Managing Official and Diplomatic Protocol

“Protocol” is the boundary within which a person moves according to the established and recognized rules in his official dealings. It was therefore necessary for a person to learn those rules and to link theoretical knowledge with practice so that they become an integral part of the person himself, expressing his civility and good conduct in speech and choice! The aim of addressing the subject of “protocol” is to shed light on Arab and Islamic traditions in the field of codes of conduct, to affirm the civilizational role of Arabs and Muslims in developing the principles of proper conduct before other peoples belonging to earlier civilizations, as well as the need to look to the future by seeking to build a behavioral framework that governs our conduct in dealing with ourselves and others. Building this behavioral model is one of the foundations that will allow us, as an Arab and Islamic nation, to regain our former glory! The book reviews some modern definitions of protocol and its historical background, and the qualities that practitioners of the art of protocol must have. It also touches on the subject of precedence, one of the thorny and sensitive subjects in which an error carries great sensitivity, and it addresses the preparation of programs for official visits and supervision of their implementation, as well as the organization of international conferences and the preparations needed to make them succeed. It then refers briefly to diplomatic ceremonies, and moves on to the organization and arrangement of official dining tables in detail, explaining table manners and conduct, and also covers decorations and orders, the rules for raising the flag and performing the national anthem. Finally, it addresses some rules of refined conduct (etiquette). The book is also appended with some annexes that the reader can use for guidance.