Middle East Week to Discuss Democracy and Peace
February 08, 2013
During the week of February 11th, Emmanuel will welcome two activist scholars of Middle Eastern affairs for Middle East Week at the College. Dr. Sadik Al-Azm and Dr. Ron Pundak will speak on topics related to "The Changing Middle East: Will it Bring Democracy and Peace?"
On Tuesday, February 12th, Dr. Sadik Al-Azm, Ph.D. in Philosophy from Yale University, will discuss "Civil Society and the Arab Spring" at 4:30 p.m. in the Janet M. Daley Library Lecture Hall. Al-Azm is one of the most important scholars, human rights proponents and civil society activists in the Middle East today. He is currently a member of the political opposition to President Hafez Al-Assad, the National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces.
Since becoming Emeritus Professor of Modern European Philosophy at Damascus University, Al-Azm has been a Visiting Professor of Contemporary Arab Social Thought at a number of universities including Princeton, Hamburg University, Leipzig University, Antwerp University and Tohoku University in Japan. He is also currently a Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Berlin.
Dr. Ron Pundak, Ph.D. in Middle Eastern History from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London, will speak on "Five Personal Stations in One National Conflict: Can Israel and Palestine Reach Peace?" on Wednesday, February 13th at 4:30 p.m. in the Janet M. Daley Library Lecture Hall. Pundak played a decisive role in the Oslo peace process, first in helping to create the secret track of the unofficial negotiations at the beginning of 1993 and later as a member of the official negotiating team.
He is currently co-chair of the Palestinian-Israeli Peace NGO Forum. He has published numerous academic articles and a book entitled The Struggle for Sovereignty, which details Jordanian history during the years 1946 through 1951.
Drs. Al-Azm and Pundak will be invited guest speakers in classes throughout the week.
Middle East Week is supported by funds from OneWorld Boston, an affiliate of the Cummings Foundation.
