Arab-American Delegation Meets With Colin Powell April 3

By Stephen Kaufman
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- Secretary of State Colin Powell met with a delegation of Arab-American leaders April 3 at the State Department in Washington to discuss their distress over the current crisis between Israelis and Palestinians.

"Our major objective as Arab-Americans," said American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) President Ziad Asali, "is to promote peace for all concerned and security for all concerned."

Speaking to the press following their one and a half hour meeting, Asali said the secretary was "understanding of our concerns."

"We had a very serious and in-depth meeting with the Secretary of State and I would characterize these discussions as very frank, very open, very serious, and it was emotional at times, as you might imagine," said Asali.

"I think we would say that the secretary 'gets it,'" said Arab American Institute (AAI) President James Zogby.

"It is very important to know that he does understand the significance of needed action and not just words right now. There's no question about it," said Asali.

Asali presented Secretary Powell with five points of recommendations from the delegation on steps they feel the United States should take to end the violence and promote peace in the region.

"For the Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim listeners, I want to tell them that all complaints that they may have considered as serious were presented to the Secretary of State today," said Asali.

"The positions that he advocated were equally forthright. He expressed a personal commitment to the State of Palestine and the State of Israel, and [to] the security of both," he said.

Asali also said that the secretary "understands fully the political equation that goes with the security equation and the need to deal with both."

Zogby added that the delegation "felt confident that he is a person with whom we can work."

"He is understanding of the concerns. He is someone with whom we've known and worked with for a long time," said Zogby.

The delegates reported that another topic of discussion was the fate of Arab-Americans who have been affected by the ongoing violence, or who have been unable to leave the area. Asali said the secretary indicated that it was indeed a "high priority issue for the State Department."

The Arab-American delegation was comprised of about 15 organizations, including representatives of AAI, ADC, the American Muslim Council, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), and the Palestinian American Congress.

Founded in 1980 by former Arab-American Senator James Abourezk, ADC is the largest Arab-American grassroots organization in the United States. It describes itself as "a civil rights organization committed to defending the rights of people of Arab descent."

The Arab American Institute, founded in 1985, seeks to represent Arab American interests in the U.S. government and political system. It advertises itself as serving "as a national leadership group for Americans of Arab descent."

(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)