Document approved at Council meeting
held in Marrakesh (Morocco) on May 19, 2001

It is with much sadness that once again we have to start the usual meeting of our Council on the light of a scenario within the �mare nostrum� characterized by a threatening increment of violence, the features of which are rapidly and unfortunately approaching to those  of an actual and true war.

This outbreak of violence between Israelis and Palestinians has already caused many casualties, in turns prompting to further hate and giving rise, ultimately, to more violence. The increase which we are witnessing nowdays for sure does not lead to peace and cooperation.

 As intellectual and understanding community we must plead for stopping immediately  and permanently the violence, being aware that it has never solved any problems. As a Community of Universities operating in the mediterranean basin we urge the ruling people of the involved countries to fully adopt reasoning and understanding, the sole powers to be used in order to overcome divergence and misunderstanding, which often, as in this case, bring to devastating conflicts. Scientists, as we are, cannot analize and search for the political inputs generating these struggles, but it is our duty, indeed, to ask strongly the governments to seek, before anything else, the existing commonalities, cultural as well as socio-economical,  which exist and represent the founding elements for a peaceful and valuable  living together of the Israeli and Palestinian peoples, as well as for all peoples,  with many mutual advantages.

For all these reasons the Community of Mediterranean Universities, on the behalf of the multitude of students and teachers operating in the area, urges the governments of the entire Middle East region  to stop immediately these violent outbreaks  and to try to find, because there are, the adeguate  solutions for a period of peace and prosperity for all the countries involved.

 In this framework the Community of Mediterranean Universities, according to its cultural mission, is ready and willing to explore, through its components and experts, all the cultural, social, religious and  economical opportunities for prompting possible suitable and feasible aggregations.

Therefore the CMU will appoint a �Committee for the Peace�, from within but also open to external  collaboration,  aiming mainly to convene a �Conference for the peace in the Mediterranean�.

                                                                           THE PRESIDENT
                                                                        (Prof. Luigi Ambrosi)