D I P L O M AT I C A| QUESTIONS A SKED Women Heads of Diplomatic Missions in Ottawa
‘The picture used to be that men are diplomats, women are secretaries and that has changed a lot’ With the help of EU Ambassador Melita Gabric, Diplomat organized a panel for its usual Q & A with editor Jennifer Campbell. The group — all women heads of mission — has a formal organization, which Gabric chairs, and it meets regularly to discuss common areas of interest. Today, there are 29 women who are heads of mission in Ottawa; four more based in the U.S., but accredited to Canada, and six women chargé d’affaires. And, in recent years, major posts, including those of the ambassador of the U.S. and France and that of the British High Commissioner have been filled by women for the first time. Diplomat wanted to talk to these women about their unique careers, the proverbial glass ceiling women encounter in the workplace and the plight of women in their countries. What follows is a transcript edited for length. (Editor’s note: Moroccan Ambassador Souriya Otmani wasn’t able to join the panel because of timing, so she answered our questions the following day.) Diplomat magazine: Can you talk about a
situation in your career where you met the proverbial glass ceiling and share what you did about it and how diplomatic training helped you to resolve it? And finally, what tips would you offer for women following in your footsteps? Melita Gabric (EU): One thing I would say
is that the glass ceiling is difficult to see, which is to say that it is difficult to pinpoint a situation where one was denied a promotion due to gender, or some other sexual discrimination or circumstance. I would say it is important that women pre-emptively empower themselves as much as they can. I would definitely put a premium on education, on developing skills and competencies, and that includes diplomatic competencies because this helps with resilience, freedom of choice and manoeuvring space and, at the end of the day, it can help with moving that ceiling further up and ideally, down the road, removing it altogether. Hanne Eskjaer (Denmark): I was think-
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Melita Gabric is the chairwoman of the Women Heads of Diplomatic Missions in Ottawa.
ing about a personal experience and was inspired by an example where I think we managed to break the glass ceiling. It was a few years ago and I was four months pregnant and posted in New York and I was up for a change in position. I really wanted to become the deputy in Prague because [it was joining] the EU. Everyone told me, ‘Who would hire a four-monthpregnant woman for a deputy position?’ I went for it and I applied. It was an old ambassador, it was his last post, a very
proud man from the old school. Everyone said this was not going to work. But he decided to invest in the long term. He said, ‘Yes, I see your talent, I want you on board. I know that you won’t be there in the beginning, but I want you on the team.’ It was a combination of him looking in the long term and it was me believing I was the right choice for him. And the last thing was that my husband and I decided we would split the leave into two so when half of it was over, I went back SUMMER 2021 | JUL-AUG-SEPT
