Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, December 1998, page 135

Bulletin Board

Compiled by Janet McMahon

Convenings

Speakers at the Center for Policy Analysis on Palestine’s series on “The Who, What and Wherefore of Wye” will include James Anderson, Washington correspondent for the German Press Agency, and Eugene Bird, president of the Council for the National Interest and diplomatic correspondent for the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, discussing their experience as journalists covering Wye, Nov. 10; British journalist Robert Fisk discussing the future of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Nov. 16; Joseph E. diGenova, former U.S. attorney and prosecutor of Israeli spy Jonathan Jay Pollard, Nov. 17; Mustapha Bargouthi of the Palestine Medical Relief Committee, discussing the impact of Wye on Palestinian society and human rights, Nov. 19; Dr. Michael C. Hudson of Georgetown University, Nov. 20; and Muhammad Hallaj, former member of the Palestine National Council, Nov. 24. All programs are from 12:30-2 p.m. at the center’s offices at 2425 Virginia Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20037. Admission is free but reservations are required, by calling (202) 338-1290, fax (202) 333-7742.

The Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University will present Nasr Hamid Abu Zyd, author of the controversial The Concept of the Text, and Jaber Asfour, head of Egypt’s Supreme Court of Culture, discussing contemporary Egyptian literary culture, Nov. 11, 6 p.m., White Gravenor Hall Room 208; and, co-sponsored by the Middle East Research and Information Project, journalist Robert Fisk, who recently toured Algeria and will speak on the violent civil strife there, Nov. 16, 5 p.m., Intercultural Center (ICC) 241. “Shifting Dynamics: The Media in the Arab World” will be discussed by academic researchers and practicing journalists, Nov. 19, 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m., at the ICC 7th floor conference room. For additional information contact CCAS, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057-1020, phone (202) 687-5793, Web site http://www.georgetown.edu/sfs/programs/ccas

The University of South Florida’s Committee for Middle Eastern Studies will hold a two-day conference on the state of U.S.-Iranian relations, Nov. 23 and 24. Speakers will include L. Bruce Langain, former chargé d’affaires of the American Embassy in Tehran when he and his staff were taken hostage following the Iranian revolution in 1979; Prof. R.K. Ramazani, Edward R. Stettinius Professor of Government and Foreign Affairs at the University of Virginia, speaking on U.S.-Iranian relations from the Iranian perspective; Dr. Kenneth Katzman, senior analyst for Persian Gulf affairs at the Congressional Research Service, speaking on the U.S. Congress and Iran; Prof. Bahman Baktiari of the University of Maine, on the Iranian parliament and the U.S.; and Prof. Nasser Hadian of the University of Tehran’s Department of Law and Political Science, on the “Dynamics of Coalition Formation in Recent Iranian Presidential Elections.” For additional information contact the committee at 4202 E. Fowler Ave., SOC 107, Tampa, FL 33620, phone (813) 974-4090, fax (813) 974-2668, e-mail fredrick@luna.cas.usf.edu.

Outreach

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Amnesty International is collecting signatures for a pledge to support this landmark U.N. declaration. AI’s goal is to collect 8 million signatures worldwide (1 percent of the world’s population); more than 3 million people have already added their signatures. U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan has agreed to receive the pledge as a symbol of the world’s commitment to human rights. To add your name, send an e-mail to udhr50th@amnesty.org.au, put your name in the subject box and the following text in the message: “I support the rights and freedoms in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for all people, everywhere.”

The Bethlehem 2000 Project is preparing a program of walking tours within and between the historic towns of Bethlehem, Beit Jala and Beit Sahour. Boards explaining the tours will be placed at various entrance points to the old city, along with flyers showing maps of the circuit and places of interest along the way. Examples of suggested routes include “harat Beit Lahem—the quarters of Bethlehem” and “The route of the pilgrims to Shepherds’ field.” The project is expected to be completed by next spring.

Grants

The U.S. Institute of Peace announces its annual solicited grant competition on the topics of A) Bosnia and the Balkan Region, supporting work that will further the consolidation of the Dayton accords and build a lasting peace in these multi-ethnic societies; B) The Middle East, on such themes as peace processes, critical regional bilateral relations, civil-military relations, weapons proliferation, and the role of new information and communication technologies in regional conflict resolution; C) Training in Conflict Management, supporting the development of new approaches or of actual training programs; and D) The Changing Nature of Diplomacy, addressing such topics as multilateral and “virtual” diplomacy, first contacts between states with enduring rivalries, and the use of new or evolving instruments of diplomatic practice. Complete information and application materials are available from the U.S. Institute of Peace, Solicited Grant Program, 1200 17th St., NW, Washington, DC 20036-3006, phone (202) 457-1700, e-mail grang_program@usip.org, Web site www.usip.org/grants/sg99.html. Application deadline is Jan. 4, 1999.