FAS releases '05 speakers lineup

The Foreign Affairs Symposium announced its 2005 speaker lineup this week, with a program focused on conflict resolution and the role of the United States in regional disputes around the world.

Among the list of speakers are Tiananmen Square student leader Dan Wang, General William Nash of the Council on Foreign Relations, and various representatives from the French Embassy in Washington, D.C.

The FAS directors chose a panel format for this year's symposium, deviating from the tradition of hosting individual speakers. Their intention was to shorten speeches and leave more time for audience questions.

"Our mission is to promote open dialogue for anyone who wants to participate," said FAS co-chair Neil Shah.

Entitled "Enduring Responsibility: America and the Politics of Conflict Resolution," this year's symposium will focus on U.S. involvement in major international conflicts.

"We decided to have panels to present the different sides of regional conflicts, and also to examine the United States' role in either exacerbating or alleviating them," said co-chair Yonina Alexander.

"In addition to focusing on those conflicts people are talking about, we will also focus on areas people have stopped talking about, such as the Balkans and, until recently, most of Africa," Shah said. "So much is going on in the world, which is why we have such a diverse range of events."

Alexander said she felt one of the symposium's highlights will be Dan Wang, a student leader during the 1989 Tianenman Square uprising. Wang served as vice-commander for the protest, and was arrested and sentenced to four years imprisonment for his involvement.

"He's fourth on the most-wanted list from China," Alexander said. "He'll examine Chinese human rights, in which he's very involved both there and in the U.S."

Retired U.S. General William Nash, who served as a military commander in Bosnia-Herzegovina and as administrator for the United Nations in Kosovo, will speak on "The Balkans: Keeping the Peace," along with Serbian Ambassador to the U.S. Ivan Vujacic.

French Ambassador to the U.S. Jean-David Levitte and British Ambassador to the U.S., Sir David Manning, will speak on "Bridging the Atlantic Divide."

"After having been in Europe for a bit and seeing for myself how Europeans react to the U.S., it should be exciting to have several representatives here," Shah said.

Africa Director at Human Rights Watch Peter Takirambudde will speak on "Defining Genocide in Africa," and "Kashmir: Paradise Lost?" will feature three different speakers, including Mohammad Sadiq, deputy chief of mission at the Embassy of Pakistan.

"A lot went into planning the chemistry among the panel members, because many of them have differing viewpoints," Shah said. "The dialogue should be better as a result."

Last year, the original FAS lineup included several prominent speakers, including CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer, Delaware Senator Joseph Biden, and then-presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich, all of whom cancelled.

"It's always hard when you're dealing with important people," Alexander said. "Part of the reason we restructured our staff was to focus efforts more directly and to establish relationships with potential guests."

According to Alexander, this year's chairs "pre-chose regions that we wanted discussed, and broke up [the staff] into committees based on these choices."

Although the symposium staff conceded that this year's speakers are less well-known than some in years past, they are pleased that the lineup is "bringing the real intellectuals behind each conflict to Hopkins," according to co-chair Preeti Balakrishnan.

"These are the guys who are on the ground, doing work in the field," Alexander added.

The symposium will kick off on Wednesday, Feb. 23 with "Recognizing Cuba?" which will feature Adolfo A. Franco, assistant administrator for the Latin America Region at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The event will take place at 8 p.m. in Mudd Hall.

The symposium, which features a new event each week, will run until April 19, when Deputy Editor at the New York Times Julia Preston wraps up the series with "Mexico: Forgotten Neighbor, Forgotten Democracy." For event times and locations, go to http://www.jhu.edu/~fas/.

-- Staff writer Brendan Schreiber contributed to this article.