The Foreign Service Journal, April 2005

T HE M AGAZINE F OR F OREIGN A FFAIRS P ROFESSIONALS Foreign Service Journal (ISSN 0146-3543), 2101 E Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 is published monthly with a combined July/August issue by the American Foreign Service Association, a private, non-profit organization. Material appearing herein represents the opinions of the writers and does not necessarily represent the views of the Journal, the Editorial Board or AFSA. Writer queries and submissions are invited, preferably by e-mail. Journal subscription: AFSAMembers - $13 included in annual dues; others - $40. For foreign surface mail, add $18 per year; foreign airmail, $36 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and at additional mail- ing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Foreign Service Journal , 2101 E Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037-2990. Indexed by Public Affairs Information Service (PAIS). The Journal is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos or illustrations. Advertising inquiries are invited. The appearance of advertisements herein does not imply the endorsement of the services or goods offered. FAX: (202) 338-8244 or (202) 338-6820. E-MAIL: journal@afsa.org. W EB: www.afsa.org. TE LEPHONE: (202) 338-4045. © American Foreign Service Association, 2005. Printed in the U.S.A. Send address changes to AFSA Membership, 2101 E Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037-2990. Printed on 50-percent recycled paper, of which 10 percent is post-consumer waste. J O U R N A L OREIGN ERVICE S F Editor S TEVEN A LAN H ONLEY Senior Editor S USAN B. M AITRA Associate Editor S HAWN D ORMAN Ad & Circulation Manager E D M ILTENBERGER Business Manager M IKKELA V. T HOMPSON Art Director C ARYN S UKO S MITH Advertising Interns L INDSEY K NOBLOCH M ARIA -A NGELICA A GUAYO Editorial Board H OLLIS S UMMERS , C HAIRMAN K ENT C. B ROKENSHIRE S TEPHEN W. B UCK P ATI C HAPLIN C AROL A. G IACOMO W ILLIAM W. J ORDAN L AURIE K ASSMAN K AY W EBB M AYFIELD V IRGINIA F. S MITH C HRISTOPHER L. T EAL T ED W ILKINSON C O V E R S T O R Y 19 / C OMMERCIAL D IPLOMACY : T HE N EXT W AVE The U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service celebrates its 25th anniversary on April 1. What should its direction be in the coming quarter-century? By Charles Ford F E A T U R E S 31 / T HE M ILLENNIUM C HALLENGE A CCOUNT : S PUR TO D EMOCRACY ? The MCA opens the door to a debate on democracy and governance conditionality for assistance. NGOs in devel- oping countries need to walk through that door. By Elizabeth Spiro Clark 37 / T HE M ILLENNIUM C HALLENGE C ORPORATION : M AKING I T W ORK Potentially, the MCC could help sharpen the focus of U.S. development policy. But to succeed in breaking new ground major challenges will have to be overcome. By Aaron M. Chassy 46 / A FTER THE T SUNAMI : A SSISTING A MERICANS IN D ISTRESS Consular officers and other Foreign Service personnel throughout the Indian Ocean region played a crucial role in assisting many stricken American tourists and residents. By Steven Alan Honley C ONTENTS A p r i l 2 0 0 5 ■ Vo l ume 8 2 , No . 4 Cover and inside illustration by Josh Dorman C O L U M N S P RESIDENT ’ S V IEWS / 5 Selling Locality Pay By John Limbert S PEAKING O UT / 13 Public Diplomacy: What Have We Learned? By Joe Johnson R EFLECTIONS / 72 By Adrienne Mullinaux D E P A R T M E N T S L ETTERS / 6 C YBERNOTES / 10 M ARKETPLACE / 12 FS K NOW -H OW / 15 FSJ G UIDE TO E XTENDED S TAY HOUSING / 51 B OOKS / 52 I N M EMORY / 55 FSJ G UIDE TO P ROPERTY M ANAGEMENT / 64 I NDEX TO A DVERTISERS / 70 A FSA N EWS / C ENTER I NSERT A P R I L 2 0 0 5 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 3