What is a diplomat?

Every now and then I’d meet a kababayan who would ask probing questions on what brought me to New York. Was I petitioned? Am I an American citizen? Here for a work visa or a green card holder? A new friend happened to ask one of these questions. Since I do not fall into any of these categories, I told her I am married to a diplomat and we are here for another foreign assignment.

Quite puzzled, she asked me, “What is a diplomat?” I was baffled that the job did not ring a bell. I explained that a diplomat works for our government and just as I was thinking of how to describe a diplomat’s tasks in simpler terms, she immediately asked which government agency. The DFA, I said. “Ah sa passports,” she nonchalantly said. I often encounter this more common association of our DFA with passports so I enriched our conversation to say that passport processing is only one of the many important duties under the DFA.

I realized that even in my elementary grades I never heard any of my classmates say: someday, I want to be a diplomat. It was mostly I want to be a lawyer, a doctor, a teacher, an engineer or, for the most precocious fellow in class probably, I want to be a scientist.

Nor do I recall someone say I want to be an ambassador. It was not popular, in our generation at least.

In explaining a diplomat’s job to my friend, I instead told her bits and pieces of our life in the diplomatic service. Stories and anecdotes would help her appreciate the job better, instead of saying that it is a diplomat’s responsibility to ensure strong bilateral relations between the Philippines and his or her country of assignment. Besides, it would be quite a challenge for me to expound on a Filipino diplomat’s duty, that is, to passionately pursue the three pillars of Philippine foreign policy – one that is centered on advancing our interests in the areas of national security, economic policy and the protection of the rights and welfare of overseas Filipinos.

I focused more on the last pillar and told her of how, almost 20 years ago, there were around 200,000 OFWs in Hong Kong with majority of them working in homes.

Diplomats in the consulate, especially in the Assistance to Nationals (ATN) section, warranted our workers’ welfare by way of protecting them from abusive employers (yes, there were many sob stories of kababayans surviving on rationed food, sleeping on a piece of cardboard in the kitchen and so on), providing counseling or giving them legal assistance when the need arises. I recall a time when the hubby had to seal the coffin of a deceased OFW before her remains were repatriated to our country. Morbid as it may sound, that was part of the job.

My stories of endearing moments amused my friend. Consuls were invited to grace, deliver speeches or crown queens at beauty pageants, singing contests, oath taking or anniversaries of organizations, worships and a range of events to celebrate the Sunday day off. A diplomat’s presence adds prestige to such occasions. It is also their way to actively connect and engage with the Filipino community.

I told my friend that a diplomat’s responsibilities and titles evolve, depending on one’s country of assignment. Like in the hubby’s case, who moved from head of ATN in Hong Kong to a political officer in Beijing. To operationalize multilateral relations and explain matters in the context of our presence here in New York, I said that diplomats assigned in the UN negotiate with 193 countries while those assigned in Jakarta deal with the 10 member-countries of ASEAN.

In his book “The Diplomat-Scholar, a biography of Leon Ma Guerrero,” author and historian Erwin S. Fernandez cited what another author called ‘the great switcheroo of eighty-two” to describe the awards presented to distinguished diplomats, Guerrero and Carlos P. Romulo: “The better writer got the award for diplomacy and the better diplomat got the award for writing.” I was reminded of this line from Mr. Fernandez’s book when my friend asked about the academic preparation to become a diplomat. I told her that any degree would do but what is crucial is for one to pass the series of exams to become a foreign service officer.

In our DFA, I know of a diplomat-architect, a diplomat-DJ, a diplomat-nurse and the journalist turned diplomat, who in the course of his work as foreign correspondent covering APEC and ASEAN summits was inspired by two illustrious Filipino diplomats, the late Ambassador Rodolfo Severino Jr. and Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon.

In her book “No Higher Honor, A memoir of my years in Washington,” I read that then US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice trained as a concert pianist and had on some occasions performed chamber music at diplomatic events at embassies. This makes the brilliant Miss Rice a diplomat-artist.

I read with interest an in-depth article of the New York Times that memorialized the life and times of Henry Kissinger, who recently died at the age of 100. Referred to as the US Secretary of State who “shaped the nation’s cold war history,” the article described him as “both celebrated and reviled with such passion.” Digesting the piece, which allowed me to learn more about US history and the events of the cold war, I thought of how apt the description was for Mr. Kissinger, who also happened to be a Nobel Peace laureate.

My friend commented on how “exciting and interesting” a diplomat’s work is even if I only talked about it from a limited perspective. The lengthily revealing obituary on Mr. Kissinger quoted him as one who was not worried about his legacy because “things are changeable.” I think of how fitting “changeable” a word is to describe the job of a diplomat and life in the diplomatic service.