On February 1, 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia was moments away from completing its 28th mission when it disintegrated over Texas, killing the seven crew members on board. Amongst the crew members of the Columbia was Colonel Ilan Ramon, Israel’s first astronaut. That day marked a great loss, for science, the NASA program, and also for Israel, as a lauded national hero was killed in the tragic accident of the Columbia.

Ilan Ramon did not journey into space as an individual, but rather as the representative of Israel and the Jewish people as a whole. He carried with him the pride of his people as he flew into history by becoming the first (and to date only) Israeli astronaut. Recognizing that he had become a symbol of Israel, Ilan Ramon strove to acknowledge this during his mission. Although he was a self-described secular Jew, he also saw himself as representing all Jews and Israelis, and out of respect for this, submitted the first request for kosher food in outer space. In addition, he carried with him several pieces of Holocaust memorabilia, including a drawing by a sixteen-year-old Auschwitz victim and a miniature Torah scroll given to him by a Bergen Belsen survivor. By bringing these relics with him on his mission, Ramon symbolically carried the dreams children who had not been able to reach their own potential, as well as hope for the future of the Jewish people as respected members of the global community.

It has been nine years since Ilan Ramon and his crew members died in a tragic accident. His continued impact on Israeli society is indicative of the uniqueness of Israel and the Israeli people. Ramon has been honored as a hero of Zionism, with schools, streets, and other institutions named after him. But even greater than his impact as measured by the honors done to him in the public forum is his impact on the hearts and minds of the Israeli people. Ilan Ramon represented, and continues to symbolize, the success of the Zionist movement. The inspiring symbol of an Israeli flag sewn on to a flight suit reverberated with Jews around the world, instilling in them a sense of pride, of acceptance, and of nationalism. Ilan Ramon was a pilot, an astronaut. But he recognized that in representing Israel, he was more than that. He was a hero of the Zionist movement, embodying its success. Israel, an innovator and leader in technology and business, joined the ranks of thirty-seven other countries that have had astronauts in space with Ilan Ramon’s mission. His mission was a chance for Israel to literally reach for the stars, exceeding the expectations of the founders of Israel and the Zionist movement yet again. Today, as Israel remembers Ilan Ramon, it is as a hero, a role model, and a symbol of Israeli potential.

Photo by Suzan Marie

Remembering Ilan Ramon is a post from: The Israel Situation

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The most recent round of peace talks held between the Israelis and the Palestinians has been declared a failure by the Palestinians,  Even though the talks were held at a low level, involving only negotiating representatives from each side, there always somehow seems a little more hope when a dialogue is taking place.  In hindsight, it seems quite clear that there was never really any prospect that this round of talks would go anywhere.  For the Palestinians, it was always a case of simply going through the motions to get safely to the next trigger point.

Following the unsuccessful attempts by the Palestinians to gain recognition from the UN Security Council and General Assembly in the summer of 2011, the Palestinians had promised the Quartet that they would give another round of talks a chance until the 26th January 2012.  Having promised this, the Palestinians had no way of escaping from the commitment.  Despite the fact that a total of 5 meetings were held in the current round between the parties in a very short period of time, all of which took place under the sponsorship of the Jordanian government in Amman, it became clear very early in the process that there was little intent on the part of the Palestinians to make this round work.  Having seemingly exhausted its alternatives by making little progress at the UN, however, the question arises as to why the Palestinians were trying to torpedo these talks?  With few alternatives to allow them to make progress towards their objective, it would appear that talks seem to be the best alternative for Mahmoud Abbas and the Fatah-controlled Palestinian Authority.

In order to better understand why the Palestinians sabotaged the latest talks, it is important to the sub-plots that are going on behind the scenes, and which are having more of an influence on the actions by President Abbas and chief negotiator Saeb Erekat.  The first issue to address concerns the PA’s alternatives at the UN.  Even though the UN Security Council and General Assembly seemingly had little interest in promoting the cause of the Palestinians at their meetings last year, the UN is quite a disparate organisation with many different tentacles that are often disconnected from each other.  This was demonstrated when, soon after the failure at the General Assembly, the Palestinians did manage to win support for full membership to the UN cultural organisation UNESCO in October 2011.  Although this was a poor consolation prize for main objective, it did demonstrate to the Palestinians that they could use a slower and indirect approach in order to work their way into the UN organisation.  This includes the possibility of making use of the UN-sponsored International Court of Justice to charge Israelis with crimes against humanity arising from events in the recent Gaza War, Operation Cast Lead.  The Palestinians have repeatedly threatened to make use of this avenue in their battle against Israel.  Even if charges that they may bring through this court are ultimately dismissed, such actions could tie individual Israelis and the Israeli government up in legal proceedings for many years.  By bringing the latest round of peace talks with Israel to an end, the prospect of stepping up actions through these UN organisations is placed firmly back on the table, and exactly where the Palestinians wish it to be.

The second sub-plot concerns the evolution of the relationship between Fatah and Hamas.  The Palestinian Authority is controlled by Fatah, and with Mahmoud Abbas already serving his 8th year of a 4-year term, there is a great deal of pressure for elections to be held.  Fatah is clearly reluctant to call elections when there is a real prospect of them being routed, even in their perceived stronghold of the West Bank.  Many of these issues were taken care of, when a deal was signed between Hamas and Fatah to create a unity government for the Palestinian Authority.  This deal is a typical attempt to extend the longevity of politicians on both sides of the divide, by denying the electorate the right to express its will through the ballot box.  With Hamas being absolutely opposed to holding any negotiations with Israel at all, the establishment of the unity government was put on hold while the latest talks were held.  Now, with the talks dead and buried, the blockage has been removed.  For Fatah, entering into a closer relationship with Hamas may allow it to share in some of the popular support that Hamas continues to enjoy following recent prisoner exchange deal.  It may also extend the political lives of some of the bigger names.

A further sub-plot in play concerns the ongoing events in the Arab World, and the events which have resulted from the “Arab Spring”.  Mahmoud Abbas has announced that he will be taking the issue of the failed talks with the Israelis to the Arab League, to get direction as to what should happen next.  With the Arab League occupied with events in Syria, Abbas may have a created a smokescreen under which to operate.  Interestingly, the effects of the Arab Spring also seem to have created something of a split within Hamas, which may yet have an impact on the Palestinian Authority via the inclusion of Hamas in the unity government activities.  The leadership that was formerly based in Damascus (reports suggest that Khaled Meshal and his team have fled the Syrian capital) feel that non-violent protest against Israel may be effective as a “Palestinian Spring”, after having seen the impact of the popular uprising in Syria and Egypt first-hand.  The Gaza leadership is quite clear that it has no intention of adopting a new non-violent approach against Israel, and this issue may yet cause further internal conflict within the Palestinian camp.

The way in which the Palestinians went through the motions in the recent peace talks seemed a little more transparent than usual.  Despite the fact that the talks were primarily addressing the issues of borders and security, an Israeli official was prevented from fully presenting Israel’s position on borders to the Amman meeting.  An Israeli document setting out 21 points of principles needed to reach a peace agreement was not considered, and was then dismissed as being “just an outline”.  These attempts to dismiss Israel’s honest efforts in the talks seem clearly designed to sabotage the talks.  In the press, Israel’s border proposals have been labelled as “preventing a Palestinian state from being established”, and have been blamed for the breakdown of the talks.

In spite of the obvious reasons for the breakdown, the stale mate somehow seems still to have produced a slight edge for the Palestinian side.  The breakdown of the talks has been presented by the international community by saying that the Palestinians have at least fulfilled their commitment to continue to try until the pre-agreed date of 26th January.  Having tried and failed, all bets are off the table, but the rewards due to the Palestinians are triggered.  European foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton even had the audacity to call upon Israel to deliver “confidence-building concessions” to encourage the talks to continue.  We have already learned that this means delivering confidence to the international community, and concessions to the Palestinians.  The Palestinian side seems not to be expected to deliver confidence nor the concessions.  The international community would be better off understanding that any such concessions on Israel’s part, would amount to rewards to the Palestinians for bad behaviour.

It seems clear to me that a lasting peace will only be possible via a negotiated settlement.  This was also recognised by Fatah strongman Marwan Barghouti, who remains in an Israeli jail serving five life sentences for murder of Israeli citizens.  He made a rare court appearance during the last week, and managed to send out a message indicating that he believes in a negotiated settlement based on the 1967 borders.  The precise terms of the negotiated settlement remain a large outstanding issue, but it is interesting that the person believed to be the instigator of both the first and second intifadas is talking about a negotiated settlement at all.  The problem right now, is that there appear to be few Palestinians who believe that this is the correct route to take, and who are prepared to make the painful concessions necessary to bring this to reality.  Until this happens, the Palestinians will be going through the motions, and the cycle of violence will continue.

Going Through the Motions is a post from: The Israel Situation

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Some of the most frequently used party lines of Israel advocates are words that highlight Israel’s diversity. Supporters and defenders of Israel, and Israelis themselves, constantly reference the incredible diversity of the population of the State of Israel when singing its praises. When one visits Israel, it is common to be struck by the image of Jews of every race, every color, of Jews whose religion is marked in their dress and Jews who are veritable fashion plates, indistinguishable from Americans or Europeans. Interspersed in this multitude are a plethora of non-Jews who call Israel home-Muslim Arabs, Christian Arabs, Ba’hai, Orthodox Christians, African refugees, and so many more, are integral parts of the multifaceted society that comprises modern Israel.

While Israel’s strength is in its diversity, many Israelis take issue with their fellow citizens on a variety of issues. Lately, it has been these clashes between various groups that have marked Israeli news. With ultra-Orthodox Jews and secular Israelis clashing over issues including the status of women in society and who should be required to serve in the army, it is clear that the Israeli public has to figure out how to live with the diversity of Israel, not just physical but ideological as well.

The Zionist experiment worked because of its inherent diversity. From the beginning of the formal movement to establish the State of Israel, there were various streams of Zionist thought and ideology. While they clashed at times and contradicted frequently, the multiple forms of Zionism, joined together, created the modern State of Israel. In a vacuum, Religious Zionism, Cultural Zionism, and Labor Zionism, could not have created a functioning nation. Israel’s strength comes from the varying ideologies that served to create it. It is due to the fact that from the beginning, Zionism and the State of Israel have been products of the efforts of individuals from a wide range of backgrounds that Israel is a champion of diversity and democracy today.

It is easy to be intolerant. It would be easy for Israeli government and society to exclude individuals and groups that disagree with its mission or beliefs. But then, Israel would not be able to honestly uphold its democratic character and progressive nature. Promoting Israeli values is made easier by the knowledge of advocates that Israel is the only country to airlift blacks out of Africa into freedom, that Israel is a pioneer in the rights of women and homosexuals, that the Israeli parliament and Supreme Court contain Arabs, Jews, and Christians. While certainly this provides for a great deal of internal turmoil and conflict within the halls of Israeli bureaucracy, and leads to interpersonal conflicts in society in general, it is far preferable to the alternative.

The diversity of Israel is what enables supporters of Israel to hold their heads high when facing the international arena. It is the indisputable fact that Israel has such ethnic, religious, and ideological diversity that flies in the face of the apartheid accusations so often thrown at it. Israel’s diverse composition is the source of its power and its ability to bring together individuals from so many different backgrounds under the banner of Zionist life and expression.

Image by Or Hiltch

Embracing Israel’s Diversity is a post from: The Israel Situation

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It has been interesting to watch developments within Hamas over the past few months, and especially since the prisoner exchange deal which saw the release of Gilad Shalit.  For Hamas, this has been a significant political event and has driven the organisation’s popularity to new heights amongst its Palestinian constituency.  It seems as though this popularity has not reached all parts of the organisation, and that this great political event may even cause something of a split within Hamas.

Since Hamas was founded in 1987, there has been some tension between the so-called Gaza leadership, and the leadership based in exile.  Until recently, the base in exile has been situated in the Syrian capital, Damascus.  This is where Hamas Political Chief and Hamas Leader Khaled Meshaal has been based, together with his exile leadership team.  On the other hand, Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and his cabinet are the ones who are ruling over the Gaza Strip on a day-to-day basis, close to the grass roots support that keeps the organisation so popular.  While Haniyeh does turn for guidance to Meshal in his capacity as the leader of the organisation, the truth of the matter is that the Gaza team is a fairly autonomous entity.  Since the Gaza team succeeded in winning control of Gaza from Fatah in a coup d’état in 2007, they have steadily risen in stature within the Hamas organisation.  Recent events have served to strengthen this position even further, to the point that the overall leadership of Hamas may see itself moving from the base in Damascus back to Gaza.

The rise in power of the Gaza leadership really began back in 2005, soon after the death of Yasser Arafat.  This event gave the leaders in Gaza the opportunity to raise their profile on the ground, starting with the assertion of their authority against arch-rivals Fatah.  The legislative elections held in 2006 were easily won by Hamas even though Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas managed to hang onto the presidency of the Palestinian Authority.  A year later, Hamas supporters rose up against the Fatah rulers in Gaza, and asserted their authority on the streets. This brought their victory at the ballot box to reality.  During this time, Hamas operatives kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, and held him as a bargaining chip for more than 5 years.  All the while, Hamas was firing missiles from Gaza into Israel and keeping the organisation’s name on the international stage.  These events have helped to popularise Hamas amongst its supporters in Gaza, and amongst extremist Muslims around the world.  This popularity has come at the expense of Fatah, but has also caused a split within the Hamas organisation itself.  There is no doubt that the Gaza leadership has taken all the credit for these events at the expense of the Damascus leadership.

The Arab Spring has further weakened the Damascus leadership in a few different ways.  It is reported that the instability in Damascus has resulted in the exile leadership being forced to move their office elsewhere.  Although there is no confirmation of the new location for their office, they may be forced to remain fairly mobile in light of the events of the Arab Spring moving around the Middle East fairly rapidly.  Meshal has also been influenced by the Arab Spring and decided to try to use its impetus to suggest the use of non-violent protest against Israel.  This suggestion has been forcefully rejected by the Gaza leaders, who continue to subscribe to violent protest and ongoing firing of missiles towards Israel.

This is not the only major disagreement between Damascus and Gaza.  The Damascus leadership has been very active in working on the negotiations with Fatah to reach an agreement on a unity government for the Palestinian Authority.  Besides the compromises that each side has been forced to make to reach an agreement with the other, there is another key elephant in the room.  This is the issue of the talks with Israel which are back on the table, albeit at a very low level.  The Gaza leadership remains absolutely opposed to reaching any agreement with Fatah, all the time that Fatah is willing to enter into negotiations with Israel.  This view seems to have prevailed over the past few weeks.  Despite having signed an agreement to enter into a unity government with Fatah amidst some fanfare in Cairo, Hamas has taken no active steps towards making this agreement a reality.

These events culminated in an announcement last week that Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal has decided not to see re-election as the movement’s chief in elections which are due to take place later during 2012.  This seems to be an acknowledgement on Meshaal’s part that he will be defeated in the election.  Rather than be defeated, he would prefer to bow out in a more elegant way.  Favourite to replace him is Ismail Haniyeh, leader in Gaza.

All of this indicates something of a radicalisation of Hamas in the future.  The Gaza leadership is naturally much more radical than that in Damascus, and the future path of Hamas is bound to be strongly influenced by this.  In addition, the rise to power of the Muslim Brotherhood across the border in Egypt is ominous.  Hamas was founded as an off-spring of the Muslim Brotherhood, and continues to have a close relationship with this organisation.  The Mubarak regime succeeded to some degree in limiting the flow of arms into Gaza from Egypt, but the floodgates will be open now that the Muslim Brotherhood is calling the shots in Cairo.

While there were indications of compromise and understanding coming from the Damascus leadership, this appears almost certainly to have been overruled by the approach of conflict and confrontation dictated by the Gaza leadership.  This almost certainly means a continued schism within Palestinian politics between Fatah and Hamas.  For Israel, this probably means that another Gaza operation, similar to Operation Cast Lead, is inevitable in response to the continued missile attacks that seem almost assured.  In Middle East politics, this is a huge opportunity that will be missed.

Image by corbis.com.

Hamas Reaches a Fork in the Road is a post from: The Israel Situation

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This is a post from contributor Andyboy. You can visit him at the Andyboy blog.

No – this is not another review of the famous book by Erica de Jong. It’s just a memoire of my introduction to the wonderful world of flight.

So, it is both appropriate and ironic that I am beginning to write this article seated in a departure lounge at Ben Gurion airport. I’m not off to anywhere exotic – just waiting for a domestic flight to take me home to Eilat.

In almost 50 years of trusting my body to the abilities of men (and, occasionally, women), to keep machines that are heavier than air from falling out of the sky, I have been involved in a few events having Jewish or Israeli connections.

What better place to start than with my first flight ever. As fate would have it, this maiden voyage was with none other than our dearly beloved El Al, flying from London to Tel Aviv. Younger readers may not be aware that, in those days, the acronym for El Al was jokingly defined as: ”Every Landing, Always Late.” Or, alternatively: ”Everyone’s Luggage, Always Lost.” Creative definition were all the rage then. I particularly liked the one for the Belgian National Carrier, SABENA: ”Such A Bloody Experience, Never Again”.  And, sad to say, these witticisms were not without a grain of truth.

But I digress.

Boeing 707

The El Al Boeing 707 was considered ”state of the art flying” in 1964.  Although I think that this actual plane was probably one of the first off the production line, and had seen better days, for me it was all wondrous. By the time I returned to London a week later, after an exhaustive (and exhausting) JNF study mission I certainly had a better understanding of Israel and Israelis.

Nevertheless, it was only after I subsequently flew with other airlines, that I learned that it was not the norm for most of the passengers to leave their seats immediately after take off, and to spend most of the flight wandering in the aisles, holding loud conversations with all and sundry. The makeshift “praying area” at the rear, occupied by dozens of black garbed men mumbling and rocking back and forth, (and, incidentally, blocking access to the toilets) also turned out to be unique to El Al.

The exasperated cabin crew had to resort to the deception of announcing approaching turbulence in order to get the passengers to sit down and fasten their seat belts. . This ploy was to enable them to serve the “delicious”Kosher meal. The food trolley was wheeled along the aisle with the crew intoning “Beef or Chicken” at least 200 times. Much has changed at El Al in the past 50 years, but this mantra has not. It is now repeated thousands of times daily to a whole new generation of air travellers.

Douglas DC 3

My second flight took place during the week of the mission. This was with Arkia, in its early years. The aircraft was a Douglas DC 3 which had been built during, or just after, the Second World War. It was operating on the route from Eilat to Tel Aviv, which, in those days, flew via Be’er Sheva. Even I, air novice that I was, suspected that it was not usual to see daylight between the fuselage and the window frame. Evidence of temporary repairs was all around. The passengers treated the trip more like a bus ride than a flight. To this day I still have a mental picture of standing on the tarmac at Be’er Sheva ”airport”, waiting to board, and watching in bemusement whilst a young man struggled to manoeuver his motor cycle up the plane’s steps and into the aircraft. It seems that “hand luggage” had a different definition for Israelis even then.

The return flight to London was pretty much a repeat of the outbound journey. I did, however, reflect again on the creative interpretation of  the term “hand luggage” as applied to El Al flights. Especially since the shelf above the passenger’s heads was open – and over laden.  Bin covers that could be closed and locked had yet to be invented.

Vickers Viscount

The Jewish connection to my next flight was that I needed to travel on JNF business from London to Glasgow, Scotland. The Aircraft was a Vickers Viscount; the standard workhorse for BEA (now British Airways) on its domestic routes. The outbound flight was uneventful; the return flight was not. I had to return on the last flight at around 11.00 at night. The weather was cold and wet – as is normal for Scotland in the Autumn, but inside the plane it was warm and comfortable and I settled down for a short sleep after a tiring day. Soon, the plane was rolling down the runway,  heading for its takeoff speed.

Just at the moment of rotation, one of the engines failed. The pilot, left without sufficient power, had to abort the takeoff. As he braked frantically, the sudden deceleration caused me to slip under my seat belt, which I had only fastened loosely, and caused my legs and lower body to become jammed under the seat in front. We bumped along, ran out of runway and finished up stuck in the mud beyond the runway end. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries but there was no way that this plane was getting to London.

We were taken from the plane back to the terminal. Actually I am not sure whether a tin hut, next to an airstrip, which was Glasgow airport in 1964 could reasonably be described as a “terminal”. So there we were, a planeload of shocked passengers, stuck in a tin hut at midnight with not much more than a kettle, a few biscuits, and a long wait ahead of us, whilst another plane was flown up from London to collect us.

The queue for the one public telephone grew as each man tried to explain to his wife, girlfriend or mistress why he would not be home that night. It seemed that the explanations were received with varying degrees of disbelief. One might have supposed that the news of this escape from death could have been treated more sympathetically. I remember being on the receiving end of a similar response from my (then) wife. I suppose that behavioral psychologists would explain these reactions as expressions of relief and anxiety – just poorly expressed.

Eventually, the substitute aircraft arrived. and we found ourselves trundling down the runway again. Looking back I think that it was just as well that I overcame my trepidation, and did not not allow this incident to deter me from ever flying again. Otherwise I would have deprived myself of more adventures in the future. But those I will recount at another time.

To be honest, the title of this article is a bit of a misnomer. I was never really afraid. Today it’s not the flying I hate – it’s the security and check-in procedures and regulations.

That’s the true fear of flying!

Fear of Flying is a post from: The Israel Situation

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Israel is frequently accused of racism, particularly by those who continue to undermine her right to exist.  Despite being forced to fight a war of survival against the Arab nations since independence in 1948, Israel continues to come under a microscope for the way in which she behaves towards Arabs who are Israeli citizens, and those who are not.  It is a complex analysis, and not simply an issue of racism.  Arab citizens have a completely different status in Israel.  Their allegiance to the Jewish state in which they live and which feeds their every need, continues to be under suspicion.  They have frequently been found to assist those who wish to destroy Israel.  They are not obliged to serve in the nation’s army in the same way as others citizens are required to do.  The relationship between Jew and Arab in Israel is not simply about race, but more about Jewish survival in the Jewish homeland.  There is, however, another sort of racism that has reared its ugly head in Israel in recent times, and which needs to be stamped out before it is becomes unmanageable.

It seems that the practice of attempting to elevate the status of one population group at the expense of others is almost part of human instinct.  Historically, Jews have been victims of those who have tried to increase their own social standing by putting down other weaker groups. The African nation has also suffered from this problem almost wherever their people have found themselves, both within Africa and elsewhere.  In modern America, the Mexicans play the role of the fall guys, in India the caste system defines those who are at the bottom of the ladder, Gypsies in Europe are frequently discriminated against and Philippino workers in the countries of the Gulf of Arabia take their place at the bottom of society.  This instinct has unfortunately not by-passed Israel.

In the early years of the State of Israel, the country was populated by two distinct groups of Jews.  The first group escaped many years of persecution in Europe, and arrived in Israel out of the ruins of the Holocaust that ravaged their population and people.  The second group had made their homes in Arab countries of the Middle East and North Africa, and had been forced to endure discrimination for many years, especially during the period when the Holocaust was ravaging Europe.  This discrimination became even more acute after the birth of the State of Israel, and many were expelled from their homes.  Those in the European group were generally better educated and were well versed in European culture, while those in the Middle Eastern group were less exposed to western values, education and culture.  Many clashes took place between these groups, and the human instinct came out in their attempts to elevate themselves to make themselves better than the others.  The horrific discrimination that each group had been forced to endure in the years prior to their arrival in Israel had a significant influence on their attempts to better themselves, even at the expense of others.  After having been treated as the dregs of society for so long, each group was eager to elevate themselves to the top of society.  To be at the top, you need to have somebody who is below you.  Hence was born racism and discrimination in Israel, which manifested itself largely in the form of European Jews discriminating against Middle Eastern Jews.  The fact that the Middle Eastern Jews were also generally darker skinned than their European counterparts also somehow fitted the standard expectations of discrimination, even though the darker skin was not the source of the discrimination.  Despite the fact that these discriminatory views have presented their problems over the years, it is pleasing to note that the problem has been substantially diluted by inter-marriage and the blurring of edges between the two groups.  It is also notable that representatives from both groups have reached the upper echelons of business, politics and academia.  Nobody will ever forget where they and their families have come from, but the future in Israel looks less defined by these two groups than was previously the case.

Recently, however, racism has again become evident, this time against another weaker population group in Israel.  In operations starting in 1984, Jews from Ethiopia were airlifted to Israel in large numbers.  Operation Moses saw some 8,000 people brought to Israel and this was followed up with further operations which brought a total of about 80,000 people to Israel.  Today, the Ethiopian community in Israel numbers over 120,000.  The Ethiopians have become easy targets for discrimination for a number of reasons, and many have taken advantage of this situation

Upon their arrival in Israel, the Ethiopian community was forced to take on an entirely new environment.  Many of them had never seen a flush toilet in operation or slept in a bed that was not on the ground.  This learning process put them in a very weak position, and made it easy for others to take advantage of them.  The Ethiopians show a gentle and mild temperament, and are not outspoken or loud in their actions.  In the Israeli aggressive and rough-and-tumble environment, their gentleness is interpreted as weakness.  In the Israeli context of whoever screams loudest and shows most aggression will get what they want, the Ethiopian community has lost out significantly.  Even though the Ethiopian community has been forced to take on many of the ways of the modern Israeli environment, they have still done their best to maintain some of their traditions and practices from their days in the deserts of Africa.  Many of these practices are very different from those in use by other Israelis, and cause some level of friction in residential neighbourhoods.  This friction crossed the line last week when it was revealed that residents of some apartment buildings in Kiryat Malachi, had banded together in a pact not to sell apartments in their block to Ethiopian families.

What these people had not realised, is that there is a new type of person that has arisen within the Ethiopian community over the past ten years or so.  This is a group of teenagers and young adults who were born in Israel, and have grown up with Israeli style of doing business.  While these people are strongly influenced from the home by the traditional Ethiopian style of living, they also know the kind of action that is needed in Israel to be heard and to get what they want.  These young adults led other members of the Ethiopian community out onto the streets in protest against the racist practices that are making things difficult for their community.  This protest captured the attention of the media and of the nation.  It reached the highest levels of the political establishment, and President Shimon Peres responded by visiting a school in Jerusalem that caters to a large number of Ethiopian students.  He shared with them his experiences of coming to Israel from Poland at the age of 11, and the taunts that he was forced to endure as a result of his lack of Hebrew and different style of dress.  He reassured the children by saying that he found his way of fitting into Israeli society, and he is proof that they can achieve whatever they want – even becoming president of the state.

The Ethiopian community includes some of the most genuine people to be found in Israel today.  They gave up everything they knew and their style of living in Africa to come to the Jewish homeland.  Despite the fact that their lives and communities have literally been turned upside down by moving to Israel, they are delighted to be in Israel to be allowed to practice their Jewish faith and peace and without the fear of anti-Semitism.  They have suffered every sort of discrimination known to any group of people in Israel.  Even the Israeli government stands accused of discriminating against the Ethiopians in terms of the help and assistance provided to them.  Many were forced to convert as the Jewishness was not recognised at the same time as blood relatives had been accepted as Jewish.  The amount of money allocated to the process of acclimatising the Ethiopian community has been a fraction of that required.  And yet, they are simply delighted to be in the Land of Israel.  While it is understood that not everybody can feel comfortable with the style of living and practices of the Ethiopians, this cannot be the cause of racism.

No matter what the cause of racism, it needs to be stamped out.  This is particularly true in a country like Israel where racism has no place at all.  The weaker members of our society, usually those who are the victims of discrimination, require greater help and support rather than actions to increase their hardship.  This is particularly true of groups like the Ethiopians who have been forced to undergo dramatic changes to their way of life and to the environment in which they live.

It is only by banding together and strengthening the weaker parts of our society, that we will also have the strength to fight the war of survival.  The Ethiopians have more than demonstrated their allegiance to this cause, and their willingness to participate in the defence of the State of Israel.  The other citizens of Israel need to do all that they can to support and respect this.

Image by reutrcohen.com

Racism Has No Place in the State of Israel is a post from: The Israel Situation

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Hi friends, I recently spoke at “Ignite Chanukah” about flash mobs. Ignite is a speaker series where people make 5 minute speeches on interesting topics. This was a Jewish Ignite event, so I had to sprinkle in some Jewish humor and talk about Israel. Enjoy the talk.

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This is a post from contributor Andyboy. You can visit him at the Andyboy blog.

This is another little anecdote from my first visit to Israel 47 years ago, when I participated in a study mission, organised by the JNF of Great Britain.

Although the main aim was to show us the work of the JNF/Keren Kayemeth, in all its various facets, the scope was broadened to include other organisations and explain the interconnection between them and the JNF. One of these groups was the Keren Hayesod, and specifically its work in the absorption of new immigrants.

In those years most immigrants arrived by sea. And so it was that, very early one morning, we found ourselves waiting at the dockside in Haifa, eagerly awaiting the arrival of a ship bringing new immigrants from Morocco. Actually, Jewish emigration from there was banned in 1956 and had only recently been resumed, so these were among the first immigrants of the new wave.

Soon we witnessed the excitement as the families, at the end of a long and arduous journey, descended the gangway and found themselves, finally, in the Promised Land. There was much crying and a good deal of noise created by the ululating women, using the traditional Arabic/North African manner of showing great joy. After a few bureaucratic formalities, the families were transferred to buses to transport them to their new homes.

Each of us was allocated to a specific family; the idea was to go with them as they set out to begin their new life. Unfortunately, communication was somewhat restricted, since we didn’t speak Arabic, and they couldn’t speak a word of English. Eventually, we discovered that many of them spoke French. So, with the remnants of my schoolboy memories of that language, I endeavoured to hold a conversation with ‘my’ family.

The stories they told were fascinating and disturbing. This particular group came from Casablanca, a city made famous by a movie that did not deal with the Jewish aspect of its history. They told of pogroms and persecution; of being treated as second class citizens and, generally, were so unhappy that they, literally, prayed for deliverance. They could not say enough bad things about Casablanca, and they convinced us how desperately they wanted to live in Israel.

After many hours travelling, we eventually arrived at our destination. I don’t recall the exact place, but it appeared to be in the middle of a desert.

The absorption centre consisted of a number of identical factory constructed apartment blocks, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Just buildings; no roads or pavements; no trees or plants or flowers of vegetation of any sort. Just blocks of concrete in a wilderness. The bus fell silent as the immigrants took in the surroundings. Then started the shouting and the wailing: “why did we come here?” “Why did we leave Casablanca – we were happy and secure there!” ”We don’t want to be here!” ”We want to be with our families in Tel Aviv, Haifa or Jerusalem!” My fractured French couldn’t really cope but our Arabic speaking guide filled in the bits I didn’t understand. The people simply refused to leave the bus. All the entreaties of the officials fell on deaf ears, What to do?

Eventually the members of our group were ordered off the bus, the doors were closed and the engine switched off. We stood around uncomfortably trying to understand what would happen next. But we were certainly not prepared for what did happen. The Officials told us to come with them to their office to wait.

I should explain that this was Israel on an afternoon in mid July. The external temperature was at least 40 degrees Celsius. The temperature inside the bus was at least 10 degrees higher, and rising by the minute. Surprisingly, the officials were very relaxed about the situation. In response to our shocked questioning, they replied that this was the reaction of most of the people brought to this spot. The officials were used to it, and this was how they always dealt with it. They insisted that they were not being inhuman, and they understood the reasons for the behaviour of the immigrants. They said that adjustment would take time, but it would happen.And, they claimed that this method always worked. Well, of course, it did in the short-term.

After about an hour the immigrants gave up, got off the bus and were taken to their apartments. We left to continue our trip, still in a state of shock and disbelief. I did try to find out what happened later, and was assured that the immigrants had settled down and everything was OK. How long they remained there, I never knew.

It was an unexpected insight into the reality of immigration absorption in the Holy Land. And, for a cynic like me, a reason to speculate about their real purpose in coming to Israel………..

Image by UggBoy♥UggGirl [ PHOTO // WORLD // TRAVEL ]

Casablanca – Not The Movie! is a post from: The Israel Situation

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The meeting of the Judicial Appointments Committee on Friday turned out to be something of a pleasant anti-climax.  In a meeting that lasted only 90 minutes, four new justices were duly appointed to the bench of the Israeli Supreme Court.  The cordial nature of the meeting and the appointments seemed to conceal the less-than-cordial path that led to this moment.

Israel’s Supreme Court plays a very central role in Israeli society.  In addition to acting as an appellate court, it also acts as a High Court of Justice in which decisions by government and state authorities can be challenged and set aside.  The right of the Supreme Court to set aside government decisions creates a critical place for it in Israeli democracy.  It is little wonder that the appointment of new justices to the bench of this court is such an important and controversial exercise.  Once appointed to the Supreme Court, justices serve until they are seventy years of age and cannot be removed except under extreme circumstances.  The judges on the bench need to be act independently of government, and need to be seen to act independently of government to maintain their important role as defender of democracy.

For some time now, certain ultra-Orthodox and right-wing citizens of Israel have protested that decisions by the Supreme Court have discriminated against their views and positions.  While many Israelis have regarded the court’s decisions as representing the voice of reason in situations which have seemed wholly unreasonable, some groups feel discriminated against by these decisions.  Surprisingly, it seems as if this view was not only shared by extremists.  In the lead-up to the meeting of the Judicial Appointments Committee, the Minister of Justice and the Prime Minister threatened to become caught up in a judicial appointments row.  Their actions pointed unashamedly to the fact that they also subscribe to the view that the bench of the Supreme Court has become too left-wing.  Certain actions and statements on their behalf attempted to influence the makeup of the Judicial Appointments Committee in the hope that this may influence the appointment of the Supreme Court judges towards their right-wing views.

The nine-man Judicial Appointments Committee includes two members who are appointed by the Israeli Bar Association.    The remaining seven members of the committee are made up of three sitting judges of the Supreme Court, two ministers and two members of Knesset.  The two Bar Association representatives are chosen in a vote that is conducted according to a simple majority.  The two representatives were chosen to the satisfaction of the Bar Association, and this revealed that one representative was somebody known to be politically left of centre.  Individuals close to the Minister of Justice embarked upon a campaign to retroactively change the rules by which the Bar Association candidates were selected, in order to replace the left-wing representative.  It was hoped that this would ensure that the right-wing candidates to the bench would be appointed.  This attempt to undermine the due process of appointment of justices is shameful, and can be seen as an attempt to meddle with an important arm of the democracy of our nation.  No person is larger than the system, and no individual should be allowed to undermine the operation of a process that is so fundamental to the democracy of the country.

Ultimately, the attempts to change the rules retroactively were unsuccessful, and the original vote of the Bar Association stood.  Their two representatives took their place on the Judicial Appointments Committee and four new judges were appointed.  Despite the controversy and shenanigans leading up to the vote, the four new candidates can be seen as typifying compromise and organisation.  Justice Noam Sohlberg lives in Alon Shvut on the West Bank, and was elected by eight of the nine committee members as a representative of the right.  Justice Zvi Zylbertal  was elected unanimously as a candidate from the left.  He is regarded as being very close to retiring Judge President Dorit Beinisch.  Justice Uri Shoham was also elected unanimously, and is seen to represent those of North African and Middle Easter (Mizrachi) origin.  Finally, Justice Daphne Barak-Erez received unanimous support as the only female new judge.

Whereas in the USA, the appointment of judges is a highly politicised process and is a good way for presidents to leave a legacy long after the end of their presidential term, in Israel this has not been the case until now.  It may, however be set to change in the future, even though it seems as though this would be an unfortunate development.  Due to the fact that the Israeli Supreme Court is frequently called upon to adjudicate matters which have strong political overtones, it is important that the bench should be as politically impartial as possible.   This is particularly true when living in a society with so many minority groupings.  Citizens should feel confident that the Supreme Court will judge fairly and independently on each case that is brought before the court.  On this occasion, democracy has ensured that even the Minister of Justice was unable to influence the process of justice.  This is real democracy in action.

Justice Prevails is a post from: The Israel Situation

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As we welcome 2012, it gives the opportunity to reflect on the best and worst parts of 2011.  In Israel, 2011 was an eventful year, including a number of interesting and challenging events.  For some, it was a year that they would prefer to forget.  Despite many negative aspects to the year, I think that Israelis will regard 2011 as having been a year that was more positive than negative.  Here are the main reasons why I think that this was the case.

The best story coming out of 2011 was the release of captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit.  It is not only the fact that Gilad was returned safely to the arms of his family that makes this story good.  The fact that the Israeli government was finally able to agree and execute this deal sends some amazingly strong and positive statements to all Israelis.  For me, this is a classic story where the right thing finally triumphed.  Like all good stories, this has a negative side to it as well.  I really cannot blame all of those who opposed the deal due to the “price” that had to be paid in terms of the number of Palestinian prisoners who were released, even those who have murdered Israelis.  I also know how paranoid the Israel Defense Force (IDF) is about the possibility of soldiers being kidnapped in the future, and the measures that have been put in place to try to avoid this at any price.  I feel that working to avoid future kidnappings is a better reaction than leaving Gilad in captivity under the conditions that he was held.  This was, by far, the highlight of the year in my view.

Another good story of 2011 was that of the social protests.  Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to demonstrate against lack of social justice, and of the dramatic increases in the cost of living without commensurate increases in earnings.  This was a great story for a number of reasons.  It was good to see the Israeli public having the time and energy to devote to social issues, and behaving in a manner that most “normal” countries behave.  In the 63 years since Israel’s independence, most of the time has been spent worrying about an existential threat.  Wars have been fought, terror attacks overcome and many people have been left dead and injured.  This allows little time or energy to give even a fleeting thought to daily social issues.  The fact that hundreds of thousands of Israelis were able to come out into the street to protest social issues gives some indication that the existential threat is not quite at the same level as it has been in the past.  It also shows what Israelis really care about, and shows the real democracy that exists in Israel.  On all of these levels, the protests were extremely encouraging.  These good points, however, should not cause us to lose sight of the core issue of these protests – the economic inequality and hardships that many people are suffering.  Unfortunately, the government has not responded sufficiently to the message of the protest marches, and this issue is likely to plague us for some time yet.

A further good story for 2011 was the extent to which the economy succeeded in holding up during the year.  Even though this seems to be at odds with the message brought by the social protest movement, more Israelis were in employment during 2011 than at any other time in Israel’s history.  In addition, while economies around the world were floundering and suffering all types of economic problems, Israel somehow managed to keep its economy on track.  This does not mean that the year translated into a boom year for Israel.  It does, however, continue the theme of displaying a real underlying strength to Israel’s economy that was shown during 2008 when the credit crunch hit many economies so hard.  Once again in 2011, Israel’s economy has performed admirably.  Along with the good things, come some very difficult questions.  Why are so many Israelis struggling financially when the economy is at almost full employment?  This is clearly something that needs to be addressed as part of the social equality agenda.

The major regional story this year was the unfolding of the Arab Spring in countries in the Middle East and North Africa.  The way in which the Arab Spring has swept through the region could never have been predicted.  Even though this is great news for democracy in the Middle East, it has created an instability that is proving to be negative for Israel, and many countries in the western world.  While the free world has an obligation to support the move towards democracy in principle, there is a real problem about whether these countries are really ready to embrace democracy.  In many respects, stability in the Arab world is more important than democracy.  As things seem at the moment, the two don’t seem to be able to live side by side.  The change of regime in Egypt is particularly concerning, with the increasing popularity of the Muslim Brotherhood.  The protest movement in Syria also promises some dramatic changes to regional politics, and they are not necessarily all going to be positive.

The second major regional story surrounds Iran’s development of nuclear weapons.  2011 can be characterised as a year of confirmation and inaction where this is concerned.  The international community were presented with irrefutable evidence of Iran’s development of nuclear missiles.  Even the International Atomic Energy Agency were forced to accept that Israel’s representations about Iran’s nuclear program have been correct all along.  Having had this fact confirmed, the best that the international community could muster up, were a few ineffectual sanctions.  It has become clear that Iran is not only setting out to threaten Israel.  The events over the past few days in the Straits of Hormuz are a clear challenge to the US.  The military exercise on this occasion closed the straights for only a short period of time.  The next time could be for longer, precipitating a potential military conflict with the USA.

Despite the fact that 2011 was a hugely eventful year, it seems only to have set the scene for what awaits us in 2012.  Israel’s social justice movement is likely to be more vociferous, particularly if the economy suffers more than it did in 2011.  The government will need to be prepared to commit to spend more money on social issues, and to see these promises through.  This is an issue that is no less imporant than Israel’s security challenges.

The Arab Spring will come to a head in Syria.  It seems as though the Sunni Muslims, who represent over 70% of the population, are likely to gain the ascendancy after having been ruled by the minority Alawites for many years.  The Spring could yet spread to other countries in the region, and this could present a greater threat to Israel as more of her neighbours became destabilised by these events.

I expect that 2012 will also see the Iranian nuclear issue come to a head, as Iran continues to intimidate and provoke Israel, the USA and other western countries.  All of this adds up to 2012 looking to be a tough year.

In between the pessimistic expectations are a few rays of light.  Even though I expect a great deal of instability during 2012, it is my hope that this will then bring a period of greater stability as is often the case.  I also hope that the unfolding Arab Spring can create a new, more compromising, reality with the Palestinians to allow moves towards a genuine peace based on mutual recognition and respect.

It is my hope and prayer that 2012 holds only great things for all of you.  Happy new year!!

Image by www.photobucket.com 

The Best and The Worst of 2011 is a post from: The Israel Situation

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