On the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President John. F. Kennedy, many may not know that the late president Kennedy supported the inalienable rights of the Palestinian refugees for “repatriation or compensation” to their homeland. The following are excerpts from a letter he sent to Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser dated 11 May 1961 ‘Underlying tensions, do, however, remain, not the least of which is the unresolved Arab-Israel controversy. I know deep emotions are involved. No easy solution presents itself. The American government and people believe that an honourable and humane settlement can be found and are willing to share in the labours and burdens which are so difficult an achievement must entail, if the parties concerned genuinely desire such participation. We are willing to help resolve the tragic Palestine refugee problem on the basis of the principle of repatriation or compensation for properties, to assist in finding an equitable answer to the question of Jordan River water resources development and to be helpful in making progress on other aspects of this complex problem. I am pleased that the United Nations General Assembly recently underscored the necessity to implement more rapidly its previous recommendations on the refugee problem. In this connection, I wish to state unequivocally that this Government’s position is anchored and will continue to be anchored in the firm bedrock of support for General Assembly recommendations concerning the refugees, and of active, impartial concern that those recommendations be implements in a way most beneficial to the refugees. The United States, as a member of the Palestine Conciliation Commission and a nation keenly interested in the long range advancement of the peoples of the Middle East, takes seriously the task entrusted to the Commission by the United Nations. We are determined to use our influence to assure that the Commission intensify its efforts to promote progress toward a just and peaceful solution. What precise steps the Commission may be able to take are, of course, not yet clear, but I can assure you that there will be no lack of United States interest in seeing that effective action is taken. It is my sincere hope that all parties directly concerned will cooperate fully with whatever program is undertaken by the Commission so that the best interest and welfare of all the Arab refugees of Palestine may be protected and advanced.’ Excerpts from a letter from US President JF Kennedy to Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser, dated 11 May 1961, reprinted in William Yates’s PhD thesis ‘The Post War Middle East and the Kennedy-Nasser letters 1961/63’, May 2003, University of Melbourne, Appendix 1, p.15
Posted on: Sat, 23 Nov 2013 09:18:11 +0000
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