[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 145 (Tuesday, October 13, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2143-E2144]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             SEEDS OF PEACE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOE KNOLLENBERG

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 13, 1998

  Mr. KNOLLENERG. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the important 
work of the non-partisan organization Seeds of Peace.
  After decades of war, terrorism, and other forms of conflict, and 
after much bloodshed on both sides, Israel and the Palestinian 
Liberation Organization signed an official document on September 13, 
1993 in which they pledged to pursue peace and resolve their 
differences.
  While the peace process over the past five years has had its share of 
problems. I believe that the Middle East is a fundamentally different 
region since the historic ceremony on the lawn of the White House. The 
most concrete results, such as the peace agreement between Israel and 
Jordan, the end of Israel's occupation of the West Bank, and the 
creation of the Palestinian Authority, give us hope that further 
progress is possible. Progress can only come from direct talks between 
Israel and the Palestinians, with the continued support and 
encouragement of the United States.
  Today it is appropriate to look beyond the complexities of the peace 
process and consider the necessary ingredients to nurture a peaceful 
future in the Middle East. As important as the Oslo Accords were and 
future peace agreements will be, none of these documents will guarantee 
that peace will take hold in the hearts and minds of Israelis and their 
Arab neighbors. True peace will only emerge in that region if a new 
generation adopts attitudes that represent a break from the past.
  Seeds of Peace has worked to fulfill this vision. Each summer since 
1993, this organization has brought hundreds of teenagers from Israel 
and Arab lands to a camp in Maine. Over the course of five weeks, the 
youngsters are engaged in heated discussions about their perspectives 
and attitudes and build friendships that transcend their differences.
  I was fortunate to meet two graduates of the Seeds of Peace camp 
earlier this year, an Israeli girl named Shani and a Palestinian boy 
named Abdalsalam, when they visited Detroit. I was very impressed by 
their stories about how camp opened them to a deeper understanding of 
their differences and led them to resolve to transcend those 
differences as they take positions of leadership in their respective 
societies. They carried their message

[[Page E2144]]

to high schools throughout the Detroit area, to a joint gathering of 
Arab and Jewish youth groups, and to an event that brought together 
leaders of Detroit's Jewish and Arab communities.
  This project has special meaning for Michigan's large Jewish and Arab 
American communities, who have strong cultural, historical, religious, 
and family ties with the Middle East and follow developments there very 
closely. Seeds of Peace offers them an opportunity to work together, 
along with others who seek a Middle East free of war and hatred.
  I applaud the efforts of Seeds of Peace and of other similar 
organizations that are building a foundation for future peace in the 
Middle East. I encourage Americans to lend their support to their fine 
initiatives as a way of signaling hope for a brighter future for 
generations to come.

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