About the British-Arab Exchanges

British-Arab Exchanges (BAX - formerly the British-Arab University Association) was formed in 1973 to establish firm links of trust and respect between future decision-makers of the Arab countries and the West, in particular Britain. Its distinctive purpose is to strengthen ties by building upon the values common to the Abrahamic heritage.

By means of exchange visits, BAX provides an opportunity for small groups of carefully-selected students to meet each other and to gain an understanding of each other's country. In the course of a two-week visit, they are given a privileged insight into its history and geography, as well as its social and religious life.

Thirty-three exchange visits have taken place since 1973, with more than two hundred students participating from, Egypt, Sudan, Jordan, the Palestinian Territories, Lebanon and Britain.

These visits have opened their eyes to truths about themselves, their nations, and the experience of others.

BAX Vision and Mission statements

THE BAX VISION is a relationship between Europe and the Arab world based on

- trust and respect
- healing of past wounds
- mutual learning
- friendship
- collaboration on global challenges

THE BAX MISSION is therefore to bridge divisions by

 - organising cultural and educational exchanges between young people from Europe and the Arab world
- creating and maintaining a network of bridge-builders
- training future opinion-leaders
- providing space for dialogue           
- focusing on shared moral and spiritual values

BAX’S VALUES are based on

- inclusion of diverse political, religious and cultural stances
- independence of political or religious affiliation
- belief in uniting principles common to the major world religious faiths
- listening
- learning
- integrity
- change of heart
- healing damaged relationships
- friendship and collaboration between opposites as well as conventional partners
- empowerment at individual and community level
- service and contribution
- proactivity and looking ahead
- perseverance
- hope for a better world

National Committee

James Baynard-Smith MA
Judi Conner MA
Laila Tannous Dawton
Ronnie Graham MA CPE
Jeroen Gunning MSc PhD
Mary Anne Hatton MSc
Imad Karam MA PhD
Neil Mackay BA
Omnia Marzouk MD FRCPCH FFAEM DCH
TLG Mullen BA
Kamran Naqui BA
Ella Saltmarshe MA
Penelope Turing

Trustees

Professor Roger Spooner OBE MA PhD BVetMed MRCVS (Chairman)
Commander Michael Maddox OBE (Treasurer)
Peter Riddell BA ARCM (Secretary)
Peter Rundell PhD FSS

Evaluations

Sir Cyril Townsend

It has been a pleasure to have been involved with this organisation since 1992. I would describe it as small but special and splendid, for there is a considerable measure of idealism behind it. It seeks ‘to establish firm links of trust and respect between the future leadership of the Arab countries and the West, and in particular, Britain ’. I know of no other organisation that claims to do that.

Sir Cyril Townsend receiving a Jordanian delegation led by Prof. Ali Zaghal, at the House of Commons,
March 1993

Of course, the key to success, when the numbers involved are so small, is to get the top calibre of student. They are selected not only for their academic abilities and personality but also, it is hoped, for their compatibility with the organisation’s ambitious aims. Of course, we do not always succeed. But it is good to find in the list of former delegates many moving upwards in industry and agriculture, in medicine, in education and research, in journalism and in the World Bank.

At this 30-year point, it is easy to wonder how much our worthy efforts really achieve. At the most we may have some influence over a few hundred students on each side out of populations of many millions, and this at a time in history when the forces of conflict, hatred and evil appear so well organised. Perhaps we are only bailing out a leaky boat with a teaspoon. But in the middle of the ocean I would prefer to do that rather than do nothing. I fall back on the famous quote from Edmund Burke: ‘All that is necessary for the forces of evil to win in this world is for enough good men to do nothing’.

Professor Roger Spooner OBE

In our world today, with the pressures towards globalisation, we are increasingly exposed to other peoples and cultures, but our attitudes to them are coloured very much by our media and upbringing. We easily develop dislikes and misunderstandings of groups we have had no direct contact with. In 1969 I visited Cairo for a week. Having read my newspapers, I went in the belief that President Nasser was a hated dictator, but I was surprised to find that he was liked and respected by many. I was made very welcome and people went out of their way to help me. My views about Egypt changed radically.

We received many Arab student groups in our home in Edinburgh . They learned something about us and we certainly learned much from them. It made us want to devote time and effort to improving understanding between our two cultures. In emphasising the beliefs and ideals that we share rather than our differences, these exchanges have been - and continue to be - a vehicle for building bridges between the Arab world and the UK.

The conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, the recent war in Iraq , and the 'War on Terror' are all issues which underline that this need is as important today as when they first started.

One of our Arab visitors saw these exchanges as 'destroying stereotypes' - essential both here and in the Arab world. Without direct contact we cannot know what feelings others have towards us, and fear and mistrust easily flourish. With direct contact, we discover our commonalities, the aspirations we all share. Before the moral demands of our respective faiths, we can all admit shortcomings, and our experience is that acknowledging the wrong on one’s own side can be a starting point for building trust.

It is probably still too soon to make a judgement weighing up the effects of Britain ’s colonial involvement in the Middle East . But there is no doubt that the current generation in the Middle East is still struggling with the implications of decisions made in Whitehall in the first half of the 20th century. In the light of this, whatever policies governments may pursue, we believe that it is vital both as much for Britain as for the Middle East, that the British people does not turn its back on these responsibilities. We believe that the proper response is to find ways of offering genuine service to all the peoples of the Middle East . Over the last 30 years, this programme has offered many people just such an opportunity.

Professor Roger Spooner OBE, Chairman