November 29, 2001

Contact: Bob Warick
Phone: (604) 864-4611
Fax: (604) 859-6653
E-mail: warick@ucfv.bc.ca

Forum to examine role of the West in the Middle East

What affect have U.S. and Canadian foreign policy had on the Middle East, both recently and historically? Two panelists will be examining that issue at special forums at the University College of the Fraser Valley on Thursday, December 6.

The first forum will be held on the Chilliwack campus between 3:30 and 5 pm, in the theatre.

A second forum will follow on the Abbotsford campus between 7:30 and 9 pm. Admission will be free and everyone is invited.

UCFV agriculture student Grant Babin organized and will moderate the forums. He is also a representative on the UCFV Student Union Society.

"I hope that people will come out of this with a new perspective on the Middle East and how we interact with them," says Babin.

Panelists Hanna Kewas and Jane Power will present historical involvement of the West in the Middle East and speak about Canadian and US foreign policies affecting the area.

Hanna Kewas was born in 1948, Bethlehem, Palestine, and is the host of the Voice of Palestine radio show on 102.7 FM. He is also chair of the Canada Palestine Association and a member of the Canada Palestine Support Network (www.canpalnet.ca ). He has written many articles for local media, and given many interviews to TV and radio.

Jane Power is a PhD candidate at Simon Fraser University, specializing in mid-20th-century Middle East history, particularly Palestine under British rule.

The forum is produced by the UCFV Student Union Society in cooperation with the Community Relations and Student Events departments.

The forum is sponsored in part by the Leon and Thea Koerner Foundation.

For more information call the UCFV Student Union Society at (604) 795-2825, or (604) 504-7441, local 2825.

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