Premium
Women will build the diplomacy of the future, French Ambassador in Bucharest Laurence Auer told a debate on Tuesday during which she spoke of her own experience and underscored the importance of building one's own personality in an environment full of preconceptions.
She participated in the online debate "Women in diplomacy - what does the future look like for young people in Romania? Lessons for the new generation," dedicated to students and organized by Europuls - European Centre of Expertise, in partnership with the Faculty of Political Science, the University of Bucharest, and with support from the French Institute in Romania and the French Embassy to Romania.
"Beyond violence, we are talking about preconceptions. It was only very late when we had the first women in the system. As for France, when I entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we had not even one woman ambassador. It is not a fight, but rather one needs to be able to build her/his own personality in the given environment, and this is very important because you, as a young generation, will experience other forms of violence. For instance, if you looked at my career, I studied Arabic language and culture and I even studied at an Arab university for a year. I entered the Ministry with one of the best CVs in Arabic studies. I was ready to be a university professor of Arabic," Auer said.
The Ambassador underscored the importance of self-confidence in this field.
"I have never been sent to work in an Arab country. Ambassadors refused me. When I was younger, they were afraid that I would not have much credibility. These things have happened until recently. In retrospect, when I first wanted to take a job as an ambassador, I was refused to have one in Oman, in the United Arab Emirates. The motivation back then was different. They said: "You have never worked in an Arab country before, you cannot be an ambassador, how could you negotiate contracts as a woman, etc.? What I want to say now is that no one should take such things personally, while we all need to know exactly what we want to do. In the difficult moments, one must stay true to himself/herself, regardless of the circumstances, and one must have strong personal values, while sticking to her/his principles," she showed.
According to Laurence Auer, "women will build the diplomacy of the future." "I was a student, I was 25 years old, now I'm 60 years old and I'm the same person, brave, proud. I don't stress about these things, I have given my best. When you draw the line, things are as they are. If you feel resentment and look back, if you feel guilty - these things are useless. Look at the current crisis. No one would have imagined it would happen. That would be my advice. Your journey in diplomacy will be different, women will build the diplomacy of the future and you will be a part of it, I am certain of this," she said.
