A Ray of Hope

As an Israeli who is a new student in the Stanford Program in International Legal Studies, I found one news brief [“Middle East Mediator,” Summer 2002, p. 6] especially interesting. While I disagree with some of the views voiced by Diana Buttu, JSM ’00, a legal advisor to the Palestinian Authority, I found it encouraging to learn that she also strongly believes that to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, one must sit at the negotiating table and try to bridge the differences in a nonviolent manner. This view is shared by more than 95 percent of the Israelis. I hope that it will finally prevail and that we will soon see the Palestinians and the Israelis around the negotiating table. I was also glad to read that Ms. Buttu believes in applying creative measures to overcome the hurdles on the way to peace. While it is regretful that Ms. Buttu did not expressly condemn the use of terror against innocent citizens, it is clear that her views, as expressed in the news brief, call for rational peaceful steps toward peace. I sincerely hope that Ms. Buttu and her colleagues succeed in their mission, and that their future fruitful cooperation with the Israeli delegation will result in a peace agreement that will bring peace and prosperity to both our nations. –Adi Aron-Gilat, JSM ’03

Editor’s Note: The interview with Ms. Buttu was edited for space. When asked about Palestinian acts of terror, she responded that both sides need to start moving toward a process that protects civilian life, “whether those civilians are Israelis or whether they are Palestinians.”

Mendacious Leftists

You describe Ms. Buttu as a mediator, but in truth she is an advocate. And not just any advocate, but one for an organization that, under the leadership of its current chairman, Yasser Arafat, has been branded by our government as incapable and uninterested in achieving a peaceful settlement in the Middle East. Her client has been linked with, and indeed funds, terror organizations such as Fatah, Islamic Jihad, and Hamas which have targeted and killed and maimed hundreds of Jewish men, women, and children in the past 21 months. Why give Ms. Buttu who carries with her the baggage of these atrocities a platform to espouse her political views? (“And it does not help that the Israeli team has steadfastly refused to abide by the law”-I guess blowing up school buses is within the law.) The answer is simple. If circumstances were changed and Ms. Buttu represented, say, Slobodan Milosevic or some such miscreant, there would have been no interview and her views would not have found the light of day. But, seeing as how she is representing Yasser Arafat, the darling of mendacious leftists throughout the world, she finds a place in the alumni magazine. I object. –Robert Swartz ‘79

Shedding Light on Abuse

Indian philosopher Ashis Nandi once wrote: “Our inability to imagine alternatives is the surest guarantee of oppression.” Having lived and worked in developing countries for most of the last 18 years, I have often turned to Nandi for inspiration. But Peter Bouckaert ’97, senior researcher for emergencies at Human Rights Watch, is not just imagining alternatives, he tries to make those alternatives happen [“Down a Dangerous Road,” Summer 2002, p. 18]. He takes risks to mitigate oppression. In an era of seemingly less emphasis on investigative journalism, the depth and objectivity of Peter’s investigations into human rights abuses combined with getting his stories to the media provides invaluable intermediation. The world needs to know. But for Peter, and a very small group with whom he works, these stories wouldn’t see the light. During my three years at Stanford, I have witnessed an increasing interest among students in pursuing international careers: a pursuit that often requires risk taking, creativity, tenacity, and serendipity. I can think of no better exemplar than Peter Bouckaert. –Erika Jensen, Director of Research, Stanford Law School Rule of Law Program, and Senior Advisor for Law Programs, the Asia Foundation

A Badminton Power

I was pleased to learn that the Law School is honoring Sheila Spaeth, the widow of Dean Carl Spaeth [“Charming the Law School,” Summer 2002, p. 16]. When Wally and I first moved onto the campus around 1965, we lived on Mirada Street. As we were going to spend the summer in Vermont, our house was up for summer rental. By chance, Mrs. Carl Spaeth was looking for a summer rental for a visitor to the Law School. While she was looking over the house and me, with a critical eye, I noted her charming accent. I found out that she came from Ballater, Scotland; my mother’s family came from Tomintoul, only a few miles away. From that bond there grew a friendship that has lasted all these years. In our eager search for knowledge, we audited a number of classes together. Dan Mandelowitz’s art class was one, and I even think we at least dropped in on a very popular course in human sexuality! Our greatest regret is that we didn’t audit Sandor Salgo’s course on Beethoven. Another bond was our working together in the foreign students program. As it happened, our husbands seemed to enjoy verbal jousting matches so we often had dinner with each other. Somewhere along the line I found that Sheila could play badminton. I was part of a group of “Badminton Girls,” who met once a week, played badminton, had lunch, and talked. We invited Sheila to join us. She turned out to be a most powerful player. Even today, this group is more or less intact, a few additions and deletions over the years. Alas, we no longer play badminton, but we do talk! –Mary Stegner