Friends
of Tunisia Newsletter
July 2004
(an affiliate of the National Peace Corps Association)
P.O. Box 25245
Washington, DC 20027
Tel. 202-526-0897
fotrpcv@yahoo.com
FOT MEMBER TO BE KEYNOTE SPEAKER AT NPCA CONFERENCE IN CHICAGO.
Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle who, along with his wife Jessica, was a Peace Corps volunteer in Tunisia in 1967-69, will be the keynote speaker at the 25th Annual National Peace Corps Association (NPCA) conference in Chicago on August 5-8. The conference will be headquartered at the Palmer House Hilton Hotel and will also feature speeches by political commentator and former volunteer Chris Matthews as well as Peter Yarborough of the singing group Peter, Paul, and Mary.
Friends of Tunisia will hold a small meeting at the conference and, inchallah, a North African dinner at a Chicago restaurant. For more info on the conference, log onto www.rpcv2004.org. For more info about FOT's meeting and dinner, e-mail Kelly Brest van Kampen bvklaw@aol.com or call her at 847-475-1550.
ARAB LEAGUE FINALLY ISSUES STATEMENT ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND REFORM.
After a summit
meeting of the Arab League failed to reach an agreement on a declaration on
human rights and political reform at a February meeting in Tunis, President
Ben Ali sent the delegates home. But on May 22-23, the League re-assembled in
Tunis and finally issued a statement. The declaration first expresses solidarity
with the Palestinian people plus support for the"territorial integrity"of
the Sudan (where the government is suspected of creating mass starvation in
the province of Darfur!), the United Arab Emirates, Somalia, Comoros, and Iraq.
The League then resolves to revise its charter and modernize institutions in
a "gradual and balanced approach." Next, the statement "reaffirms
an attachment of our states to the humanitarian principles and noble values
of human rights in their comprehensive and complementary dimension." (According
to a Tunisian official, "complementary" means that no single human
right should be regarded in isolation from all other human
rights.) Then the statement explicitly calls on all 22 member countries to "widen
women's participation in the political, economic, social, cultural, and educational
fields" before concluding with praise for President Ben Ali for his role
at the
summit meetings.
AMERICA'S REPUTATION: SOLDIERS, STUDENTS, AND THE PEACE CORPS.
It's common knowledge that the invasion of Iraq and treatment of Iraqi prisoners has damaged America's reputation abroad. Less well known is the effect on American companies. Major American consumer products, such as Coca Cola, Pepsi, McDonald's, and Nike, are seeing marked declines in worldwide sales. Yet, according to British pollsters, more than just soldiers in Iraq are damaging America's reputation. American students traveling abroad have become known for "a lack of empathy and humility." Therefore, Southern Methodist University is publishing a booklet, funded by a concerned PepsiCo, advising American college students on appropriate conduct in other countries. Unfortunately, though, when it comes to creating a bad image, even the Peace Corps has at least one skeleton in its closet. A recently published book, "American Taboo: A Murder in the Peace Corps" by Philip Weiss, describes how the Peace Corps, aided by the State Department, allowed a volunteer to go free after he murdered another volunteer on the South Pacific island of Tonga in 1976. Dennis Priven, a moody volunteer from Brooklyn, New York, stabbed Deborah Gardner, an attractive, young PCV from Washington state, over 20 times. On the basis of eye-witnesses and the victim's dying statement, Priven was arrested and put on trial by the Tongan authorities. Although it was questionable whether Priven was mentally disturbed or just plain cold, resentful, and brutal, the Peace Corps, afraid for its image if a volunteer should hang, went to great lengths to have him declared insane at the trial. Then PC officials offered a deal to the Tongan government: the US would take custody of Priven and put him in a mental institution in this country. The Tongans agreed, but within days of Priven's return to the US he was allowed to go free (without the knowledge of the victim's family.) Today he remains free, and while few Americans know about this story, many in Tonga and nearby Samoa apparently do. According to one review, this book presents "a gripping and sad story that will do little to bolster faith in the US government's ethical priorities....a supposedly moral community threw up a protective shield around an unrepentant killer."
RELIGIOUS FUNDAMENTALISM: TUNISIAN AND AMERICAN VIEWS.
At a June 12 FOT
luncheon at the Washington, DC, home of Stan and Judy Hallett, about 25 attendees
exchanged views on religious fundamentalism. For the American volunteers who
remembered the liberalism of the early 1960s, the basic attitude was: "What
went wrong?" Stan Hallett ('64-66) asked, "How did we end up with
so many people within Islam, Judaism, and Christianity who narrowly use texts
thousands of years old to determine everything?" Those responding to his
question tended to view the various fundamentalist movements as reactions to
economic, political, or cultural causes rather than as religious movements that
grew according to their own internal imperatives.
For example, Dave Leibson ('67-70) suggested that non-western fundamentalists
resented the arrogance of the west's attitude that "our way is best."
Yet, as Dave admitted, that didn't explain why fundamentalism grew among western
Christians and Jews. An economic explanation was suggested by Mourad Bel Hassen,
an official from the Tunisian embassy. Bel Hassen pointed out that, to those
suffering economic hardship, the simplistic fundamentalist promise of a just
society, based on holy books and old traditions, has enormous appeal. The best
way to counter this overly simple appeal, he added, is the Tunisian approach
of education in tolerance plus economic measures that bring relief to the poor.
However, not all fundamentalists are poor and uneducated, and Ali Khemili, who
came to the luncheon from Albany, NY, pointed out that, to some degree, Islamic
fundamentalism is being exported to countries like Tunisia. Bel Hassen agreed.
The wearing of a headscarf, both men noted, has no roots in Tunisia. "A
headscarf is a political statement," Khemili aid, "not a return to
anything Tunisian." In the end, no resolution was reached. Is fundamentalism
simply a reaction to poverty and the arrogance of the powerful? Can wealth redistribution
and liberal education change movements willing to behead innocent people? Can
anything other than a "war of civilizations" alter the growth of intolerance
and bloodshed? Everyone at the luncheon hoped so.
A NEW AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING TUNISIAN-AMERICANS.
The Tunisian Community
Center, an organization run by and for Tunisian Americans, intends to establish
a yearly award to honor outstanding TunisianAmericans who have made a contribution
to the Tunisian-American community in this country. The award, named in honor
of the famous Tunisian-born historian, Ibn Khaldoun, will be first presented
in Washington, DC, on May 27, 2005, the birthday of Ibn Khaldoun (1332-1406).
Nominees can be "distinguished individuals or corporations" that have
performed an outstanding service to the Tunisian-American community. For more
information log onto www.tunisiancommunity.org or e-mail to ibnkhaldoun@tunisiancommunity.org.
(NOTE: The Tunisian Community Center should not be confused with the American
Tunisian Association (ATA), which is composed mainly of former American diplomats
who served in Tunisia.)
CAN FOT MEMBERS HELP THE PEACE CORPS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM?
About 30 American universities participate in the Peace Corps Fellowship Program. Such schools offer full or partial scholarships to returning Peace Corps volunteers who agree to work in local "underserved" communities after receiving advanced degrees in various subjects. Among the subjects offered are: anthropology, international studies, nursing, public and business administration, primary and secondary education, languages, criminal justice, environmental policy, economics, sociology, social work, civil engineering, math, and community development. However, several specialties that were Peace Corps programs in Tunisia are not offered by any school - namely architecture, various agricultural sciences, and the general areas of mental health and developmental disability. Therefore, if you have a connection to a university that offers these sorts of programs, why not explore whether your school would be able to offer either a full or partial scholarship to one or more returning Peace Corps volunteers, who could be ideal students, committed to "making a difference"? If you are interested, you can reply to FOT or get directly in touch with Michele Titi, PhD, who runs the Fellowship Program for the Peace Corps. You can reach Michele at mtiti@peacecorps.gov or 1-800-424-8580 x-1442. The current address for the Peace Corps is 1111 20th St. NW, Washington, DC 20526.
REUNION FOR KINDERGARTEN TEACHERS OF '66-68.
A reunion is being planned for Columbus Day, October 11, in northern California, for the kindergarten teachers of the Tunisia Child Care group of 1966-68. This group trained at Wheelock College in Boston. So far Susan (Kandarian) Gefvert, Karen (Karr) Garcia, Patrice (Engstrom) Russell, Cynthia (Anderson) Chason, all of whom live in northern California, are being joined by Mary Jo (Littlefield) Graham, who teaches in West Virginia. Anyone wanting more information about the reunion should contact Susan at 2390 Goodwin Ave., Penngrove, CA 94951-8608 or at gefvert@comcast.net or call (707) 664-8323. Also, the group is trying to locate Nancy Watson and Cheryl Greene. If you know where either Nancy or Cheryl are, contact Susan.
***NEWS OF TUNISIA**TUNISIAN NEWS**NEWS OF TUNISIA***-
- In April President Ben Ali appointed the first female head of a gouvernat in Tunisia. Salway Hohsni, a member of parliament, now heads the northern gouvernat of Zaghouan.
- A number of historic sites around the country are being restored and renovated. Sixteen buildings in the center of Kairouan as well as the old port in Bizerte plus some 19th- and 20th- century palaces in the Tunis area are undergoing extensive work. Restorations are also ongoing in Medenine, Tataouine, Mahdia, Sousse, Beja, Testour, Le Kef, and Tozeur.
- A developer is being sought to transform the sebkhet (salt lake) at Mahdia into a 700-berth marina and esplanade with tourist hotels, golf courses, and other facilities to attract tourists. This would add thousands of tourist beds to an area of about 900 hectares.
- With help from the United Nations, several pilot programs are trying to encourage bio-diversity in the oases of southern Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco. Market forces tend to create a farming mono-culture, which leaves these oases exposed to both severe biological threats and large market fluctuations. A major focus, therefore, is to increase the variety of date palms grown in these oases. Currently 32 varieties are grown in Tunisia.
- In early June, the ninth congress of Tunisian gastroenterologists was held in Tunis. Today Tunisia has 80 gastroenterologists in the public sector, of which 37 are associated with university hospitals. Eighty-seven gastroenterologists are in private practice, and 46 are in training. Much of this growth is the result of investments in new facilities and technology that was called for in the country's current (tenth) economic plan.
- Medical tourism is an area that Tunisia hopes to expand. Today, Tunisia receives 100,000 medical tourists every year and hopes to triple that number in the next few years. Libyans and Algerians come seeking Tunisia's well qualified doctors and hospitals. Europeans are after therapies that require exposure to sun or sea water (thalassotherapy).
- In London, the former Lord Mayor of London, Sir Gavyn Arthur, and 70 members of the British-Tunisian Society held their 41st annual dinner on May 7. Hear! Hear!
- Between June 4 and June 10, over 117,000 students took the six-day baccalaureate exams at 383 centers.
- The shoe industry
in Tunisia is large and growing.
Over 270 "units of fabrication" employ 40,000 people. During the 1990s,
the growth of this sector was about 18% per year, and it attracted 150 foreign
entrepreneurs whose establishments employ 16,000 people. Consequently, the Confederation
europeene de l'industrie de chaussures (CEC) held its annual meeting this year
in Gammarth. A problem discussed is a recent drop is shoe sales in Europe.
MEMBERSHIP: For FOT-only, send $15 to address at the head of newsletter. For combined NPCA and FOT membership, send $50 to NPCA, Suite 205, 1900 L Street, Washington, DC 20036. Specify your desired affiliation as Friends of Tunisia, not just "FOT."