Diplomacy is one of those areas where both tact and secrecy have their uses. There are few things less palatable – or likely to persuade others to see your point of view – than public humiliation. (Exhibit A – Australia’s recent run-ins with the Indonesians over everything from border incursions, to spying to attempts to link past aid receipts with clemency.)
This week, as Julie Bishop visits Tehran, there are already some signs that these lessons may not have been well-learned. Whatever one might think of the Iranian Government – and there are good grounds for disliking its human rights record, including the second-highest number of executions in the world – the Iranians are very good at negotiations, having had 4000 years in one of the more challenging global neighbourhoods to polish their skills.
One of the more striking, and often confusing, Persian customs that I discovered very early on in starting to learn the language is ta’arof.
The term is not really translatable but refers to a very courtly form of politeness which permeates relationships at all levels from diplomacy to bargaining to basic interactions. Thus, the qualities of the other person are exaggerated in conversation and payment for services is refused until it is virtually pressed into your hands. Not being aware of what is going on and accepting the praise at face value or bluntly attempting to force your point of view can lead to hurt, insult or at least a perception of boorishness. Ta’arof pervades the language itself: one of an almost infinite number of polite ways of saying ‘thank you’ in Persian is ‘may your hands not hurt’ (to which the standard response is, ‘may your head not hurt’).
Of course, both Australian and Iranian diplomats are likely to be well enough informed about the others’ cultures that the differences between Australian and Iranian ways of doing things will be well-known. (Australia has, after all, been one of the few Western countries to maintain diplomatic contacts with Iran). Nevertheless, when Ms Bishop’s trip is prefaced with a demand that Iran take back its citizens whom we wish to forcibly return after rejecting their refugee claims – itself rather undercutting our moral lectures – this must impact on our effectiveness in negotiations. Likewise when, in the same breath as we call for a ceasefire, we loudly demand support for the ‘legitimate’ leader of Yemen in the teeth of Iranian attempts