October 30, 2009 02:00PM EDT

Jared Cohen: Why Doha?

© 2009 Getty Images, Credit: Andrew H. Walker

I arrived in Qatar yesterday to join in the launch of the Doha Tribeca Film Festival. I’ve passed through here many times in transit and for work, and I've always found this country to be a fascinating place of interesting contradictions: home to one of America’s biggest bases in the Middle East, but also Al Jazeera; an important ally in the region, but also a nation that the U.S. often argues with at the UN. As fascinating as these contradictions are, I am not in Doha to talk politics, collect another transit visa, debate Al Jazeera, or even visit the base.

This is my vacation.

Now you might ask yourself, what would possess me to take those coveted vacation days that we in the government preciously accumulate and venture off to Doha? Isn’t Beirut more fun? Wouldn’t a cruise down the Nile be more culturally enriching? What about Dubai or Turkey--wouldn't there be more to do?

But the answer is deeper than what sites to see and what beaches to go to. I’m here to watch a mission long in the making unfold. Back in 2002, Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff founded the Tribeca Film Festival to utilize film and creativity as a contribution to the post-9/11 healing process. Their goal was to build an institution that would restore vibrancy and positivity to the Big Apple.

Back then, neither the co-founders nor those participating in the Tribeca Film Festival could have imagined that the mission was actually far greater. So going back to my original question, I am here because eight years after 9/11, Tribeca Film Festival is using film to build bridges and break down what remains of the post-9/11 misperceptions.

The symbolic value of what is taking place in Doha is an example of public diplomacy at its best. Last night, as I gazed out at a crowd of more than 5,000 Qataris in a venue that was only supposed to hold 2,000, I couldn’t help but to think to myself, "Wow, this was the right decision!"
 

---

Jared Cohen is the author of several notable non-fiction titles, including Children of Jihad and One Hundred Days of Silence: America and the Rwanda Genocide. He supports Tribeca in his personal capacity, but is also a member of the Secretary of State's Policy Planning Staff.

Read more about the opening night of the 2009 Doha Tribeca Film Festival.

To learn more about the Festival, visit the official website.