The Foreign Service Journal, October 2003

O C T O B E R 2 0 0 3 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 3 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 by the American Foreign Service Association, a private, non-profit organization. Material appearing here- in 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: AFSA Members - $9.50 included in annual dues; others - $40. For foreign surface mail, add $18 per year; foreign air- mail, $36 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and at additional mailing 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. WEB: www.afsa.org. TE LEPHONE: (202) 338-4045. © American Foreign Service Association, 2003. 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. Editor S TEVEN A LAN H ONLEY Associate Editor S USAN B. M AITRA Business Manager M IKKELA V. T HOMPSON Ad & Circulation Manager E D M ILTENBERGER AFSA News Editor S HAWN D ORMAN Art Director C ARYN J. S UKO Editorial Board J UDITH B AROODY , C HAIRMAN M ARK W. B OCCHETTI E LIZABETH S PIRO C LARK T ATIANA G FOELLER -V OLKOFF C AROL A. G IACOMO L AURIE K ASSMAN C AROLINE M EIRS H OLLIS S UMMERS W ILLIAM W ANLUND T ED W ILKINSON F O C U S O N T H E D E A T H P E N A L T Y & U . S . D I P L O M A C Y 19 / A MERICAN D IPLOMACY AND THE D EATH P ENALTY For a country that aspires to be a world leader in human rights, the death penalty has become our Achilles’ heel. By Harold Hongju Koh and Thomas R. Pickering 26 / T HE D EATH P ENALTY , A MERICA , AND THE W ORLD Many countries in Europe and elsewhere have abolished the death penalty and are turning up the pressure on the U.S. to do likewise. But foreign views shouldn’t control American law. By Paul Rosenzweig 31 / I NTERNATIONAL I NFLUENCE ON THE D EATH P ENALTY IN THE U NITED S TATES The prospects for profound change in the death penalty in the U.S. are stronger now than at any other time in this important issue’s long and controversial history. A new concern for world opinion is part of the reason. By Richard C. Dieter 39 / T HE M YTH OF THE C OWBOY The picture many foreigners have of America as a reckless, gun-totin’, cow- boy nation that hands out the death penalty willy-nilly is a false one. By Greg Kane 43 / A D ECENT R ESPECT TO THE O PINIONS OF M ANKIND America’s continuing attachment to capital punishment puts us far out of step with most of “the civilized world.” By Paul P. Blackburn C ONTENTS O c t o b e r 2 0 0 3 ■ Vo l ume 8 0 , No . 1 0 F E A T U R E S F OREIGN S ERVICE S PECIALISTS S PEAK O UT , P ART II / 49 Specialists share details of their personal and professional lives in the Foreign Service. By Steven Alan Honley T INCTURES FOR A G APING W OUND / 58 A visit to an Indian village has lasting lessons for a self-declared “Foreign Service brat.” By Sarah Taylor A G RACE N OTE : P OLITICAL AND C ULTURAL C HANGE IN B HUTAN / 60 A tiny Himalayan kingdom moves toward democracy with cautious determination, striving to balance modern- ization with tradition. By Linda Beeman D E P A R T M E N T S L ETTERS / 7 C YBERNOTES / 12 B OOKS / 64 I NDEX TO A DVERTISERS / 70 AFSA N EWS / C ENTER I NSERT C O L U M N S P RESIDENT ’ S V IEWS / 5 Plus Ça Change, Plus C’est La Même Chose By Louise K. Crane S PEAKING O UT / 15 Religion and Diplomacy By Phil Skotte R EFLECTIONS / 72 By Paul Dever Cover and inside illustrations by Adam Niklewicz Page 19