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PAFSO Awards
LISA HELFAND
LISA HELFAND
To view video of presentation click below
Real Time (16 mg)
When asked why I joined the Foreign Service, I usually reply that it was because I wanted to escape from Don Mills. What I really mean when I make this flippant comment is that I was looking for a career that would allow me to be of service, and to have some interesting and unusual experiences.
In reviewing my career while writing this speech I started to make a mental list of my more out of the ordinary experiences in the foreign service
- flying into Beijing in the summer of 1990, after the events in Tienamen when anyone with any choice in the matter was doing their best get out of China
- sitting in a freezing office in Karlovac Croatia in 1992 and advising a young Bosnian refugee that I would not interview him until he got rid of his recently acquired prized possession - a semi-automatic machine gun
- getting mugged in Havana during negotiations on insurance assets
- shaking Slobodan Milosevic’s hand
- listening to the windows of the Embassy’s brand new armoured Suburban shatter around me, as they were hit by stones thrown by a mob of angry Pristina residents who had wanted to use the vehicle as a barrier against advancing Serbian militia.
- sitting on my couch in Belgrade, watching CNN’s latest report on the deteriorating situation in the Balkans, realising that the backdrop looked rather familiar and looking out my window to see Brent Sadler reporting live from the patio below
- attending a NATO rodeo (yes, a NATO rodeo) and not fleeing in panic when Donald Rumsfeld summonsed me to his side to have our picture taken
There are a number of conclusions that can be drawn from reviewing this partial list. The first is that I have been successful in achieving my goal of having a career filled with interesting experiences. I don’t think any of these would have happened to me if I stayed in Don Mills. The second is that you should probably think twice before taking a posting with me.
The last point is the most important - my list is pretty typical one for a foreign service officer. Most of the people who will be on this podium tonight, and, in fact, most of the people in this room could come up with a similar, or better (or worse) record.
These are the people at post who can be relied upon when the coup takes place, the hurricane hits, or things just go from bad to worse. There is real value to Canada in having such a group with the background and experience that allow them perform effectively in difficult situations around the world. Events like the one here tonight help us get out this message.
I’d like to thank the colleagues, friends and family who have helped me survive all these experiences and the many, many briefing books that came in between. In particular, I would like to thank everyone who was at the Canadian Embassy in Belgrade between 1997-99, the team in IDR for the past three years, and my family, who continue to support me even though they’d much rather that I’d stayed in the suburbs. In addition, I’d like to thank everyone who took the trouble to write a letter nominating me for this award. As a non-letter writer, I find this extremely touching, and it means as much to me as receiving the award itself.
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