United States Embassy
Israel
71 Hayarkon Street,
Tel Aviv, Israel
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Remarks by U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel C. Kurtzer -
at the IASP 10th Anniversary reception
Mr. Ambassador, Honorable Ministers, Kennesset Members, Ladies and Gentelmen:It gives me great honor to stand here before you and thank you, on behalf of all of the graduates, for the generosity of the American government in putting together this unique scholarship program. You will probably get to meet tonight each and every graduate. I would like to assure you Mr. Ambassador that each and every one of them has a leading role in his vocational life. It is true for those of us engaged in business, law practice, consulting and the academia. Each and every recipient is also a role model for many others thus giving them a shining light of hope that after a hard, rich and challenging course of study one can be rewarded. One can lead. One can change. One can grasp one's future to propel higher. Indeed, I can say with confidence that the Israeli - Arab Scholarship Program has made a difference. It is a success. I would like to take this opportunity and proclaim that an alumni association has been established. All of the recipients of the scholarship are now joined together, thus giving them the opportunity to exchange thoughts, take part in informing prospected graduate students about the scholarship, take part in the selecting committee, and most importantly advise scholarship recipients that are about to travel, on courses of study, institutions and how to get along in the United States. Mr. Ambassador, I am sure that you have already learned the fact that it is not easy to live in Israel. Let me add that for the Arab minority living here is especially hard. Any of the ministers here today and of the Kennesset members can tell you that the Arab sector has been discriminated against in various fields, especially in budget allocation and job opportunities. However, one cannot but confess to the fact that things today are different from those in effect say some 20 years ago. Government in Israel has admitted much of the mischief. Different programs have been instituted. Some progress has been made, but still much of the progress is yet to be achieved. One field of progress in the Arab society is that in higher education. The Arab society has become extremely aware of the fact that one way of escaping inferiority is by acquiring first class knowledge. In this respect I might add that knowledge and education is also the path to universal values by which different creeds and races can live side by side in peace. Having the opportunity to be in the United States, studying in major universities, has given us a tremendous quantity of awareness, perspectives and values. The Israeli - Arab Scholarship Program is in many respects rewarding in terms of our society as a whole and not just on an individual bases. Mr. Ambassador, the world is going through difficult times today. The United States is still trying to recover from the despicable terrorist acts of September 11th, and the rest of the world is still trying to conceive their aftermath. Our region has been in conflict for a century now, bringing us to the position where many of the casualties are just another number in the books of statistics. These are indeed dark times. A great American, Martin Luther King, Jr., said a few days before he was assassinated, that "it is only when it is dark that we can see the stars". Let us all hope that we will be able to look up soon and see our stars of peace, prosperity and those of humanity - values that became so very dear to me during my studies in the United States. And last but not least, I would like to thank the staff of the Embassy that coordinates the scholarship program. Especially, I would like to thank Ms. Elena Mischel whose, if I may say so, motherly dedication to the program has given it a special sweet flavor of its own. Thank you. Dr. Michael Karayanni. November 7, 2001.
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