REVIEW: From Prague to Washington Published in Dawn on February 1, 2004 Reviewed by Touqir Hussain High achievers in public life are prone to have big egos, as only such egos help to propel them towards leadership roles. Their memoirs are, therefore, an exercise in self-projection. Of course from the human interest standpoint, readers are interested in the story of the writer's rise to prominence - the fulfilment or frustration of his or her ambitions and aspirations, and intrigues and machinations that surround the journey to the top. Seen from this perspective the looming presence of the writer adds spice to the narrative. Having made allowance for a legitimate dose of self promotion, a memoir basically stands or falls on the insights it provides on the history making events in which the writer may have been a major player or contributor. All this makes a memoir as much informative and insightful as immensely readable. By this yardstick Madeline Albright's book is a great success. It tells us about the human being behind the persona, her vulnerabilities as a woman, strengths of character, ambition, tenacity and enormous will to achieve greatness in life. That is the stuff a good memoir is made of. The book takes off with an account of her upbringing in an aristocratic environment of Prague straining under the Nazi assault, the second world war and the post war ascendancy to power by the communists. The life of comfort and privilege, freedom of intellect, and political liberties are all extinguished and the family moves to the US to begin a new life. Madeleine's father, who was a Czech diplomat before, begins a new career as an academic. She receives a good education, goes on to make the right contacts and becomes a staffer at the US Congress. She also works in the Congressional Liaison Office of the White House. Although both these were junior positions, they held no barrier to her unbounded ambition. She puts the exposure and the experience to good use specially by exploiting the Washington social scene and political network, of which there is a candid acknowledgment in her book. And the rest is history. The bulk of the book, of course, deals with her tenure as Ambassador to the UN and as Secretary of State. The reader learns enormously and accurately about the foreign policy issues pre-occupying the Clinton Administration. Four issues stand out: the Balkans, Middle East, North Korea, and Iraq; and to a lesser degree Osama bin Laden and the related questions of Afghanistan, Sudan and Somalia. Some interesting principles of Clinton's foreign policy can be deduced from the exhaustive treatment that these subjects get in the book. It by and large comes out as a foreign policy of conciliation, compromise, settlement and resolution. There is some moral content also, especially in the Balkans. It may partly be due to the special place Eastern Europe had in Albright's heart. The most interesting accounts in the book are however reserved to the series of Israeli-Palestinian talks hosted by Clinton. The coverage is vivid and informative giving an honest exposition of the two sides' positions. Neither side is demonized or idolized. And there is the impression of an honest and maximum effort on the part of the US to bring about a peace settlement, within, of course, the broader political constraints that any US administration would feel when dealing with Israel. Both Clinton and Albright devoted a lot of time and effort to this dialogue. If they did not succeed, it was not for want of effort. The fact remains that the US has not been, and perhaps will not be, an honest broker in the dispute, given the political realities in Washington. It could be a facilitator. And to their credit, Albright and her President played that role to the best of their abilities. It was not their failure but that of the fundamentally flawed approach of the US to the Arab-Israeli question. They did their best and deserve credit for it. America did play a forceful leadership role in instituting international intervention in Bosnia and Kosovo. This was one of the pluses of the Clinton foreign policy. And Albright deserves credit for her initiatives in getting the administration moving on the issue. Towards the end of the Clinton presidency, she was entrusted with the task of seeking an opening with North Korea. The account of her visit to North Korea and meetings with Kim Il Jong gives a candid, insightful and absorbing picture of the North Korean leader. Unfortunately, the memoirs devote little space to India, Pakistan and the Kashmir dispute. There is a very brief mention of her visit to Pakistan and the meeting with Nawaz Sharif. The account of the meeting is truthful. I can testify to that personally because I was present in the meeting. For all its activism, Clinton's foreign policy had a narrow focus - the Middle East, Eastern Europe and, to a lesser extent, China. It essentially neglected the issue of terrorism for which America had to pay a heavy price later. The action against Osama bin Laden was halfhearted and fitful. It was too little and too late. Whatever the merits of the US foreign policy during this period, the book is informative, entertaining and extremely well written. Not only does the author come alive in the narrative but the issues also can be understood better. The hallmark of her writing is the candidness - both in talking about foreign policy issues and her personal life. Even the question of her Jewish ancestory is not fudged. She claims very convincingly that she was raised as a Christian and the fact that her grandparents were Jewish was kept a secret from her by her parents. She also discusses her divorce with as much human touch as possible. When she is waiting for the President to call her for the job of Secretary of State, she describes her emotions of anxiety and expectancy with remarkable fidelity. They are the emotions of an ordinary human being expecting news for which he or she may have been preparing for a whole lifetime. Madam Secretary: A Memoir By Madeleine Albright Macmillan. Available with Vanguard Books, 45 The Mall, Lahore Tel: 042-7243783 Email: vbl@brain.net.pk ISBN 1-40-50-3369-X 562pp. Rs1,495