2 Friday, August 21 , 1982
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v s THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Purely Commentary
The Media and the Lebanese
Errors, the Jordanian Role
and the Middle East Facts
The Media and the Errors Attributable to Judgments in
a Time of. War ... Jordan's Role and the Possibility of
Peace With Israel ... The Detroit Arabs and Relations with Jews
cept any of the guerrillas. Now that the guerrillas'
arrival seems imminent, a typical attitude among
Jordanians, according to one high-ranking Pales-
tinian guerrilla official based here, is of "latent
apprehension."
By Philip
Slomovitz
Among the DetrOit area's 20,000 Palestinians
anger and outrage at the Israeli onslaught in
Beirut run deep. A gruesome poster — two young
Palestinians holding the blackened corpse of a
baby, with the caption "Stop Israeli Genocide" —
appeals on many public walls in the South End. At
the Beit Hanina Charitable Society, a social club
and fraternal organization made up entirely of
former residents of a town south of Jerusalem,
Yasir Arafat is hailed as "our leader." A huge
Palestinian flag is painted on one wall. "Our real
representative is the PLO in Beirut," insists
Mahmoud Faraj. "Not Sadat, not Egypt, not any-
one else."
"Even if the Israelis kick the PLO out of Leba-
non, more PLO will form," says Omar Hamed
a second-generation Palestinian-American.
Palestinian struggle will go on as long as h'rael
occupies our country. We will never quit until we
get our country back." Nuha Aranki, a Palesti-
nian Catholic born on the West Bank and now
executive director of Access, an Arab social-
services organization, says that a Polish Jewish
family now lives in the home her father owned
and never sold. "The Jew is entitled to his home,"
she says. "We are not opposed to Jews; we
coexisted with them for centuries. But a Zionist
comes from Poland and takes over my orange
grove and my home. What justice is that?"
Thus, the people from the Middle East, Arabs,
Lebanese, Chaldeans, are a community to be reckoned
with. They have lived in peace with Jews and the spirit of
fellow citizenship must be encouraged and must continue.
- It is when propagandists instill hatred, it is when
youths are taught to shout villainy, it is when appeals to
hatred include such comments as "Polish Jews occupy my
orange plantation," acclamations that usually prove to be
mirages, that there is a threat to the common courtesies
that must be perpetuated in American ranks.
Good Americans do not advocate violence, even when
they differ adamantly on many issues. Fortunately there is
very little more than a few venomous shouts in contrasting
attitudes. That's to the credit of the Islamic community, the
Christians, the Jews who are their fellow American citi-
zens. This is how it should be retained.
Beirut is no longer a battleground and will, hopefully,
prayerfully once again become the Paris of the Middle East.
The official added, in a commonly held opinion.
The PLO is out of Lebanon and is expected predictably to
that
Jordanian-Palestinian and Jordanian-PLO
seek other means of menacing Israel. Many errors now will
relations had mellowed greatly over the last few
be traced to the methods that were applied both by Israel
years. He also insisted, as almost everyone does,
and her enemies, by the media throughout the world and
that
no one could say what would follow the
especially in the United States in the treatment of the
evacuation of Beirut.
Lebanese war and of Israel's role as the initiator of the
One reason for the latent apprehension is the
battle to eradicate the terrorist from her borders. The con-
memory of Black September, a series of battles
cerned will dedicate themselves to the need for proper pub-
between Palestinian and Jordanian soldiers that
lic relations methods to eliminate the misunderstandings
begin in September 1970 and ended only when
that elicited a great deal of venom.
bow-armed Palestinians had either been killed or
Accompanying it all will be the recognition of the
expelled in 1971. Several thousand people died on
urgency to resolve the Palestinian issue, to assure a rela-
each side, and deep bitterness toward the PLO
tionship with Arabs so eminently friendly that there will be
persists among some Jordanian soldiers, security
an end to the bickering, to hatred, to warfare, to the need for
officers, policemen and their families.
military action where good neighborliness must redound to
The Palestinians' sheer force of numbers has
the benefit of all mankind that can ill afford a Middle East
caused other grievances. And the likelihood that
battleground.
several thousand Palestinian refugees, men,
Indeed, the Palestinian problem is foremost on the
women and children, will soon head for Jordan
agenda for all concerned. The editorial in this issue touches
can only add, however slightly, to those numbers.
on this element in the painful and aggravated situation.
Excluding. the West Bank, more than half of
Most pressing is the need to assure understanding and
Jordan's 2.3 million East Bank residents consider
elimination of confusion and distortion of facts. This is
themselves Palestinians, though most have been
where the public relations obligations enter.
granted Jordanian citizenship. Half a million of
Resentments expressed over the manner in which the
the Palestinians still receive rations as official
media treated the Lebanese war, the situation in Beirut,
refugees. Many others hold positions that occa-
the differing means that were applied in portraying PLO as
sionally rankle their "trans-Jordanian" fellow-
contrasted with the ugliness assigned to Israel and her
laborers, small merchants, businessmen and
army are uppermost in these considerations.
bureaucrats.
There were many errors and they must be admitted.
"Look what happens wherever they go," said a
Zev Chafets, a native De-
Jordanian born more than 50 years ago in what
troiter and director of the
was then the Bedouin crossroads of Ma'an, and
Israel press office in
who later spent 10 years in the Jordanian Army.
Jerusalem, in an interview
- "Even our children go separately. The Palesti-
with the Long Island Jewish
nian child spits on the child of the army."
World, stated inter alia that
The man's values in other respects appeared
he did not agree with the
not to have changed much in the three decades
views of the former Israel
since an American sociologist heard a Jordanian
Ambassador to the UN
say: "Look at the Palestinians. They listened to
Chaim Herzog that there
the radio and God destroyed them."
was some anti-Semitism in
Educated Palestinians and Jordanians alike
the reporting of the war by
say that such perceptions are fading, despite an
the foreign press. Chafets
How It All Began . . . Record
upsurge of "trans-Jordanian" nationalism over
said:"Television just prefers
of
Superb Journalism
the past six or eight years. But no one denies that
to show pictures of destruc-
tensions exist.
This commentator has consistently credited the New
tion. Most journalists I
This is a record of vital factors in serious consideration York Times with great reporting. Its coverage of the
know are f.ir and are doing
their job." He added that of a possible solution of the entire Arab-Israel issue, Jordan Lebanese conflict is, as has been indicated, a marvelous
often foreign correspon- being recommended as a solvent, in a proposed agreement documentary. Especially notable are the articles and news
dents echo the official that a Palestinian state would be one that would append reports by Thomas L. Friedman.
American government line the "West Bank" — Judea and Samaria — to the Jordanian
In his "Reporter's Notebook: Weeks of Siege," his Aug.
state, with an effective Israeli borderline to protect the
when they enter a foreign Jewish
20 more than a page-length article, he revealed that as
state.
country, unfamiliar with
ZEV CHAFETS
The issues involved are innumerable. An understand- early as July 3, four weeks after Israel launched the attack
the language or the history
on the PLO, Yasir Arafat signed a readiness to leave Leba-
ing
of
the problems is vital. It is possible to reach an accord. non.
of that country, ending up getting briefed by an American
This is the time to start. The start and the finish must be
diplomat and then parrot the American government posi-
In that revealing article, Friedman, reporting on many
without venom.
tion.
incidents and experiences, included the following:
Meanwhile,
Israel
and
the
world
Jewish
communities,
Chafets also admitted that it was "a stupid decision" to
One afternoon a group of west Beirut-based re-
must do the proper planning to assure that public relations
bar the press from visiting the Palestinian camps in Leba-
porters trundled off to Emille's to meet some of
will spell dissemination of truth, a welcome to amity, and
non.
their colleagues from Jerusalem and an Israeli
an end to bickering and an emphasis on good neighborli-
This is an official interpretation. There will be many
officer. Included in the west Beirut contingent
ness. Out of a terrible war must emanate a community
admissions of errors. To have denied permission to two
was a Jewish reporter from a Communist Euro-
devoted
to
good
will
and
commmon
decency.
Arab mayors in Israel-governed areas to be interviewed on
pean paper, one of the very few Jewish corre-
television programs also was a grave error. Will Israel
* * *
spondents working out of the western half of the
admit it?
capital.
Metropolitan Detroit Jewry
In the main, much of what was registered in the press
When they arrived at Emilie's, the Israeli officer
and Its Islamic Neighbors
was historically valuable. The New York Times reports of
went around the table introducing himself and
the past 10 weeks represent an historical documentry that
shaking hands with each correspondent, until he
The Middle East situation keeps drawing attention to
will be inerasable for the historian
got to the Communist reporter. The Communist
a special interest involving Metropolitan Detroit's Jewish
Often, news reports inform, enlighten, reveal truth
community.
refused to shake the Israeli officer's hand, saying,
and trace the records of important experiences.
"I will not shake the hand of an occupier."
This area has the largest population of Arabs, predo-
Exemplary in the latter is the report from Amman, in
The Israeli officer shrugged off the slight and
minantly Moslem. The many thousands of former Lebanese
the Aug. 18 issue of the NYTimes, by Colin Campbell,
residing here are mostly Maronite Catholics.
the group proceeded with its lunch. Over coffee,
about the Jordanian situation. It referred to the surprise
the west Beirut reporters began pressing the Is-
There have been few of any disputes with them and
announcement that Jordan was ready to accept about 1,500
raeli officer for his assessment of whether or not
only recently propagandists invaded the Arab ranks to
PLO members who were about to be ousted from Lebanon.
create discord.
the Israeli Army would storm west Beirut, and, if
In his report Campbell provided these important details:
it did, what would happen to all of the correspon-
The Lebanese situation drew attention to the Arabs
King Hussein, in a speech broadcast last Wed-
dents living there in the Commodore Hotel., The
residing here and Newsweek, in one of its lengthy accounts
nesday on the 30th anniversary of his accession to
officer told them not to worry, that no harm vy
of the existing situations, carried these references to the
the throne, warned against "instigators of hollow
large local Arab community.
come to any journalists — but they kept pi
emotions and sedition" in the wake of the Israeli
him-. Finally, the exasperated officer said, "If I
Palestinians began arriving in the Detroit area
invasion of Lebanon and said he would show "no
have to, I will .personally drive my own car into
as early as 1910, drawn by high wages in the auto
mercy" toward those who threatened his nation's
west Beirut and take you all out safely.
industry. Along with Lebanese, Iraqis, Yemenis
unity, security and stability. The image that
"All except this one," he added, pointing his
and
other
Arab
immigrants,
they
mostly
settled
in
many of his listeners formed on hearing these re-
the South End, a tidy working-class neighbor-
finger at the Communist correspondent who had
marks was of Palestinian guerrillas and their
snubbed him.
hood of Dearborn. In the shadow of the hulking
sympathizers.
"But," chimed in the other reporters, "he is the
Ford Motor Co.'s Rouge Plant, a mosque stands at
His words were taken less as a comment on the
only Jew among us."
the end of a row of Middle Eastern restaurants
PLO's Jordanian homecoming than on the more
Said the Israeli officer, "I should have known."
and shops. Many signs and advertisements are in
general possibility that yet another Israeli ad-
Arabic, and Arabic is heard everywhere. The
The lesson in this, and in the manner in which the
vance might be followed by bitter political dissen-
Palestinians here have adjusted to America with
Israeli army officer brushed off a Jewish Communist, is
sion among Arabs. Still, many Jordanians ex-
varying success, but all cling tenaciously to their
self-descriptive. Isn't the enemy from one's own ranks the
pressed surprise that the King had agreed to ac-
roots.
worst to contend with?
,
.