We are a proud but oppressed people. We are doctors, lawyers, engineers, educators, and government officials. We have the highest ratio of PhDs per capita in the world.*1 We are scattered around the world and total about 9million.*2 We are a people whose two faiths has strong ties to the Holy City. We also have the largest refugee population in the world. These are the Palestinians. For 35 years, we have been under occupation, an occupation that is both illegal and inhumane. It is an occupation of the mind and heart as well as of the land. The collective punishment, the humiliations, military incursions, and the razing of houses and building of Israeli Jewish settlements on Palestinian territory symbolically strip us of our basic human rights and dignity. The occupation has been known to silence those who speak out with the cock of a gun. It has been known to spill the blood of the innocent and corrupt the minds of the young to learn hatred and racism. It has been known to violate and flout international law. It has convinced leaders that war crimes are OK and that money and power are more important than justice. It has also been known to widen the gap of mistrust between two peoples, dwindle the hope for security, and cause despair and hopelessness. This modern- day apartheid that has been imposed on us is no different from the apartheid that once existed in South Africa, or Kosovo. It has affected everyone. But there is hope. There is hope, because the world witnessed joyfully as South Africans gained their freedom and justice prevailed. And someday, we, the Palestinians, will also gain freedom and justice will once again prevail. And by freeing ourselves, others too will be free.

Mr. President Bush, you are the leader of America. An America whose principles are freedom and democracy. An America who welcomes anyone regardless of race; and an America whose status as a superpower is able to influence others and cause enormous changes. This is the place where the American Dream can come true.

The Palestinians ask for no more than to live in such freedom and democracy and in a place of their own where there is justice and peace. But you wonder : " How can there be a peace when there are terrorists?" Mr. President Bush, let me explain to you that these terror attacks on innocent civilians are condemnable and do not represent the Palestinian people We too have known suffering and terror We grieve for the victims and their families, because we are human. The majority of Palestinians want peace; however, they don’t want to be denied justice. We must move forward together and pursue the path of peace despite setbacks from either side. I am quite positive that most Israelis want peace and don’t they have the same need for justice, too?

Yes, Israel and Palestine must coexist side —by- side as peaceful neighbors. I believe, as many do, that the United States must be an honest-broker in our search for peace. It is your commitment to these ideals, Mr. President Bush, that will allow such dreams, the dream of peace, to be shared by all.

*1: MIFTAH.org (Palestinians have the highest ratio of PhDs per capita in the world)

*2: Palestinian Bureau of Statistics (According to a study done in the year 2000,

researchers have found that there are 9 million Palestinians living around the world.)