King Abdullah II of Jordan (MSFS ’87), one of the United States’ staunchest allies in the Middle East, addressed the struggles of regional modernization and the threat of global terrorism during a speech yesterday in Gaston Hall.
“The Arab world is writing a new future, and the pen is in our own hands,” Abdullah said. “But we need and welcome the support of friends throughout the world.”
University President John J. DeGioia presented King Abdullah with an honorary doctorate degree in humane letters, praising the king for his efforts to modernize and democratize Jordan since assuming the throne.
“Today Georgetown University is pleased to honor an established, mature statesman of the Middle East, whose leadership and vision have won world-wide acclaim,” Michael Hudson, director of the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, who read the degree citation, said.
King Abdullah, who graduated in 1987 from a graduate studies program in the School of Foreign Service, responded with a speech in which he praised Georgetown for contributing to an “international dialogue” between the United States and the Arab world.
“I am truly honored to receive this degree, doubly honored to receive it from a university that I attended and respect so greatly,” he said. “Georgetown University is an enduring testament to the good that comes when the doors of scholarship are open to a global community.”
Abdullah also responded to the political atmosphere in the iddle East, including the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the war in Iraq and democracy movements in Lebanon.
“[The Palestinian-Israeli] conflict has caused major instability in our region. You can’t build solid reforms where violent shock waves are constantly churning. And make no mistake about it. Today the enemies of a just peace are the enemies of Arab progress,” he said.
Abdullah praised the road map to peace, backed by the so-called Quartet – the United States, the United Nations, the European Union and Russia – but affirmed that a viable Palestinian state requires that the international community help “create the security and economic opportunity that progress requires.”
Regarding the war on terror, Abdullah said he had a “good discussion” with President Bush last Tuesday and reaffirmed his country’s commitment to helping Iraq in the reconstruction process.
“The Iraqis need our help to help build security, establish effective and inclusive institutions and rebuild their historic country,” he said. “Globally, we must work together against terror and to bridge economic and cultural divides, and education is key. More than ever, people and nations need knowledge of our common bonds, of history’s shifts and of humanity’s mistakes and successes.”
Abdullah also addressed the roots of terror, saying that many in the Arab world face poverty, unemployment and civil unrest, and that they become “vulnerable targets for extremists [who desire] to teach that global justice is meaningless, that satisfaction can only come in violence.” In response, Abdullah proposed economic and political reforms that would reach out to the “voiceless majority” of disadvantaged people in the Middle East.
“More than five years ago, Jordan committed to a reform strategy that would accelerate the pace of change,” Abdullah said. “We’ve taken specific steps to support pluralism, strengthen private sector-led growth and create a renewed social contract.”
Abdullah praised educational programs to train children and human rights initiatives to empower women and youth as effective social reforms. He also mentioned several political reforms that the Jordanian government is pursuing, such as disengaging from state media, fostering national economic growth and creating decentralized councils nationwide to encourage direct involvement in local government.
“We believe that Jordan’s reform model is relevant to the entire Middle East,” Abdullah said. “It responds to the challenges and opportunities of the modern world. It takes inspiration and power from our society’s deepest Arab Islamic values.”
The ceremony in honor of Abdullah began with an invocation from Theodore McCarrick, archbishop of Washington, D.C., and concluded with a benediction given by Georgetown Muslim chaplain Yahya Hendi.
Abdullah last visited Georgetown in 1999, in commemoration of the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies’ 25th anniversary.
The event was interrupted at one point by a man later identified as Ali Al-Ahmed, executive director of the Saudi Institute – an organization critical of restrictive policies in many Middle Eastern nations. Al-Ahmed’s criticism of King Abdullah was met with boos from the crowd and prompted raucous cheering when another audience member screamed out in support of the king.
Following the speech, Al-Ahmed and a group of 20 protestors stood on the corner of 37th and O Streets protesting what they claimed was the monarch’s support for Al-Qaeda terrorist leader Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi, who they allege was released from a Jordanian prison.
They held signs reading, “No doctorate for the dictator,”Justice for American victims” and “Abdullah = Zarqawi” while chanting “Georgetown shame,” and “Thou shall not honor Abdullah Zarqawi.”
