Columbia Missourian Newspaper 1975-09-09

              Insight Booze gives big headache to diplomats ts State Department tackles alcoholism among By Jeremiah OLeary O'Leary Washington Star WASHINGTON Dressing Dressing for a formal dinner dirmer party in their plush residence the American ambassador to a European country and his wife got into a drunken quarrel Before the first guests arrived she had stabbed him in inthe inthe Inthe the shoulder with a butter knife and both ended up being flown across the Atlantic for confidential treatment in m Bethesda Naval Hospital Another r ambassador got drunk on a transatlantic flight and passed out after trying to stuff money into the blouses of stewardesses A female embassy blacked out at a cocktail party in a Latin capital and woke up hours later in ina ina ina a deserted area far from town with no idea of how she got there A diplomat assigned to escort a foreign dignitary was detected pinching pinging the buttocks of the dignitary's wife That one was covered up but soon afterwards when he insulted a somewhat flamboyant prime minister the diplomat was sent packing The Th wife of another r ambassador made it a habit to stand in a comer at atall atall atall all embassy functions talking only omy to other Americans She also became known for screaming at her local maids for trivial or imagined reasons An AID in the same sane mission vanished several times tunes a year to go on alcoholic binges from which he was nursed back to health by the madam of a house of prostitution The American diplomat must represent U. U S. S interests under cir cir- circumstances circumstances cir cir- circumstances ranging from in in- inconvenience inconvenience inconvenience convenience to luxury Almost as important as the administrative duties are the social activities the parties the conferences the informal gatherings where vital information and personal contacts are exchanged and strengthened The price can be a heavy one however Exposed to an almost constant of drinking the reality of the alcoholic diplomat has become a serious problem both for the U. U S. S government and for forthe forthe forthe the drinker who goes out of control One ranking high high r State Department official estimates that the incidence of alcoholism among the staffs of U. U S. S embassies overseas is much mug greater than the national average An estimated 10 million of the million Americans are alcoholics Look here are these foreign service people from State AID USIA the military CIA overseas on a two- two or year three-year tour the official says got access to that cheap liquor They hey have to attend brunch parties lunches cocktails tea parties dinner parties farewell par par- parties parties parties ties national day celebrations of other embassies parties for our own national holidays By golly they even have to attend the birthday party of the Marine guard every Nov 10 Another official notes that wives of American diplomats face an even more perilous exposure to excessive con con- consumption consumption of alcohol than their husbands Ive seen it too many times he be says The men have to t stick close to the grindstone 8 10 12 hours a day But the wives get caught in this wet-lunch wet routine they get bored with the life they have maids and cooks to todo todo todo do things for them they'd have to do themselves back home So they get into heavy drinking The problem of d i alcoholism among U. U U.S. U.S. U.S. S. S who serve tours in em em- embassies embassies embassies abroad interspersed with periods of service at home is numerically large Counting only of oi the State Department the Agency Ag ncy for International Development and the U. U S. S Information Agency and their theil dependents the Foreign Service roster is about Statistically more than of these persons are in various stages of alco alco- holism The greatest single group of of these agencies is the stationed in Washington but a majority of the are scattered among the embassies posts and consulates around the world The State Department which has general supervisory control of all aU embassy personnel recognized the basic problem officially in 1972 by establishing an Alcohol Abuse Program But many officials sharing the general American ignorance about alcoholics stuck to the traditional bureaucratic defenses when confronted with the case ca of an alcoholic They either ignored the plight sweeping him under the rug or orthey orthey orthey they got rid of him by transfer threats or harassment In recent weeks Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and his management expert Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger have See DEPARTMENTS DEPARTMENT'S Page 16 16 Departments Department's plan is similar to AA Continued from Page 1 assumed direct control of the Alcohol Abuse Program Eagleburger said We want the word to get out that there is a way for foran foran foran an alcoholic to salvage his bis life and his career We want everybody to know that if someone is suffering from the disease of alcoholism and makes use of our program it is not going to go into the records and that it wont won't be disclosed to the promotion boards We want to onus off a person who asks for help and we want supervisors up and down the line li to know it too to F. F Hal Marley a former Air Force colonel colo l jet pilot and embassy behind the Iron Iran Curtain took over as administrator r of the State Department program a year ago He quickly formed a working alliance with Deputy Assistant Secretary for Medical Ser Ser- Services Services Services vices Carl With the collaboration of Dr L. doctors and nurses Marley launched a vigorous information and counseling program at the department and throughout the world wherever State AID and USIA personnel serve I knew from my own service in the embassy at Warsaw that the element of exposure to booze is far greater among the Foreign Service than it is to the average American Marley said People on diplomatic duty dont don't cope with tea and push cookies They spend half their waking hours with trays of drinks being shoved sham at them If they are incipient alcoholics a tour of duty overseas is going to speed up thep the process pIO p SS Under Marleys Marley's guidance the program is conducted along the t lines titles of experience developed over 40 years by Alcoholics Anonymous