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<P>Aug 3, 2004</P>
<H2>Iraqis on Tour Banned From Memphis City Hall by City Council Chair, Who
Cited Security Concerns</H2>The Associated Press <BR><BR>MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -
Iraqis visiting on a civil rights tour were barred from city hall after the city
council chairman said it was too dangerous to let them in.
<P>The seven Iraqi civic and community leaders are in the midst of a three-week
American tour, sponsored by the State Department to learn more about the process
of government. The trip also includes stops in Washington, Los Angeles and
Chicago.
<P>The Iraqis were scheduled to meet with a city council member, but Joe Brown,
the council chair, said he feared the group was dangerous.
<P>"We don't know exactly what's going on. Who knows about the delegation, and
has the FBI been informed?" Brown said. "We must secure and protect all the
employees in that building."
<P>Elisabeth Silverman, the group's host and head of the Memphis Council for
International Visitors, said Brown told her he would "evacuate the building and
bring in the bomb squads" if the group entered.
<P>"They are in charge of setting up processes in their country. They have to
educate themselves about how it works in this country," Silverman said.
<P>Silverman did not immediately respond to a message Tuesday seeking comment,
and it was not clear whether the group had run into trouble elsewhere on their
tour.
<P>But the delegates seemed in good spirits Monday, after they were able meet
with Carol Chumney, the city council member, elsewhere. Shahla Waliy, a
31-year-old native of Baghdad, said she was intrigued by the city's civil rights
history.
<P>"I heard there was a kind of majority-minority conflict in Memphis,
especially in history," she said. "We have these smaller provinces, and we have
majority-minority conflicts in these places."
<P>AP-ES-08-03-04 1753EDT <BR><BR><B>This story can be found at:</B> <A
href="http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBOW0JKGXD.html">http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBOW0JKGXD.html</A><BR><BR>
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