Focus on Europe

Common Ground Awards for Journalism in the Middle East
by Geoffrey Weichselbaum, Middle East and North African Programmes Manager, European Centre for Common Ground, Brussels

The 2002 Common Ground Awards for Journalism in the Middle East, sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, were held in Brussels, Belgium, on June 26, 2002.

The European Centre for Common Ground and Search for Common Ground were delighted to have the opportunity to honor the distinguished winners with the third Common Ground Awards for Journalism in the Middle East ceremony. Those in attendance were aware, however, of the fact that it took place at a time of tremendous pain and sorrow on both sides of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

While the previous competitions concluded with gatherings in Washington, DC, Jerusalem, and Istanbul, the fact that the awards were presented at the European Parliament was a testament to the European Community's support of this event, to its recognition of the importance of common ground journalism at this time, and - most importantly - to the courageous writers who were honored.

Winners
The winner in the Western press category was Dominique Moisi of the French Institute for International Relations (IFRI) in Paris, who received the award for his article "Middle Eastern Test of a European Unity." It appeared in the Financial Times in July 2001 and calls for the European Union to play a reinvigorated, truly even-handed role, complementing that of the United States, in reviving Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations.

In the Israeli press, the winner was Helen Schary Motro, a freelance journalist and attorney-at-law, for "That Boy Who Wore Our Hand-Me-Downs." Appearing in The Jerusalem Post in October 2000 during the early days of the "al-Aqsa Intifada," the article relates the personal story of an American (Ms. Motro) living in Israel who had contact with the father of 12-year-old Mohammad al-Dura, killed in Gaza in crossfire between Israeli and Palestinian soldiers, whose tragic death made him a symbol of the Intifada.

The winner of the Arab press award was Professor Sari Nusseibeh, senior representative of the Palestinian Authority in Jerusalem, for "What's Next?", which appeared in al-Quds al-Arabi, amin.org, and Ha'aretz in September 2001. In this truly courageous and groundbreaking article, Nusseibeh calls on both sides of the Palestinian-Israel conflict to compromise on their most tenaciously held principles: annexation of parts of the West Bank by Israel, "right of return" by the Palestinians, and exclusive sovereignty over Jerusalem by both sides.

Ceremony
The awards ceremony was hosted at the European Parliament courtesy of the European Parliamentary Group of the Greens, who provided the session room where the event was held. In addition to the awardees, speakers included the Rt. Hon. Christopher Patten, European Commissioner for External Relations, and Susan Collin Marks, Executive Vice President of Search of Common Ground.

After Ms. Collin Marks gave her opening remarks, Commissioner Patten delivered a speech in which he acknowledged the work of the awardees, common ground journalism, and the European Centre for Common Ground:

Let me say straight away what a great pleasure it ... is to celebrate the work of three very distinguished and brave journalists, but also to celebrate the work of the European Centre for Common Ground. I think that the work that the European Centre has done in the field of conflict prevention is enormously significant, and we've been proud to be associated with some of it in the European Commission. And we are particularly proud to be associated with this award today, because we know how much importance should be attached to the work of a free media, of brave journalists in breaking down some of the barriers of prejudice and the barriers of incomprehension....

Commissioner Patten also emphasized some of the specific emotional, historical, and geo-strategic reasons why Europe is doing so much to help the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In attempting to draw a parallel with the Northern Irish conflict, he reflected one, among many missions, Common Ground is working on: listening to both sides.

One thing which is often a feature in these historic conflicts and disputes ... is a tendency to forget that there are two sides, that there are two authentic cries of pain and cries of rage. A tendency for both camps, for both sides, to live and argue and shout and weep within hermetically sealed identities.

Honorable Mentions
Among the approximately 60 submissions were a number of other noteworthy articles selected as "honorable mentions" by the judges. There were two honorable mentions in each category:

Western Press
"A MidEast Partnership Can Still Work," by Yossi Beilin and Yasir Abed Rabbo.
Published in The New York Times, August 1, 2001.

"Camp David: The Tragedy of Errors," by Robert Malley and Hussein Agha.
Published in The New York Review of Books, August 9, 2001.

Israeli Press
"Support Israel and Palestine," by Ami Isseroff.
Published in Peace Watch (www.ariga.com/peacewatch/), June 29, 2001.

"Camp David's Achievements, Mistakes," by Yair Hirschfeld.
Published in The Jerusalem Post, August 24, 2001.

Arab Press
"Restructuring the Intifada," by Tawfiq Abu Bakr.
Published in Al-Ayyam, April 25, 2001.

"The Next Step Towards Peace," by Khalil Shikaki.
Published in The Jerusalem Report, March 1, 2001.

The following individuals served as judges in their respective categories:

Western Press - J. Zel Lurie, Wesley Pippert (Univ. of Missouri School of Journalism), Mohammed Wahby (Al-Mussawar, Dar al-Hillal).

Israeli Press - Isabel Kershner (The Jerusalem Report), Ze'ev Schiff (Ha'aretz), Ehud Ya'ari (Israel Television)

Arab Press - Tahseen Basheer (Egypt), Mohammed Daraghmeh (Al-Ayyam, West Bank), Khairallah Khairallah (Al-Hayat, London)

The winning articles and speeches given at the ceremony can be viewed on the Search for Common Ground website by visiting the main page for the Common Ground News Service: http://www.sfcg.org/cgnews/middle-east.cfm.

Please send submissions for the 2003 awards competition to the European Centre for Common Ground, Rue Belliard 205 bte 13, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium; phone (+32 2) 234-36-63; fax (+32 2) 732-3033; e-mail: awards@eccg.be.

Copyright 2004 Search for Common Ground