U.S. Federal Departments Cancel Speakers at Main University’s Mideast-u.s. Business Conference

The decision of the U.S. Department of Commerce to cancel its participation in the University of Maine’s Middle East American business conference has been followed by withdrawal of speakers representing three other federal departments, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency has learned.

Horace Webb, Commerce’s communications director, said it “is my understanding” that the government speakers scheduled to take part in the five-day conference starting tomorrow at the university’s campus will not take part.

According to a report from the conference site, upwards of 350 Americans and Mid-East visitors have registered and paid a fee of $1,000 each. Of these, more than 200 were from Iran and Arab states, including Egypt, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.

Panelists in the conference originally included four representatives from Commerce along with two field officers who were to pass out information about international trade. Speakers also were scheduled from the departments of State, Treasury and Justice. Late last week, the Commerce Department withdrew its field representatives from the conference. The decision on the speakers were said to have been taken after aspects of the conference including a discussion of how American firms could get off the Arab blacklist were reviewed.

RAPE AIMS OF “A MINORITY GROUP”

Reacting to the Commerce Department’s decision, John R. Brown, Jr., the conference director, charged in a telegram to Commerce Secretary Elliot Richardson that “the subversion of a major department of the U.S. government to the aims of a minority group with foreign allegiances is an insidious condition which cannot be tolerated.

Brown was presumed to be referring to Jewish organizations which have protested against the exclusion of Israel in the original planning and discussion of means to get around the Arab boycott of Israel and American firms owned or managed by Jews.

Responding to Brown’s assertion, Peter Hale director of the Commerce Department’s acting group for the Near East, telegraphed Brown, stating: “Your allegations that our decision was somehow based upon religious or political pressures are entirely unfounded and do credit to no one.”

Hale reminded Brown that he had broken his pledge to the government since he had assured him in June that the discussion of the Arab boycott would be a limited to an agenda item called “the Legal Framework of the Boycott.” But now, Hale said, panelists plan to tell participants at the conference how to be de-listed. “The principle way for companies to be de-listed from the blacklist is to comply in some degree with the requirements of the boycott,” Hale aid, noting that Congress has charged, the Department of Commerce with encouraging American firms not to comply with it.

Hale also noted that when the Commerce Department participates in a conference on the Middle East, “generally Israel should not be excluded.” He said the conference had not included Israel but now, “belatedly you have offered Israel representatives an opportunity to participate.”