Cultural gatherings with Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz are always pleasant and informative with conversations informed by information and mutual respect. Prince Talal, as a well-educated person, never expresses any dismay at our blunt opinions. We may agree or disagree on certain matters but there are never any hard feelings. Moreover, he is never without an interesting subject for discussion; we never seem to reach the end but the subjects always fascinate. One day, however, he realized that some of the people present at a gathering were talking about Palestinian problems but they lacked accurate information about Israel’s politics, culture and economy. Everyone of us present were then presented with a book entitled “The General Directory of Israel” and he insisted that we read it thoroughly and inform ourselves.
The prince busies himself with a variety of subjects which are of concern and interest to him, including an open university and street children. He is president of an international organization that is responsible for finding solutions to the problems of 10 million street children. The prince wrote an article in Asharq Al-Awsat last June about the WTO. The organization is condemned by some and praised by others. Following is a quote:
“I visited the WTO headquarters in Geneva in and I discovered that WTO principles are completely different from what is understood by Arab intellectuals. Therefore, I recommend that to discuss a matter without proper background or knowledge is wrong. Incorrect understanding will inevitably lead to numerous faults and needless confusion.”
In fact, the prince means what I said long ago when I wrote that the lyric poet cannot be a general, the broker a physician nor the illiterate a religious scholar. The prince emphasizes that we should talk only about things that we know about and that we should not express radical opinions or final judgements on matters that require further debate and careful analysis. In other words, Prince Talal is trying to get things on track by making others understand the importance of open and frank discussions.