The Foreign Service Journal, October 2010

America; the opening of China, and its growing role in shaping international events; the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the ripple effects across the former So- viet Union and Eastern Europe; the genocides and crises in postcolonial Africa; the constant tension in the Middle East; the Gulf Wars, 9/11, Afghanistan and the rising threat of terrorism; the proliferation of transna- tional weapons, threats and issues; and, of course, the changing dynamic be- tween the Department of State and a growing roster of interagency players. The common denominator was the eternal balance between the national interest and national values, and stake- holder equities. Where these collided, dissent emerged. I am impressed with our class’s record of challenging authority. My classmates repeatedly confronted arbitrary ambassadors, re- strained supervisors who were second- guessing people in the field and de- fended colleagues under fire. A critical nexus of classmates work- ed on the Bosnia crisis in the 1990s. They were shaken by the brutality of events on the ground and impatient with the bureaucracy’s inability to re- spond in a timely fashion. Stuart Seldowitz remem- bers: “The wars in Bosnia and, to a lesser extent, Croatia were extremely brutal, with rape, ethnic cleansing and other gross human rights violations. ... For the final year of the George H.W. Bush administration and the first three years of the Clinton admin- istration, the U.S. government re- sponse was weak, confused and, in many ways, immoral.” Jack Zetkulic recalls the horror of “arriving at the scene of war crimes in Kosovo and Bosnia. Then, sometimes on the same day, having meetings with war crimi- nals like [Slobodan] Milosevic and [Rodovan] Karadzic and trying to maintain professional distance.” Both Stuart and Jack were among many who challenged the U.S. gov- ernment’s response. At one point dur- ing the Balkan crisis, Stuart took issue with U.N. Ambassador Madeleine Al- bright’s decision to argue for a change in policy, and told her so. When she persisted, he says, “I went back to my office and quickly wrote a four-page memo identifying all the reasons I thought her idea was mistaken. A few hours later I received a phone call that the ambassador wanted to see me. To be honest, I thought she was about to tell me that I had no right to question her judgment for a second time. In- stead, she told me that she had read the memo but still believed I was wrong. Nevertheless, she wanted me to know that she greatly appreciated my willingness to write a long memo advocating a position I knew would not be well-received.” Janet Bogue emerged stronger from her participation in a private dis- sent effort that hit the headlines. As she recalls: “Twelve Foreign Service officers (11 State and one Treasury, but detailed to State) made a private protest to Secretary of State Warren Christopher on Bosnia policy. While our dissent was meant to remain within the walls, it was leaked to the New York Times and created a fair kerfuffle. For me it was the best and worst of times. I was completely agonized over events in Bosnia and our policy, but I did not want the dissent to be public and was literally sick to my stomach that it had been leaked. I was at my lowest point in the For- eign Service, contemplat- ing quitting, but was hugely buoyed by the support I got from col- leagues, known and un- known, around the world. While I was fired from the former Yugoslav desk, I was sought out later by bosses who wanted someone who was willing to speak out. And it liberated me for the rest of my career — I had already been fired; I had al- ready decided that I could leave the Service if I couldn’t tolerate policies.” What Comes Next Members of the 9th A-100 class are gradually departing the Foreign Serv- ice, though not necessarily the field of 40 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 0 “The dilemma many FSOs face is the choice between staying with the best job they can imagine while working for the worst employer.” — Anonymous 9th A-100 class member DAS Janet Bogue opens the new U.S. consulate in Podgorica, Montenegro, July 4, 2002. The 9th A-100 Class, March 1982.