ADL Sees Victory in Bechtel Decision on Arab Boycott

The Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith said yesterday that a “cursory examination” of the proposed settlement of the Justice Department’s lawsuit against the Bechtel Corporation indicated a significant victory had been achieved against Arab boycott operations in the United States.

The Justice Department announced yesterday the filing of an agreement between the Department and the corporation in a federal District Court in San Francisco. The agreement, which must be approved by federal Judge George Harris, would prohibit Bechtel, one of the nation’s largest heavy construction concerns and a major contractor in Arab countries, and presumably other American firms from agreeing to any contract which requires a boycott of American firms or persons on the Arab blacklist.

The order also would ban Bechtel from requiring other American firms or persons to boycott firms or persons blacklisted by the Arab League boycott committee, or to accept the boycott or to assist any other companies or persons in agreements in the United States to boycott blacklisted American concerns.

The suit against Bechtel was the first filed against Arab boycott practices under the Sherman anti-trust act. The ADL said the suit resulted from ADL documentation submitted to the Justice Department in reference to Arab boycott operations. The ADL said its evaluation of the impact of the settlement was provisional, pending a full study of the settlement.

ADL TO STUDY EXCEPTIONS

Arnold Forster. ADL general counsel, said the proposed settlement “does indeed” seem to prohibit Bechtel from engaging in activities which led to the ADL’s filing of documentation with the Justice Department. Forster said the ADL will study the exceptions permitted to Bechtel in the proposed settlement concerning certain trade agreements with the Arabs. He said if any of the proposed exceptions is objectionable, the ADL will submit written comments to the Justice Department and to the federal District Court within the 60-day period provided by law.

In a statement released at the filing of the proposed settlement, Bechtel welcomed the agreement but denied it violated any federal law or had engaged in any boycott of American firms.

Bechtel praised the proposed settlement as a clarification of procedures and called it “a guide to other business concerns in the United States” which will promote competition among them for “lawful trade in the Mideast. An enormous number of United States jobs are at stake and the importance of Mideast work to the United States balance of payments is very great.”