until 2001, after new législation provided for 15 weeks of maternity leave and 35 weeks of parental leave, that a formal policy was developed for employées at post.
Ellen Ruth Zeisler, currently Director of the HR Renewal Task Force, was the officer charged in 2001 with drafting the new policy.
“There was considération being given at the time to all of the issues that concern our employées abroad,” recalls Ruth. “The department and bargaining agents sat down together and determined what was
“Taking maternity leave back ther career path. None of the Women w says Kathryn. “You would have
reasonable going forward in consideration of all the variables but set against the législation.”
No formal process was undertaken to cost out the expense to the Crown of an employée returning from post or staying for the duration of their posting.
“Tt was never an issue of what would be most cost-effective. That would have belied the Health of the Family,” says Ruth. “Rather, it was what would be reasonable given the employée and the FSDs.”
Ruth emphasizes that no two Family situations are alike; some employées were anxious to return home, particularly from high-pollution posts. Others could choose to augment or reduce their leave depending on their Family needs.
“T don’t know if anyone was ever out of the office six months to the day,” says Ruth. “Some a Little less, some a Little more. Thankfully, the législation allows for flexibility in how you adapt those plans. The approach that we Took was that you had a foundation upon which you could build and customize within a certain time-frame as set by the législation. It eased some of the angst.”
Fifteen years later, one constant remains: that much of Life is unplanned.
Kyle Sundstrom, a political officer in Mexico, and his wife, an immigration officer, knew They wanted to have children. But he agrées that there is a limit to what one can plan.
“We didn’t map it out strategically from the beginning, though we might be a Little more strategic if we have a second one,” says Kyle. “For us, we didn’t have support groups in Ottawa. We’re not from Ottawa, and we hadn’t been there long before we went to Paris on posting. The décision came down to whether we were comfortable just taking six months of parental leave.”
In the end, Kyle Took some leave with-out pay in addition to parental leave, and he and his wife were home together at their staff quarters in Mexico City to care for their new baby.
“We didn’t know what we were doing, we had to navigate the whole System
ourselves,” he says. “Neither of us has
1 meant stepping seriously off the ‘tho had babies back then did that,” : paid a serious career penalty.”
excellent Spanish, but we were able to hunker down and figure out what we were doing as parents. To be able to do that together was amazing.”
Still, the décision of when and where to have children remains a tough one for Foreign Service parents.
“This ties into a bigger issue and that’s Family planning according to posting cycles,” says Kyle. “The décision to have children is very much dépendent on jobs and the posting cycle and counting nine months back.”
He adds: “The uncertainty of the Foreign Service Life and moving from country to country is a huge stressor. Imagine doing that with a newborn or eight months prégnant.”
As Kyle says, “Changing jobs, moving, having children — thèse are the biggest and most stressful times of your Life. If you put them all together it’s extremely taxing on you and taxing on the Family. It’s not always clear what is the right thing to do.” Still, he counts his Family Lucky.
“There needs to be a balance. I Think six months is reasonable because it’s still quite generous compared to a lot of countries,” says Kyle.
Having just gone through the process, Kyle says it would be helpful to have a road-map or a repository of information available on having children abroad. Christine Climenhage, a Foreign Service Officer currently seconded to Treasury Board in Ottawa, agrées. She recently penned a paper with input from over 30 Foreign Service Officers in order to feed into a meeting of the Department’s Psychological Wellbeing in the Workplace Initiative.
Among the recommendations included in the paper is the provision of roadmaps for big Life events happening on posting, such as the birth of a Child. The paper suggests the development of a website or app detailing how to deal with emergency médical care overseas, as well as the need for greater support and pré-posting training for Family members.
Meanwhile, Kathryn is the first to recognize that Life for Women has changed dramatically from when she had her children in the Philippines in the 1980s. She says it is difficult for her daughter, now 30, to understand the barriers that once existed.
“It’s a Little bit disturbing for my génération, but then we say: well, what would success look like? We fought so hard to make the point that Women could do all the different kinds of functions,” says Kathryn.
Today, Foreign Service parents consistently Voice appréciation for the benefits that forerunners like Kathryn helped Secure over the years.
Doreen Steidle, a Foreign Service colleague who had her first Child in Ottawa in 1986 but remained at post for her second in 1997, sums it up best: “There have been many firsts on this maternity leave journey. We should celebrate the first Woman to have had the courage to have a Child abroad without benefits, as well as all those who broke ground as inch by inch the Department and the Government yielded to the pressure to Institute the benefits our working colleagues, and their Partners, now have.”
Yet, the final word at this juncture may rest with Kathryn: “In an idéal future, because we’re not there yet, we should not regard people having children as if They have chosen to have an exotic pet and it is entirely their responsibility to take care of this pet. It should be seen as They are doing something for Society at large because They are raising the next génération.”
Shauna Hemingway is currently on maternity leave from her position as Deputy Director G7/G20 in Ottawa. This follows postings to Mexico City, where she served as the economic counsellor, and Seoul as a political officer with accreditation to North Korea. Shauna previously worked as a staff reporter at the Toronto Star and then communications manager for the Kent Police in England.
qui eux, regardaient le conflit en direct, s’inquiétaient davantage que nous.
Pour le reste, la vie suivait son cours. On savait que nos téléphones étaient sur écoute et nos mouvements observés. Mais ce n’est pas la subtilité qui caractérisait les services de sécurité. On reconnaissait leurs agents rapidement. Air patibulaire, barbe de deux jours, blouson de cuir noir, jeans et, surtout, élégantes chaussettes blanches.
Dans la même veine, un jour où je parlais en français avec des collègues de l’ambassade à Amman, une troisième voix nous a interrompus poliment « Can you speak in English please? ». Alors que jeffectuais une visite « secrète » auprès du grand-rabbin de Damas, mon départ de sa résidence fut salué par des coups de sifflets de mes « suiveurs ». Pas très subtile, je vous disais.
Mais quand on voit tout ce qui se passe en Syrie maintenant, carnages, attentats terroristes, destruction sans fin et ces millions de réfugiés, je ne peux qu’être nostalgique de cette époque.
Me reviennent en mémoire nos weekends à Lattaquié et ce petit resto en bord de mer entouré de pins, d’où on pouvait voir la résidence d’été du président Assad-père. Nous y allions après nos baignades manger des mezzés et du poisson frais, le tout arrosé d’Arak glacé. Bien sûr, parfois le vent ramenait des bouffées blanchâtres de la cimenterie construite pas loin, mais bon.
Les visites à Alep étaient elles aussi des moments forts, notamment les promenades
Me reviennent en mémoire nos wee en bord de mer entouré de pins, d’c du président Assad-père. Nous y a des mezzés et du poisson fra
dans le souk couvert. On en profitait pour diner à notre restaurant arménien préféré.
Comme je m’intéressais à l’archéologie, la Syrie était extraordinaire d’autant plus que dépourvue de touristes. Palmyre, bien sûr, mais aussi le Krak des Chevaliers, Apamée, Mari, de même qu’un séjour avec la famille d’un archéologue de l’Université Laval qui faisait des fouilles dans le nord du pays.
Les Syriens étaient relativement ouverts et sympathiques, mais à part quelques individus qui avaient l’autorisation de « frayer » avec les Occidentaux (des gens d’affaires et quelques universitaires et diplomates), il était clair que la répression et « l’espionnite » de l’époque limitaient les approches.
Pour maintenir la paix sociale, le régime s’assurait que la population ait
accès, à peu de frais, à des services et
%k-ends à Lattaquié et ce petit resto )ù on pouvait voir la résidence d’été llions après nos baignades manger is, le tout arrosé d’Arak glacé.
produits de base. Si on comparait avec l’Égypte par exemple, où j’avais été en poste auparavant, le niveau de vie était « potable ». Les enfants allaient à l’école, les villages étaient électrifiés, les paysans s’en tiraient relativement bien, il n’avait pas de chômage, etc. Bref, tout se passait bien pour le citoyen moyen à condition de se taire. L’omniprésence du président sous la forme d’images ou de statues le leur rappelait.
La minorité alaouite contrôlait le pays et avait établi une connivence certaine avec les autres minorités, en particulier les chrétiens qui n’avaient rien à craindre et vivaient en général fort bien (médecins, avocats, dentistes, gens d’affaires). La liberté de culte était totale et les nombreuses dénominations chrétiennes avaient toutes leurs églises. Évidemment, pas question de contester le pouvoir. Tout le monde y trouvait son compte, sauf les populations kurdes et la communauté juive.
Ceci dit, le Canada fut très impliqué dans le dossier des juifs syriens qui voulaient quitter le pays, principalement pour Israël. Nous les avons aidés à le faire, et quand on voit la situation actuelle en Syrie, on peut se féliciter de l’avoir fait.
La petite communauté diplomatique canadienne se débrouillait fort bien. Nous étions à peu près tous dans le même quartier, pas très loin de l’ambassade. Nous habitions dans un édifice (le Habbal Building) de trois ou quatre étages, occupé seulement par des diplomates canadiens. Un peu trop de promiscuité à mon goût mais c’était grand, moderne et nous avions une grande terrasse.
À côté s’y trouvait aussi le club canadien (le Chimo Club), où les compatriotes et des invités venaient prendre un verre et s’exercer aux fléchettes. Un beau matin, nous avons retrouvé notre club sans toit.
tôle en avait été tout simplement arrachée par des voisins peu aimables.
Il y avait aussi les aléas liés au métier. Dans mon cas, la première soirée à Damas avait été, disons, particulière. Mon épouse et moi étions arrivés le jour même d’Alep, en voiture. En effet, nous en avions pris livraison en Allemagne (ce n’était pas une Mercedes, rassurez-vous!) puis l’avions conduite jusqu’à Venise, avant de prendre le traversier pour la Turquie puis la route jusqu’en Syrie. Mon prédécesseur avait organisé sa réception de départ et nous présentait par la même occasion. Fatigués par le voyage et sous le choc culturel, cette première immersion dans la vie diplomatique locale fut nécessaire mais peu probante. Par la suite je dus m’excuser de ne pas reconnaître ceux qui y étaient!
Il y eu aussi la fausse évacuation du personnel canadien « non essentiel » et de leurs familles. Alors que l’on croyait avoir reçu l’approbation de la centrale et dit au revoir à ceux et celles qui partaient, quelle ne fut pas notre surprise de voir leur autobus de retour de l’aéroport avec tous ses passagers quelques heures plus tard. Car entretemps, Ottawa avait changé d’idée et annulé leur départ. Ils partirent finalement, mais seulement après l’autorisation officielle!
De petits évènements ponctuaient la vie parfois monotone de l’ambassade. Ainsi, une collègue m’arriva un jour dévastée. Le pot de fromage « Cheez Wiz » reçu de ses parents par valise diplomatique n’avait pas résisté au transport!
Une autre collègue se montait quant à elle une collection de portes antiques. Son appartement avait été vidé des meubles fournis par la Couronne pour faire place à des portes et autres boiseries découpées dans de vieilles résidences damascènes puis revendues aux étrangers de passage. Ses fêtes étaient mémorables et attiraient même quelques « Excellences » lassées des fêtes nationales.
Outre les conducteurs de Damas, certains risques venaient avec la fonction. Mais étrangement, ils étaient parfois causés par notre employeur. Ainsi, pour aller en fonction officielle au Liban, nous devions prendre un véhicule blindé. À l’époque, la construction de ce type d’automobiles n’était pas très au point. Par exemple, le moteur de l’un d’entre eux avait la mauvaise habitude de s’arrêter alors que nous roulions, ce qui avait pour conséquence fâcheuse de bloquer la direction et la transmission… et ainsi de nous précipiter dans le fossé!
Plus récente, une énorme Chevrolet blanche nous était arrivée avec des options
Publié à l’origine dans bout de papier, Vol. 29, No. 4 (2016), pp. 18–22. Lire le reste de ce numéro →
