Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, November 10, 1995 TAG: 9511100093
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-7 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: ADRIANNE BEE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Quandt, a former National Security Council staffer who's now a professor at the University of Virginia, discussed the prospects for an Arab-Israeli peace in Virginia Tech's Second Global Issues Forum.
Before Quandt's talk, titled, "Middle East Peace: Mirage or Milestone?", students shared their thoughts about the assassination and the future of the Middle East.
"This could really make people more divisive," said Mike Anthony, a senior English major.
A seat away, Amy McKane agreed. "This could be a really big problem. It could become hugely explosive," said the junior art and history major.
They also agreed on something else: Tech students are largely apathetic about global issues. McKane said "campus issues and drinking" take priority over the death of the Israeli leader.
Anthony said most students don't care, unless the issues pertain to their major. "I knew nothing about these issues until I took a class in Middle East history," he admitted.
"Extra credit" and "I've got to do a paper" were some of the reasons students gave for their presence in the Squires Student Center auditorium.
"The assassination prompted me a little more to come, gave it a little more meaning," said Aidan Gorman, a junior history major.
Matt McLaughlin, a junior English major, said he follows the activities in the Middle East, but "not fervently." He felt "pretty shocked" when he heard news of Rabin's death.
Quandt's message was cautiously positive. "We can be pretty sure the transition to the new government will be pretty smooth," Quandt said. He alluded to the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1981, and said, "There, the peace survived."
He described the framework set by the landmark treaty signed in September by Rabin and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as "the good news." That treaty will bring Palestinian self-rule to the Israeli-occupied West Bank of the Jordan River.
Israel's internal politics and the people's faith in Rabin's replacement may be the biggest problem ahead, he warned.
"Israel's future is very important to America," Quandt said. "We need to be a more active diplomatic factor."
Patrick Liverpool, vice-provost for international programs at Tech, described Rabin's slaying as "a tragic setback" and said the question people need to ask themselves is "whether we as world citizens can live with the alternative to peace."
Memo: NOTE: Shorter version ran in Metro edition.