February 19

STATEMENT

 

In the last few days, the ALA President, Elisabeth Boyi, and the conference conveners have received some questions from a few members who are asking what the conference plans are.  It is to respond to these concerns specifically that we had posted the announcement on the webpage that was also emailed by Abioseh Porter on February 5.  In that announcement, we articulated the various concerns and the decision to go on planning for the conference in Alexandria.  That decision was reached by the three conveners after consultation and thoughtful conversations with a large number of the participating members, our president, Elisabeth Boyi, as well as careful monitoring of the international situation, State Department announcements, and advice from the American Embassy in Cairo.  We believe that we are probably in a better position to assess the situation than most ALA members because:

1)      We are familiar with the country, with the city, and with the politics and cultural mood in Egypt.

2)      We are in contact with a number of individuals and institutions that we can trust to give us the necessary advice to cancel if the case warrants (e.g. the Director and the staff at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the people at the American Embassy, our co-convener in Alexandria, the American Research Center in Cairo, the American University and the American Schools in Cairo and in Alexandria)

3)     We ourselves have been monitoring the situation closely.  We are listening to the news—not only the local national news, but also the Canadian International news, the BBC, the Egyptian channels, and other international media.  We are aware of attitudes, currents of interpretations, and shifts in policies.

 

Having said that, we must also reaffirm that any kind of judgment is, at best, informed speculation—on our part a little more informed than in the average case, but not foolproof.   No one will be able to guarantee the outcome of the current events—that’s a basic reality about living in times of war.  We need to inform ourselves and then act.  We cannot change plans at the slightest new development; this is so because every development will be interpreted differently by different people.   For example, after the Security Council meeting on February 14, a number of participants decided to confirm their plans, and we received a rush of checks.  Clearly, these persons interpreted the situation favorably.   On the other hand, one participant today asked me: “if the war breaks out before we leave, are you intending to keep the conference still in Egypt?”   The email suggests that we would be “endangering people.”   We have spent many hours, days, weeks, thinking about the best way to serve our ALA colleagues, to avoid exposing them to any danger, and to protect them from any loss or anxiety.  The announcement made on February 5 contained our explicit thoughts and best judgment.  We believe it also made it clear that we have come to the conclusion that it is in everybody’s interest that we continue planning for Alexandria, UNLESS THE STATE DEPARTMENT ISSUES A BAN ON TRAVEL TO EGYPT OR ANY ACTS OF TERRORISM OCCUR THAT MIGHT ENDANGER ANY OF OUR MEMBERS.  Nothing like that has happened; nothing has occurred to justify any change in this announcement at this stage.

 

And yet, people are still asking if we are going.  Of course, we understand that the unusual and rightly alarming “state of readiness for war” is causing a great deal of anxiety.  It would not be natural if it did not.  On the other hand, we ask that you consider the options:

1)      We continue planning for Alexandria—as the consensus has been all along—unless and until something happens that makes us cancel (in which case we have abided by our agreement with the agents, hotels, and airlines, and everyone is refunded) or nothing happens and we have an excellent conference.

2)      We cancel now anyway because we panic.  No refunds.  We have not abided by our commitments (including some moral and ethical ones).  All participants from Africa are ignored.  Possibly, nothing at all happens to endanger the safety of Americans in Egypt and we could have had the conference. 

In addition, this second option is really not an option since we announced in the February 5th statement that we had reached a final decision to “continue planning for Alexandria; Dayton will no longer be an option . . .we will, therefore, plan full steam ahead” !  People have written papers, acquired funds from their institutions, made travel plans (including spouses, children, and other companions), bought tickets.  Shouldn’t we abide by our commitments?  Yes, we are in unusual circumstances, but these circumstances, given the terms of our commitments do not warrant a sudden change of decision AT THIS STAGE.

 

We are, therefore, continuing to plan, as we said we would, for Alexandria, unless the conditions specified in our February 5 announcement justify canceling, in which case the conference in Alexandria will be canceled, and a conference in Dayton at a later date will be organized.

 

Below please find the letter from Edris Makward that some of you have missed, followed by the February 5 announcement.

 

EDRIS MAKWARD HAS SENT THE "NOTE" BELOW FROM THE GAMBIA, WHERE HE IS,

AND ASKED THAT  IT BE POSTED WITH THE ANNOUNCEMENT:

 

NOTE: FROM EDRIS MAKWARD:

The important statement [below] was written entirely by co-convener Faiza Shereen, but it carried my total and unconditional backing. As some of you are familiar with my GRIOTIC tendances, I must add the following:

You may recall my main position when some ALA friends and colleagues suggested that we abandon immediately the idea of an ALA in Egypt as a reaction to 9/11. My point then and now is that WE, of all people in the US and elsewhere, should not bow to the horrormongers of this world and cancel or postpone as important an event as the HISTORIC ALA in Egypt or for that matter, a CAORC (Council of American Overseas Research Centers) meeting in Tangier, Morocco!

Besides, Faiza, Melody, Amira and many others have worked – and are continuing to work- very hard to deliver a wonderful and unforgettable ALA Conference in Alexandria. So please continue to trust us that ALA 2003 will be as memorable as ALA 1989 in Dakar, Senegal, ALA 1991 in Guadeloupe, ALA 1994 in Accra, Ghana and ALA 1999 in Fez, Morocco!

To reassure you that even if there is war in Iraq, while we are all in Egypt, we will not be more at the mercy of acts of anger and terror than if we were in Amsterdam, Paris or London, I am asking Faiza to share with you all, the message she recently received from the current Director of ARCE (The American Overseas Research Center in Egypt), Dr. Jere L. Bacharach.

Please send your balance payments now to make Amira, our wonderful agent, breathe and sleep better at night!; and see you in Cairo with Edward Said, Samir Amin, Emmunuel Dongola, Pathe Diagne Leila Ahmed, our ALA President Elizabeth Boyi and many others.

I am writing from faraway Gambia, but Faiza and I have been continuously in touch, for the preparation of an ALA Annual Conference that we are committed to making one of the more successful of our International ventures. Both of us will be in Egypt early enough to join the Pre-conference Cairo tour. We also wish to encourage as many of you as can afford it, to join us for the unforgettable post-Conference Nile cruise(PCP1). I PERSONALLY, recommend this one very highly to all of you who can afford it and want to take the time. The rates are very reasonable indeed. Julie and I did this tour once, on the occasion of a CAORC meeting in Cairo ( March 2000), and we feel very lucky to be able to repeat the experience, in 2003, this time thanks to an ALA Annual Conference!

SEE YOU ALL in Cairo on March 17 or 18, and in Alexandria on March 19!

Edris Makward, Past President of ALA and ASA, AND CO-CONVENER of THREE out of FOUR ALA Annual Conferences in AFRICA.

 

The letter from Dr. Bacharach that Edris refers to is posted under the sidebar "American Experiences in Egypt."

 

 

February 5

ANNOUNCEMENT

 

 

 

          Dear ALA 2003 participants:

 

We have all been watching the developments in the plans for war with Iraq with a great deal of concern about its impact on our lives and the lives of people around the world.  We have also been concerned, if on a less significant though more immediate sense, about how it would affect our conference.  At our last conference in San Diego, as in many conversations among members, we have thought about the specific points of concern that should be taken into account in what we do.  We concluded that unless something threatens our safety—to the best of our knowledge and judgment—we will continue to plan to go to Alexandria.  In the last few months, I have received some questions, some expressions of anxiety, but by and large a strong determination to go to Alexandria and make the conference a success.  To date, we have over 300 abstracts accepted, and a large number of participants have also made pre and post conference arrangements of various kinds.

 

On the other hand, we have also had plans made in Dayton, Ohio—including hotel reservations—in the event that we would have to move the conference to Dayton.  Our not unreasonable hope was that by now the picture would be clear one way or another.  This conference has been in the making for three years—what would the odds have been that the international crisis would occur right about now?  To safeguard against any possible loss for our members, we included in our agreements with the travel agents the clause that in case “the US Department of State announces a ban on travel to Egypt or acts of terrorism or violence occur in Egypt” the participants were entitled to a full refund.  Of course, this had to be very specific—otherwise the judgment would be subjective and the logistics unmanageable.   

 

Now the situation is still the same as it has been for months.   Nothing has changed, really.  But there is a difference for us: the difference is that we are now close to the date of the conference and have very little time to make any changes if necessary.  There will come a point when moving the conference will be logistically impossible (e.g. three days before the conference).  What are our options?  We can 1) continue to plan for Alexandria till the last minute (that is what the plan has always been), or 2) we can move the conference to Dayton without waiting for it to become necessary, simply to make things easy.  

 

After much consultation, the conveners have come to the conclusion that the second option (2) above is unacceptable.  The reasons are many; here are a few of the most important:

We have decided, therefore, to continue planning for Alexandria; Dayton will no longer be an option after a certain point (very soon now)—at least not in March.  We will, therefore, plan full steam ahead.  This reflects the inclination of the large majority of participants.  A war in Iraq does not constitute, in itself, a danger in Egypt.  The war could happen in Iraq, and our conference could take place without any impact from that war.  Yet, we understand that some people will be uncomfortable and will want to withdraw in the event of the war with Iraq.  We perfectly respect that position, and to the extent that it is within the parameters of our agreements with the agents (people must consult the details on the webpage), we will refund those who withdraw.  

 

Should there be a ban on travel to Egypt, the conference in Alexandria will be cancelled, and the Dayton option will be postponed to May (or a later date).   A Dayton option, in March, is unlikely to be successful at this point, if at all possible.  This postponement would allow us the time to make the necessary adjustments.

 

We realize that no matter what course of action we take, there will be some sacrifice, and some of us will feel dissatisfied.  But if we are in a state of war, we must be prepared for the unexpected, and we must keep hoping for the best.  We hope that our decision meets with the approval of the participants, whether they read this in Africa, in Europe, in Asia, or in America—and we do have participants from all these places.  We promise to deliver a wonderful conference in Alexandria, but we urge you to make your own decisions, based on your own informed judgment.   No arguments need be given to support a decision to go or not to go—each person must reach the decision with which he or she feels comfortable.   We all hope for the best.  The conveners are working with commitment and enthusiasm.

 

Faiza Shereen

Edris Makward

Amira Nowaira