Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, July 1992, pages 58, 79

Taking the Case to the People

Zionist Attempt to Smear Midwest Conference on Jerusalem Backfires

By Rev. Don Wagner

A coordinated attempt by pro-Israel activists in the local media and national Zionist organizations to discredit an interfaith conference on "Jerusalem and Justice" has backfired spectacularly in Indianapolis. More than twice as many people attended the May 11 event as had been anticipated by the five Muslim, Christian, Arab-American and peace groups that organized it.

Last January, conference organizers selected Indianapolis as the site for a conference to discuss the place of Jerusalem, sacred to Muslims, Christians and Jews, in a Middle East peace settlement for three reasons. First, it represents the heartland of America and had never hosted a conference on the Middle East. Second, it is the outreach headquarters for a major American Muslim organization, the American Muslim Council (AMC), and with strong local Christian churches, the potential for Christian-Muslim dialogue was excellent.

The third reason for choosing the Indiana city is that several key players in U.S. foreign affairs come from Indianapolis or nearby. Among them are Sen. Richard Lugar of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Chairman Lee Hamilton of the House Foreign Affairs Committee's Subcommittee on Europe and the Middle East, and, of course, Vice President Dan Quayle. In addition to AMC, the other conference organizers were the Attiyeh Foundation from nearby Champaign, IL; Mercy Corps International and Evangelicals for Middle East Understanding from Chicago; and the Middle East Policy Council of Washington, DC, which has a strong Indiana working group.

As soon as the initial invitations had been mailed and conference organizers had met with local Jewish, Muslim and Christian clergy, the campaign of misinformation and intimidation began. Dr. Marcia Goldstone, Director of the Jewish Community Relations Council in Indianapolis (JCRC), launched a vicious attack in the Indianapolis Star, owned by the vice president's family.

During the week of April 27, articles also began to appear in the newspaper's news columns, still featuring the views of Dr. Goldstone without criticism or refutation. They maintained that "local groups balk" at the forthcoming conference, which was characterized as "anti-Israeli" and with a "pro-Palestinian tilt." Indianapolis clergy and peace activists were quoted as stating they did not support the conference.

As one of the conference organizers, I contacted leaders reported to have made negative comments and learned that they had been quoted out of context. In fact, some had done considerable work to promote the event. One church leader who was reported as refusing to attend told me that in fact he had cleared his schedule so that he could be present for the entire conference.

Local Zionist leaders began to pressure participants.

One week prior to the conference, the Indianapolis Star began carrying on a daily basis articles or letters to the editor related to the conference. While letters supporting the conference did appear, they were held to approximately 50 percent of the length of the anti-conference correspondence.

Local Zionist leaders then began to pressure participants in the conference. An Indianapolis NBC-TV news anchor withdrew from his scheduled role as moderator of a debate between the Israeli consul general and Palestinian attorney Jonathan Kuttab. Then the Israeli consul general also withdrew, followed by a rabbi from Champaign, IL who was to give the Jewish "faith" perspective on Jerusalem. Warned that last minute withdrawals by partisans of Israel (who initially request equal time) are a time-honored means of making carefully balanced conferences seem one-sided, the conference organizers were prepared to find replacements on short notice.

On Monday morning, May 11th, the day-long conference began. The organizers originally had planned for a maximum audience of 125 persons, but feared that the avalanche of negative news stories might dramatically reduce participation. Instead, by 9 a.m. the large conference room was filled to capacity. By day's end, some 300 people had attended some or all of the sessions.

Dr. John Woods of the University of Chicago's Center for Middle East Studies opened the conference with a brilliant historical survey of Jerusalem, using maps, slides, and commentary. The first panel on "Human Rights in Israel and the Occupied Territories" concentrated on the contemporary situation in Jerusalem and environs.

Dr. Louise Cainkar of the Palestine Human Rights Information Center analyzed recent accounts of Israeli armed forces "death squads" murdering young Palestinians. Virginia Tilley of the Washington, DC-based "Settlement Watch" project presented disturbing data on the Israeli government's program to domicile more than one million Jewish settlers in East Jerusalem and the West Bank within four years in order to make the U.S.-supported land-for-peace exchange impossible.

Attorney Michael Sutherlin of Amnesty International reviewed both persistent Israeli violations of Palestinian human rights and the careful methods that his organization uses to verify them. Dr. Francis Boyle, professor of international law at the University of Illinois, explained the international legal consensus that presently exists concerning Jerusalem and why the Jewish settlements in the occupied territories stand outside the norms of international law.

The Debate Goes On

When the Israeli consul general withdrew from his scheduled debate with attorney Jonathan Kuttab, Dr. Daniel Bloomfield, formerly of the University of Illinois Medical School, agreed to fill in. Dr. Bloomfield, a board member of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), said that "Israel is a tiny country surrounded by hostile Arabs," and proposed that "the Palestinians settle in another Arab country, such as Jordan." He described Israel as "the only democracy and friend of America in the Middle East," and maintained that it has requested $10 billion in U.S. loan guarantees "for humanitarian purposes."

Mr. Kuttab argued that Israel will not yield a single inch of land willingly, regardless of whether Labor or Likud is in power, and that this is the historic "apartheid" approach of Zionism. The Palestinian attorney stated that Zionism and the state of Israel were founded on the twin pillars of racial exclusivity and the negation of Palestinian human and political rights. He called upon Americans to take courageous and consistent positions against Israel's present strategies to prevent another major war in the Middle East.

Louisiana congressional candidate Faye Williams, representing retiring Rep. Mervyn Dymally (D-CA), alerted the conference in a luncheon address to new legislation on Jerusalem introduced in the Senate (S. Con. 113) by Sen. Robert Packwood (R-OR) and in the House (H. Con. 16) concerning "the 25th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem." Not only do the resolutions violate existing U.S. policy by granting Israel sovereignty over all of Jerusalem, Ms. Williams pointed out, but they may be a trial balloon for more serious measures such as AIPAC's election year favorite mandating that the U.S. Embassy be moved to Jerusalem and recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's "Eternal Capital." Another luncheon address by Sheikh Amin Al-Attas of the Muslim World League, headquartered in Mecca, traced the role of Christians and Jews in Islamic countries through the centuries.

A conference highlight was the presentation to the Rev. Dr. L. Humphrey Walz of a "lifetime achievement award" for his service to the victims of injustice. In the 1930s and 1940s, the Presbyterian clergyman was engaged in the resettlement of Jewish victims of Nazism. In the 1950s he helped resettle Palestinians who had lost their homes and land to Israelis in 1948. Since that time he has remained a voice for justice for both peoples.

It was noted that 1992 marks the 25th anniversary of the launching by Reverend Walz of The Link, the bimonthly publication of Americans for Middle East Understanding, upon whose board Dr. Walz serves. He also is board chairman of the American Educational Trust, which publishes the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, for which he writes a monthly column on religious affairs.

In afternoon panels on "faith perspectives" and "advocacy," Dr. Dale Bishop, Director of the National Council of Churches Middle East Desk, noted the strong justice position of the NCC and its member organizations, describing the significant pressures they endure. Robert Crain of the American Muslim Council and Fr. Tom Baima of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago supported the position that in any final settlement Jerusalem must be a "corpus separatum" to protect the rights of adherents of the three religions concerned, as well as their holy places.

Dr. Marc Ellis, a progressive Jewish theologian and author from the Maryknoll School of Theology, warned U.S. Jews against supporting the dangerous course Israel is now pursuing. "If the present direction continues," he said, "we will witness the end of Palestine very soon, which will also be the end of Judaism as we know it." Tom Getman of World Vision issued a call for advocacy and grassroots organization to continue the gradual shift toward justice that is evident across the United States.

Dr. Michael Saba of the Attiyeh Foundation summarized the conference and emphasized the importance of doing political and educational work on Jerusalem now. If the present principled U.S. position on Jerusalem changes under congressional pressure, he said, a just peace will be impossible. The conference concluded with a showing of the moving film "Stranger at Home," and hearing from its lead character, noted Palestinian author and artist Kamal Boulatta.

Significant Lessons

In addition to examining the delicate Jerusalem issue, conference organizers learned some significant lessons during a time when U.S. public opinion is demonstrating willingness to re-examine outdated positions on the Israeli-Palestinian problem. First, Christian-Muslim dialogue and cooperation must be expanded, but carefully. There is far more to agree upon than ever before and it is time to organize actively at the grassroots level. As Marc Ellis would advise Christians and Muslims, "end the dialogue" with Zionist organizations that only wish to stifle the peace process and avoid debating with them serious peace and justice questions. Substitute for them the several Jewish peace organizations that take a progressive stance on Palestinian justice and are willing to become involved.

Second, if leading Zionist organizations cannot control the agenda or take over the event, they will refuse to participate. In Indianapolis, they simply withdrew and then sought to force other speakers to withdraw or be smeared in the press along with the conference organizers. Third, this election year, like others, may prompt Israel's U.S. lobby and its congressional supporters to introduce new legislation and strategies concerning Jerusalem, the loan guarantees, and peace. Fourth, bringing counter-pressure upon the media, churches, peace organizations, etc. is useful if done in a careful, precise and non-confrontational manner. The major thrust of such initiatives must be the persistent search for truth, for peace, and advocacy of the rights of the poor and victims of injustice.

It is clear that the churches and academia must play an active role in the coming months and years concerning Jerusalem and the peace negotiations. Meanwhile, leading Zionist organizations must come to terms with the deep erosion of public support for Israel's policies. Among those who attended the Indianapolis conference, more than 90 percent supported a position on Jerusalem consistent with U.N. resolutions, and a two-state resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

As a testimony to the success of the effort, following the proceedings the Indianapolis Star ran its first objective account of the conference.

The Rev. Don Wagner is director of Mideast programs for Mercy Corps International and for Evangelicals for Middle East Understanding in Chicago, IL.

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