by David Mason
Download the full article: Seven Pillars of Ambiguity
These thoughts are penned a few weeks short of a yearlong tour to Iraq. Having worked in cultures across continents in a variety of roles over a number of years, I thought the approach outlined in this paper might be of use to others working in different cultures generally and Arab culture in particular. So, imagine this, you are on your way to Iraq or Afghanistan to be an Advisor where you will likely sit down with a host government official.
TE Lawrence and Ricklefs talk about what you must do. They provide Articles and Rules. This paper on the other hand, outlines what you do not know.
The Seven Pillars of Ambiguity are those things that, unless you are native to the country, you can never really know. What you can do however, is recognize your knowledge gap and work to close it. By understanding the pillars and working to inform yourself, you will feel more confident as an Advisor, and better able to usefully and meaningfully contribute to the mission.
These points are not rules to live by. Rather, they are a test. They set out what you do not know and challenge you to research and try to understand. While they are interdependent, sometimes one will be more important than another, or not be important at all. If you are planning on being an interlocutor, a middle man between one culture and another, these are the things you must think about before you go, to prepare yourself for your deployment. They might be useful when you get there too.
Download the full article: Seven Pillars of Ambiguity
David Mason is a former French Foreign Legion paratrooper, former Senior Advisor in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, and three times in Iraq, as Policy Advisor to the Australian Commander, Senior Advisor in the Iraqi Ministries of Defence and Interior. He is also international lawyer specializing in the Laws of War, and a Reserve Major in the Australian Army Legal Corps. He formerly held the role as Counsel, International Law, in the Australian Department of Defence. Among other academic qualifications he holds an LLM from the Australian National University and is a Barrister of the High Court of Australia.
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Comments
I wish this had been available to Australian Military Liasion officers prior to our involvement in East Timor. Another rule should be added. This is from personal experience:
Supplementary Rule Eight:
Regardless of rank, the in-theatre liasion officer, holds precedence when dealing with their assigned force. Never belittle, or overule (pull rank on) a liaison officer, when with their assigned contingent.
Ditto William's and Phil's comments. There are times when we overwhelm our boots on the ground with what they "need to know" thus over burdening them with "static". This article does us a service by laying out what we might never know but need to have a cultural awareness of - as in Im never, ever, going to be one of the locals - so what do I do to adjust...
Just my 2-cents, but I really appreciate what David Mason has to say. He is a Digger in the same class as Dave Kilcullen and Mark O'Niell and others you might never have heard of. Three that I know are Daryl Campbell, Glen Babington, and Justin Elwood. Got to admit that the Aussies do cut to the quick in plain prose, understand the issues and lay them out at the bottom line, and typically practice what they preach.