JAMARY 171ELTDOW11!

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them and possibly changing their
views about Jews, starting with
Croatian President Franjo Tudjman,
whose anti-Semitic writings prompted
a round of protest when he was wel-
comed at the museum's opening cere-
monies in 1993.
"We use our exhibitions to teach
about a period of history that has pro-
found lessons to offer us today,"
Mandel said. "The museum is open to
everybody; for people who represent
other countries and other groups of
people, and who have influence over
the hearts and minds of people, it's all
the more important to invite them in."
Lerman insisted that for the muse-
urn, the administration request posed
a no-win choice.
"If we had given Arafat full diplo-
matic status, 40percent of the.Jewish
community would have applauded
me, 40 percent would have killed me,"
he said.
But he conceded that his decision
was a mistake.
"I believe it was handled poorly,"
he said. "And no issue like this should
be handled by only two people."
Other council sources said that the
controversy reflects growing strains
between Reich, the staff and the coun-
cil over the way decisions are made at
the museum.
"The staff has been in an uproar for
more than a year," said one source.
"The way this decision was made —
with no consultation, no debate — is
the best illustration yet of a process
that many here see as seriously flawed
and damaging to the institution."
Many museum backers agreed that
the controversy hurt the museum's
image.
"My visceral feeling was terribly
negative," said Mark Talisman, a long-
time Jewish activist in Washington
and one of the museum's founding
directors. "Things got out of control. I
would have preferred that Arafat be
received with dignity; it's absolutely
essential that he see this. It's an
American institution, and it tells a lot
about the American standpoint in the
Middle East."
Talisman agreed that there is a risk
Arafat could use a high-profile visit to
the museum to score propaganda
points.
"It has to be handled very careful-
ly, in a way that is worthy of the
memory perpetuated in the muse-
urn," he said. "But there's absolutely
no way to defend what happened last
week. It should be turned around
immediately." ❑

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