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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 11, 1983)
g r ii aay February 11, 1983 Vol. 82, No. 102 University of Nebraska-Lincoln Ammlbassadtoir dams UN. irojods ac By Bill Allen "Peace is a dirty word at the United Nations," said Yehuda Blum, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations. He said proof of this was the United Nations' rejection of the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty and the Camp David accords. Blum entered the Centennial Room of the Nebraska Union Thursday night among standing applause and scat tered boos, and spoke as part of the Nebraska Model United Nations program. He opened the prepared part of his program by saying the United Nations has a "fixation" with Israel. He said the Arab-Israeli conflict has been one of the central issues of the United Nations for the past 35 years not because it is the central issue, but because of diversion from some countries to "single out" Israel. "In 1982," Blum said, "the U.N. Security Council had 88 meetings." He said 49 of these dealt with Israel and 39 with the rest of the world's nations. He said none were devoted to Afghanistan, where tens of thousands of people were killed by Soviets, and only two were devoted to the ongoing Iraq-Iran conflicts. "This says something about the integrity of the U.N.,"he said. Blum said the basis of all the problems in the Middle East is the unwillingness of the Arab world to come to terms with the Jsrael's right to exist, despite any boundary disputes. Arab representatives try to disguise this fact with the Palestinian "homeless and stateless" issues, he said. Blum said the problems in Lebanon did not start with the 1982 Israel invasion of that country, but began a full decade earlier when the Palestinian Liberation Organi zation created a state within a state in that country, and eventually the '74 to 76 civil war. He said that "for all intent and purposes Lebanon ceased to be a sovereign and independent nation." Israel, he said, drove the PLO from the southern part of that country, making it clear that Lebanon belongs to the Lebanese people. He said Israel has "absolutely no territorial interest in that country," and the '82 invasion was to make sure that it would no longer be used as a "springboard for terrorist action against Israel." He said it is also time that Israel normalized relations with Lebanon. Following the prepared speech, Blum answered ques tions from the audience in a session that became more heated as the meeting progressed. He said Israel is opposed to Reagan's foreign policy, mainly because it is in direct opposition to agreements reached at Camp David. As an example of this discord, he said that the Camp David agreement left the final status of the Gaza district up in the air, to be decided in five years. Reagan, how ever, wants to predetermine this issue, he said. Answering another question, Blum said the Camp David agreement also left the question of Jerusalem open for future discussion. lie said that although Israel has claimed Jerusalem as its unconditional capital of his government, the city con tains holy places that are fully open to other faiths. This, lie said, is in distinction to the consecrating of Israeli holy places by Jordan. Blum responded to a question about Israel's continued relations with South Africa, a nation with racist policies, and a question that brought applause from the audience, by saying his country was not "close friends" with this nation, as the question had stated. He said that although his country has trade relations with South Africa, this trade amounted to only .4 per cent of that countries foreign trade. He said some countries that condemn Israel for this trade themselves have 30 times as much trade with South Africa. He said Israel "has nothing but abhorrence for the racist policies of South Africa." Blum said no evidence of this violation exists, and . that the U.S. should supply Israel with arms because the two countries are "friends and allies." He called arms to Israel the "best and cheapest in vestment in U.S. foreign policy." 1 1 -""' :" ... ' x , ' A; V,,.-- ' I ' : , V s s If- ' s ( I i.-. , - 1 r n ' r l-i ' n i - I ii - I I im ir- n , Staff photo by John Zoz Yehuda Blum Cuofaire Cemta move draws CMcem kom dumm By Mike Schmoldt Alumni advisers to Greek houses located near Terrace Hall, 425 University Terrace, the building identified as the new location for the Culture Center, met with the cul ture center task force Thursday night to get a better understanding of their poten tial new neighbors. Task force chairman Ennio Quevedo said the advisers had two main concerns. One concern was for security. The alumni wanted to know whether someone would be at the center 24 hours a day, apparently because break-ins have been a problem lately, Quevedo said. Task force members assured the alumni that the center is managed by responsible graduate assistants when it is open, and that campus police have provided good security at night. Quevedo said police noticed a door that had blown open by accidentat the center's present site and quickly closed it. The center could also make an arrangement with the Greek houses to improve security, he said. Another concern of the alumni was that the center might be a social center and that parties could cause problems in what is now a residential area for the Greeks. Quevedo said he was glad to have the opportunity to clear up this and other misconceptions about the culture center, saying that most of the center's functions are educational rather than social. "If parties were to take place there every night," he said, "I'd have some concern too, if I lived around the building." John Sedlak, alumni advisor for Tau Kappa Epsilon, the Greek house that currently uses Terrace Hall, said that the building has historically been a residence and it might not be appropriate for it to be converted for use by a student organization like the culture center. Continued on Page 8 V - c A ..... . ... UWAAAJEZACEK Unfcpe weet for yom sweet By Christopher Galen A gift of flowers and a card may be the traditional Valentine's Day greeting, but a number of unique holiday services are growing in popularity in the area this season. The most unique is probably the "Kissing Bandit," a UNL student who delivers kisses both on and off campus. Dressed in red flannel long underwear, a personalized T-shirt, a black mask and a red bandana, the Bandit will give the lucky lady a paper Valentine along with a kiss, for a $2 to $3 fee. "Last year, I delivered around 70 kisses, including 25 or 30 in February. This year I've done 10 so far, and I've got six or seven planned for Falentine's Day," he said. The kissing service can be embarassing for both the Bandit and the person he kisses, but it does have its fringe benefits, he said. "I got four dates out of it last year," the Bandit explained. Another service becoming more popular is the singing Valentine's message, being offereefby several different organizations in Lincoln. The Lincoln office of the Omaha-based Sing-A-Gram company is perhaps the most elaborate of its kind locally, according to Marya Lucca-Thyberg, who manages Sing-A-Gram along with her husband,, Steve. Their message is delivered by a person dressed in a bellhop's outfit, accompanied by a mechanical monkey. After singing original lyrics to the tune of a well-known melody, the messenger recites a poem and a personal message, she said. Continued on Page 3