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July 30, 2004
B.C. leaders visit Israel
YPO members meet with prominent government officials.
KYLE BERGER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN
For 11 days in May, the state of affairs of Israel and Middle East
peace became a major concern for 14 leaders of some of British Columbia's
biggest businesses. Every couple of years, the B.C. chapter of the
Young Presidents Organization (YPO), a group of young leaders who
meet regularly to share advice, makes a trip to a unique international
destination. Last month, they chose Israel. The local chapter of
the group has 80 members, with more than 80,000 worldwide.
According to Martin Charlwood, the president and chief operating
officer of Uniglobe Travel International Inc., the trip offered
him a new perspective on Middle East politics, starting with concerns
of travel in the region.
"Because of all the media that you see these days and the fact
that it's a pretty hot point over there from a political standpoint,
a lot of people were concerned about their safety," he said.
"The long and short of it, I think, is that the media overhypes
that. Upon arrival there, no one in the group felt any cause for
concern."
With a goal of increasing awareness about the region, as well as
to get an insider's perspective about what the geographic and socioeconomic
aspects are, the group travelled to every corner of the country.
They also enjoyed several meetings with high-level Israelis, such
as MK Shimon Peres.
"To have him come speak to us and make himself available for
questions was really one of the biggest highlights I could possibly
imagine in my whole life," Charlwood said.
They also had a tour of the archeological site underneath the Western
Wall, led by one of the world's top archeologists. Dr. Danny Bahat,
who is overseeing the dig, served as their tour guide.
"He spent about three hours with us and it was right out of
Indiana Jones and then some," Charlwood said.
Most importantly, the group had the chance to speak with various
Israelis, and even some Palestinian and Jordanian YPO members.
Michael Fugman, a YPO member, who is also a board member of the
Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, said he was very encouraged
by the strong relationship between the Israeli and Palestinian members.
"I was shocked how closely they worked together and it gave
me a real hope that there could be peace in the long term,"
he said, adding that it was difficult to meet because of border
regulations.
"We had one event when we had dinner with the Palestinians
and a few members of the Israeli chapter," he said. "One
of the sad parts was that the Palestinians had to leave at 10 p.m.
so they could get to the border before 11. We couldn't even have
a complete interaction because they were having an issue with the
border."
Fugman and Charlwood agree that they now read news about the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict with a completely different understanding than they did
before the trip.
"When I left the country, I had the perspective that you've
got about 90 per cent of the people on both sides who really want
peace and are really tired and frustrated of the way things have
been going," Charlwood said. "Then you have these right-wing
extremists on both sides of the fence that are holding the other
90 per cent to ransom.
"It probably made me come away feeling more optimistic than
if I'd only been trying to interpret what was going on by reading
the papers and listening to the news," he continued. "I
feel closer to the whole issue as a result of having gone to the
Middle East.
As a leader in the travel industry, Charlwood insisted that people
should not be afraid to make such a trip.
"Up until a couple of years ago, everyone thought America was
the safest place in the world. But we now know that these kinds
of onslaughts of terrorism are not unique to the Middle East, so
that shouldn't be a reason to keep you away from that part of the
world."
To become a member of the YPO, a person has to become the president
of a company that meets minimal requirements before they are 44
years old. Although the requirements vary between industries, most
companies have at least 50 employees and bring in at least $5 million
in annual revenue. Members are graduated out of the program on their
50th birthday.
Jewish community leader Mark James, a member of YPO, was one of
the key organizers of the trip. He was out of town and unavailable
for comment. The Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver also helped
create the itinerary and former Vancouver Keren Hayesod Israel schlichah
Dina Wachtel joined the group on the tour.
Kyle Berger is a freelance journalist and graphic designer
living in Richmond.
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