Model UN Program in a California University Assailed Because Israel is Excluded from List of Nations

The Simon Wiesenthal Center at Yeshiva University has demanded the cancellation of the 17th annual model United Nations program to be held at the University of California in Riverside on January 23 because of its exclusion of Israel from the roster of nations.

In an extensive listing, which is part of the program catalogue, more than 154 nations are included on the “assigned countries”, “unassigned countries”, and “permanent observers” lists. Among the latter are the Palestine Liberation Organization, the South West Africa People’s Organization(SWAPO), and North Korea, which is not a UN member-state.

Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean, Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean, and Dr. Gerald Margolis, director of the Wiesenthal Center, pointed out that while the State of Israel is specifically omitted from all groupings, various issues specifically related to the Middle East situation, including a discussion entitled “Human Rights in Israeli Occupied Territories,” are scheduled to be examined.

Acting on information of irate Jewish parents whose children were scheduled to take part in the program, the Wiesenthal Center officials wrote to the university chancellor, Thomas Rivera, stating, in part, that the program would “result in a point of view inimical and antagonistic to the very existence of the State of Israel.” This program involves more than 100 students from more than 50 California high schools who will be representing some 150 nations.

UN GROUP SAYS IT IS NOT THEIR POLICY

In a conversation with the New York-based United Nations Association, which provides technical expertise to the model UN programs across the country, the Simon Wiesenthal officials were informed that such an omission does not reflect the Association’s policy or philosophy.

Association spokesmen further indicated that the program was totally under the jurisdiction of the respective sponsoring universities and their students. The University of California in Riverside is a public institution financed primarily by the state of California.

Through further independent investigation, the Center officials said they had learned that model UN programs are slated at major universities across the country, including Harvard, Princeton, George-town, and the University of California in Berkeley. Stephen Iriki, treasurer of the model UN program at the University of California in Berkeley, told the Wiesenthal Center that in their program, Israel is fully represented.

ANTI-ISRAEL, ANTI-SEMITIC SENTIMENT NOTED

Although it is not yet known why Israel has been excluded from the university in Riverside program, the Wiesenthal Center said it learned from Jewish students at the university that during the last few years there have been incidents on campus which reflect strong anti-Israel and anti-Semitic sentiment.

Last March, an open letter of protest signed by 26 Jewish faculty members and published in the Riverside university’s newspaper charged that the primary source of ongoing anti-Jewish hostility originated from the university’s organization of Arab students. The protest letter added that the organization was responsible for “physical assaults” against Jewish students as well as other threats.

SAYS ISRAEL IS INCLUDED IN NEW LIST

The Wiesenthal Center reached University of California in Riverside public information officer, Ron Kolb, last Thursday night, who apologized on behalf of the university for the omission of Israel in the model UN program and told Center officials that in fact the Palos Verdes high school is being assigned to represent Israel in the UN program. The role of the PLO UN observer has been assigned to the Edison high school.

Kolb also indicated that the categorization of the “Arab states” which precluded the mention of Israel would be immediately changed. He added that the model UN program would list a new section entitled “Middle East states” with Israel included.