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A
very global event Were
the Egyptian students who participated in the MTV "town
hall" meeting with Colin Powell satisfied
by the US Secretary of State's answers to their questions?
Text and photos by Tarek Atia
(cairolive.com, February 15, 2002)
"I have nothing
against America," said 19-year-old Seif Hegazi, "but why
should the people pay for the mistakes of their leaders?"
Hegazi was one of 20
young Egyptians who participated in a global "town hall"
meeting with US Secretary of State Colin Powell on Thursday, an MTV
event that brought together studio audiences in Egypt, Russia, India,
Italy, the UK, Brazil and the US.
The question Hegazi
posed to Powell had to do with Iraq. Why, Hegazi wanted to know, when
the US places such high value on human rights, were they supporting
sanctions that denied Iraqi children food?
 Powell's
answer was typical of the US Secretary of State's performance throughout
the event -- he was engaging and forthright, but a lot of his answers to
the tough questions being asked by youth around the world were
picture-perfect samples of diplo-speak, where the questioner, though
perhaps unsatisfied with the response, quickly realizes that he is
facing a very capable and polite brick wall.
The food for oil
program, Powell said, has provided Iraq with $20 billion. And it's the
Iraqi leadership's fault for not opening up his country to UN inspectors
and for misappropriating the money.
Hegazi, who said he
watches MTV "24-7", expected Powell "to say a lot
more". Still, he thought the "town hall" meeting was
"an amazing idea because they're giving kids a chance to express
their views."
18-year-old Karim
Gemayel didn't get to ask Powell his question about why "all those
accused in the September 11 attacks are Arabs," but Powell did
answer another question from Cairo during the event, about how the US
knew it was bin Laden.
The Secretary of
State said there was a solid body of evidence against bin Laden, and
that "even though a number of people didn't believe our case, bin
Laden allowed tapes of his conversations to be broadcast throughout the
world and, in effect, he took credit for what had happened."
The show attracted a
huge amount of media attention worldwide, mainly because of Powell's
comments about condom use, which immediately sparked a controversy over
whether his views were out of synch with the White House. Powell
encouraged sexually active youngsters to use condoms, while Bush's
stance is more focused on abstinence.
The participating
students from Egypt -- who were selected after submitting their
questions to the show's producers -- were all very sincere and serious
both as they spoke to Powell on air, and with journalists after the
taping was over.
Egypt received the
lion's share of attention during the forum, which also touched on issues
like the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Kashmir, and Powell's
blackness.
The Secretary of
State was introduced at the beginning of the show as a war hero and a
coalition builder. His life was simplified in point form for the youth
audience with quotes like, "He makes the US look good."
Tom Jackson, head of
production for the Showtime network, which carries MTV in the Middle
East, told cairolive.com that he didn't see any reason why the concept
of a global town meeting shouldn't become a regular show, since it
allowed viewers "to see young people being young people all around
the world, and that there's more that makes them alike rather than
different."
Jackson, who
established the network's Arabic music show Mashaweer, was ecstatic that
MTV in the Middle East was represented on a global scale here. Jackson
said the US administration did not get to see the questions before the
event, and that "Powell wanted to be on the show as much as MTV
wanted him."
 Asked
whether MTV would agree if bin Laden requested a similar forum, Jackson
would not comment other than to say that it was an "equally
shocking idea."
20 translators were
involved in the broadcast, "since every language being used had to
be translated into every other language," Jackson said.
The show will be
broadcast to over 250 million households in 164 countries where the
24-hour music network is available.
more Powell
comments:
(corrected
and expanded from earlier editions)
"I'm the
American Secretary of State. I'm also black... I don't say I'm the black
American Secretary of State because it implies, gee, is there a white
one somewhere?"
"Hunger has
nothing to do with terrorism. What really brings dignity into the home
of a poor
person are wages."
"[Pakistan's]
Musharraf is taking his country in a new direction.
And we have spoken quite candidly to him that in due course, he
will have to stand for election as well."
"An American
life is not more precious than an Indian life or a Pakistani life, or a
Kashmiri life.."
"I want
Jewish kids and Palestinian kids to live in a society where they can go
out on an evening and enjoy themselves with their friends, with a smile
on their face, and not be afraid of any kind of violence..."
"I think
[the US] has a great story to tell, and
it's a story we've got to do a
better job of selling to the rest of the world."
"We're not
looking for wars... North Koreans, Iraqis and Iranians are people just
like Americans ... They want their kids educated.
They want healthcare..."
"Did we say
we defeated Japan, so Japan belongs to us? No, the only land we ever
asked for was enough land to bury our dead."
"Islam is a
wonderful religion. It teaches taking care of those of our citizens who
are less fortunate. It
talks about finding a way that makes the world a better place."
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