U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce Marks 20th Anniversary

By Pat and Samir Twair

More than 150 executives of California corporations joined with their Arab counterparts May 21 in the Los Angeles Hilton and Towers to mark the 20th anniversary of the U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce (Pacific) Inc. Saudi Ambassador to the United States Prince Bandar Bin Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was honorary chairman of the banquet, billed as one of the major events of Southern California's "World Trade Week '93."

Guest of honor was Dr. Abdullah I. El-Kuwaiz, Gulf Cooperation Council associate secretary-general for economic affairs in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Awards to past presidents were presented by D. Joseph Asfour, executive director of the chamber, which serves 13 western states from Seattle to Santa Fe. Banquet chairman was Terrance C. Farley, who is president of Bechtel Corp. and president of the San Francisco-based chamber.

Speaking on behalf of the American business community, executive vice president R. Thomas Decker of the Bank of America in Los Angeles announced the Bank of America has obtained a license to operate in Dubai and is exploring foreign investment in real estate in the region.

Keynote speaker Dr. Yusuf Nimatallah, assistant secretary-general for economic affairs of the League of Arab States in Cairo, Egypt, addressed "The Middle East within the New World Order." Positive change within the Middle East after the demise of the Cold War can start, he stressed, with recognition that all countries and regions are interdependent.

Secondly, Dr. Nimatallah called for military coordination between NATO forces and United Nations troops to enforce peace in areas suffering from wars and political conflicts, such as the Middle East.

A third step is economic reform, including reform in the United States, which suffers from tremendous fiscal deficits and unemployment. He warned, however, that reducing structural fiscal deficits by levying heavy new taxes on imported oil could have negative repercussions on both importers and exporters of oil.

"Making oil energy more expensive can lead to cost-push inflation and unemployment, the two problems the world needs to fight most," he said. "Arab oil-exporting countries have supplied oil steadily at reasonable prices, but are deeply disappointed by rumors that America and the European Community are planning to charge high energy taxes.

"In 1991, all oil-exporting countries made about $70 billion from petroleum exports," he said, "while European countries made approximately $222 billion from taxes imposed on oil."

Dr. Nimatallah said all nations will benefit from peace in the Middle East, particularly the U.S., which needs the large markets of the region. He pointed out that the U.S. no longer can afford to shower billions of dollars a year on Israel, and Arab nations would prefer to use their funds to develop their economies rather than to buy armaments. He called on American business executives to make group visits and attend trade exhibitions to witness reforms taking place in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan and Syria.

A history of the chamber and presentation of corporate awards were offered by J. Stanley Patterson, chairman and CEO of the chamber.

MPAC Honors Spike Lee

Each year the Muslim Public Affairs Council presents an award to artists who portray a positive image of Islam in the entertainment media. And so, on May 19, which would have been the 68th birthday of civil rights leader Malcolm X (Al-Hajj Malik Al-Shabazz), MPAC presented its 1993 Entertainment Award to producer and director Spike Lee.

MPAC selected Lee for his film "Malcolm X," which has caused a resurgence of interest and awareness of the slain leader and portrays a positive image of Islam. Awards also were presented to actor Ernest Thomas and co-producers of "Malcolm X" Marvin Worth, Monty Ross and Fernando Saluchin. Master of ceremonies was radio personality Casey Kasem.

At a press conference prior to the awards presentation, Lee stressed that in his depiction of Malcolm X he wanted to show how true Islam had turned Malcolm's life around. Lee expressed his gratitude to the Saudi government for permitting his Muslim film crews into Mecca during two consecutive pilgrimages. "There is no way," he quipped, "that I could have recreated a scene of one million people circling the Kaaba.

"Hopefully, this film and others in the future will change negative perceptions of Islam," he added. "It's interesting to observe the contrast between the editorial treatment of the 'mad Muslim bombers' of the World Trade Center in New York and what happened in Waco. In Waco, they weren't referred to as 'Christian cultists,' but just as nuts."

May Ali, the daughter of heavyweight boxing champion Muhammed Ali, commented that she was born three years after Malcolm X's assassination and the film has helped her to understand the chronology of his life.

"Malcolm X took a tough stance against oppression, and thanks to this film, a whole new generation is aware of him," she said.

In addressing the audience, MPAC Director Salam Al-Marayati stated: "A Black man from Harlem, who was inspired by the Hon. Elijah Muhammed, has done more for Islam in America than any sheikh or mullah. Malcolm X didn't entangle himself in religious trivia and he spoke to nonMuslims as well as to Muslims.''

Al-Marayati called for Muslims to rise above the divisive politics of the Muslim world. ''While we are striving to liberate Bosnia and Palestine, we must rise above divisions," he continued. "While we celebrate the reunification of humanity at the Holy Kaaba, let us extend the lessons of hajj beyond the walls of the Kaaba.''

A $2,500 check for the United Negro College Fund was presented to Lee by William Hanna, president of Bank Audi in Los Angeles.

Representative McKeon Meets NAAA

In the second of a series of congressional brunches hosted by the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the National Association of Arab Americans, Rep. Howard "Buck" McKeon met with nearly 40 of his Arab-American constituents May 15 in the Northridge home of Ilham and Tony Amsih.

Rep. McKeon was elected to California's 25th congressional district last November and is president of the Republican freshman class of the 103rd Congress.

When asked if he supports U.S. intervention in Bosnia, Rep. McKeon said he would prefer for the U.S. to stay out of the civil war in the former Yugoslavia. ''However, judging by the briefings I've had," he noted, "I would like to see the Muslims receive weapons so they could fight on more even ground."

He advocates smaller government and smaller school districts, particularly the Los Angeles Unified School District, which serves 650,000 students. Stressing that more than 500,000 aliens illegally enter California annually, Rep. McKeon said his colleague, Rep. Carlos Moorhead, had pushed through legislation for more border patrols, but it was never funded. He said he hopes to bring 25 to 30 congresspersons to his district so they can better understand his region's problems.

In response to a query about unquestioned aid to Israel, Rep. McKeon said he grew up in an area with a heavy Jewish population and he tends to Savor the Israeli side of things. He admitted he had accepted campaign donations coordinated by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, but said he is open-minded and wants to do what is best for all his constituents. He said he will be taking a trip to Israel in August. His Arab-American hosts expressed the hope that he would take time to meet with Palestinians while there.

Representative Royce Denounces Slaughter in Bosnia

Freshman Congressman Ed Royce from California's 39th congressional district nearly knocked the socks off the two dozen or so members of the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the National Association of Arab Americans when he vehemently denounced the slaughter of the Bosnian people in the former Yugoslavia.

The session, held in the Whittier home of Florence Richards, was the third in a series of breakfast meetings with congressmen hosted by NAAA members.

Representative Royce, who served in the California Senate for 10 years before his election to Congress last November, said he authored a bill in the California Senate to lift the arms embargo against Bosnia and to send peacekeeping forces to inspect camps where Muslim Bosnians are held.

As a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Representative Royce said he, along with Rep. Frank McCloskey (D-IN), wrote letters to President Bill Clinton stating they would support him if he called for air strikes and lifting the arms embargo on Bosnia.

"The time has passed that we can stand by and watch ethnic cleansing,'' the Republican legislator stated, noting he twice met with Secretary of State Warren Christopher.

''How can this not be genocide?'' he asked Christopher. "How can we stand by and say it's too complex to un=, ing the capital of a sovereign state, what is so difficult to figure out? What is so difficult to figure out when one side has both its arms tied because of a weapons embargo? Bosnia is a separate country with the right to defend itself."

Representative Royce said the Bosnian situation is the most serious problem the foreign affairs committee is facing. "I'm ashamed to stand here and say the U.S. is not taking action," he concluded.

When asked what this action should be, he replied: "Silence the artillery and cut the Serbian supply lines."

Touching upon domestic policies, Representative Royce said he was educated in finance and accounting and that he would call for more constraints on federal employment and agricultural subsidies.

''There are 218,000 employees in the Department of Agriculture,'' he said, "and they'd be doing more for the country if we sent them out to the fields to hoe weeds. We need to phase these people out and return to a market economy.''

As for foreign aid, Representative Royce would like to see it reduced. In the discussion with NAAA members, the Rev. Darrel Meyers told Representative Royce that, as a freshman congressman, he soon would receive the inevitable invitation to Israel. Reverend Meyers said he hoped Royce would ask to visit the Palestinians living under Israeli occupation in refugee camps in the West Bank and Gaza.

Pat and Samir Twair are freelance writers based in Los Angeles