wfn.org | American Friends Service Committee Endorses Letter to President

["Jenny Shields" <JShields@afsc.org>]

Contact: Janis D. Shields, Director Media and Public Relations
(215) 241-7060, AFTER HOURS: (302) 545-6596

The American Friends Service Committee Endorses Letter to President Bush

States Palestinian - Israeli Conflict Fuels Hatred of U.S.

PHILADELPHIA, PA (January 21) - American Friends Service Committee
(AFSC) general secretary Mary Ellen McNish has endorsed an inaugural
letter to President Bush appearing in the January 21 New York Times that
urges him to seize the opportunity and bring his leadership to ending
the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Signed by 57 leaders of Orthodox,
Roman Catholic, Protestant and Evangelical churches and institutions,
the letter will also be delivered to key officials in the Administration
and to all Representatives and Senators.  The letter expresses their
concern for the security and freedom of Israelis and Palestinians and
adds an appeal for the security and reputation of the United States
itself.

"The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has become a threat to the people of
the United States," the church leaders write in the open letter to the
newly inaugurated President. "Every day the conflict continues, hatred
of the United States government is fueled. With each news report of
Palestinian suffering-whether the death of an innocent child, the
demolition of a family's home, or the confiscation of farmland for the
separation barrier-popular support in Arab and Muslim countries for
terrorism grows and the threat of attacks directed at the United States
increases."

"The continuing conflict has also resulted in suffering and loss of life
among Israeli citizens," the leaders write. "We want Israelis, too, to
live without fear or threat in their own country."

"AFSC's long experience in the Middle East, reaching back to the end of
World War II, convinces us that looking at issues of war and peace from
an ethical and religious perspective can be useful and timely," McNish
cites. "AFSC believes that focusing on the precious humanity of those in
conflict with one another will open new ways for considering how peace
might be achieved and sustained.

Recently returned from an annual meeting of Nobel Peace Prize Laureates
in Rome, Italy, McNish penned a similar address to the gathering, where
human rights and addressing the root causes of terrorism was the main
focus.

The annual Nobel Summit brings individuals and organizations that have
been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize together to debate on current world
problems.  The American Friends Service Committee - internationally
recognized for its humanitarian work in the aftermath of World Wars I
and II - and its European counterpart, the British Friends Service
Council, accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of Quakers worldwide
in 1947.

The American Friends Service Committee is a faith-based organization
grounded in Quaker beliefs respecting the dignity and worth of every
person.  The search for regional peace has been a major focus of the
American Friends Service Committee's highly regarded international
affairs work and the group has a long history working for peace and
reconciliation in an atmosphere of war.

In 1919 the Service Committee launched massive programs to feed millions
of starving children in post-war Germany at the request of President
Herbert Hoover, then director of the American Relief Administration.
AFSC assisted more than 200,000 refugees in the Gaza Strip in the 1940s
on behalf of the United Nations.

During World War II, AFSC provided temporary aid, housing and other
assistance to Japanese-Americans in efforts to get them out of
internment camps.

The Service Committee hosted fourteen Americans on a fact-finding
working party that visited Israel, the Palestinian territories and
neighboring countries.	The working party included a Quaker, a Muslim
woman, a Palestinian Christian, a Welsh poet, a scholar and more.
Deliberations on what they saw and learned in discussions with more than
90 individuals are reflected in the new AFSC publication, "When the Rain
Returns: Toward Justice and Reconciliation in Palestine and Israel."

# # #

The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization that
includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice,
peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the
worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome
violence and injustice.

Jenny Shields
Director, Media and Public Relations
American Friends Service Committee
1501 Cherry Street
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Phone: 215.241.7060
FAX: 215.241.7275