Ladies, please!

There's been a lot happening recently over in that sliver of land at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa (what continent is Israel in anyway? answers on a postcard please...). There's no way I, a rather lazy (recently) blogger could even hope to cover everything, so I'm going to focus on one for the girls.


A friend of mine recently started a Facebook group called Peaceful Women, aimed at encouraging women from a cross-section of ethnic-religious backgrounds to exchange ideas, thoughts and information and to begin to forge friendships. The idea behind this is that as women are thought to be the gentler sex, that a women-only forum would be a good place to begin to forge peace connections. 


It is interesting that women (myself included) have happily joined, without questioning the women-only nature of the group. It is particularly interesting as it comes at a time when gender politics has reared its head in Israel in the context of the Haredi gender segregation that is creeping ever more into the public sphere.


There have been, on my count, three examples of gender segregation encroaching further into public space in Israel in recent weeks. Firstly, the news that in Mea Shearim, the street itself was to have a mechitza (separation barrier) erected to allow men and women to pass freely but separately in the streets during Sukkot. I was unsure how I felt about this. After all, it was taking place within a strictly ultra-orthodox community, where, as far as I am aware, the only reason for a non-ultra-orthodox person to be there is to gawp at the curiosities of this insular community.


Then, within a few weeks of this news story, I heard about the increasing practice of defacing  advertisements in Jerusalem that featured women. This vandalism has led some advertising agencies and their clients towards self-censorship - cropping women out of photos (Honnigman) or excluding them altogether (the campaign for organ donors), but also to an increasingly loud female voice condemning this development. Jerusalem's Mayor Nir Barakat has condemned the vandalism and encouraged the police to deal with incidents that arise, whilst also firing Rachel Azaria, a Jerusalem councilwoman who had appealed to the Supreme Court against the Mea Shearim barrier. This strangely contradictory behaviour looked to all and sundry as Barakat capitulating to ultra-orthodox pressure (see article). They are, after all an increasing proportion of the population, and in Jerusalem they are a significant constituency in municipal elections.

The most recent, and highly publicised example of gender segregation 'crossing the line' is the ongoing bus saga. There have been a number of reports of women being pressured into sitting at the back of public buses that serve ultra-orthodox areas. The gender segregation on certain lines is not news, in the sense that it is not new, but in the current climate in which gender segregation has spread beyond the buses, it has become newsworthy. Tanya Rosenblit's experience has been widely read online and even the Daily Mail here in the UK has joined in, stating that "Ultra-Orthodox Jews, who make up about 10 percent of Israel's population of 7.6 million, have become increasingly aggressive in their efforts to impose their norms in public spaces."

Indeed, the bus issue has become a key issue, even Bibi has stated that "Fringe groups must not be allowed to tear apart our common denominator. We must preserve public space as open and free for all citizens of Israel." (longer article here) 

It seems that even within the ultra-orthodox community, opinion is divided as to whether such gender separation needs to be enforced. I've read a number of talkbacks where representatives of the 'silent majority' defend ultra-orthodoxy in general. I'm also aware that within the ultra-orthodox community it is often the strictest interpretation that goes unchallenged. However, this issue will not go away and divisions between the ultra-orthodox, religious and secular Israelis are only going to widen if the 'silent majority' remains silent.

I don't have a solution. Perhaps the private bus line suggested by a group of ultra-orthodox millionaires is the answer (full article), although this would still be considered 'public space'. However, isn't a synagogue also  public space? No-one questions the separation of men and women there. I hope a live and let live solution can be found where neither the secular or religious impose their rules on each other. However, I must include the caveat that religious women (those within the silent majority perhaps?) themselves shouldn't feel coerced or forced into behaviour with which they disagree or which makes them feel isolated.

er... hang on... isn't THIS gender segregation in a public place???

Goodness, that's a long post. I am now going to watch the rather excellent Simon Sebag-Montifiore's programme on the history of Jerusalem on BBC4. There's been some excellent programming on the BBC about Jerusalem recently. In addition to this history series, I very much enjoyed Yotam Ottolenghi's 'Jerusalem on a Plate' - next time I will post some positive, happy news about that special city.

 

 

Preferential treatment ... awesome (!)

So we are now in the Days of Awe, the ten day period between Rosh Hashannah and Yom Kippur when we Jews are supposed to, among other things, request forgiveness from those we feel we have wronged. Now, I am by no means a religious Jew - I observe little and break many commandments - but I am Jewish enough to have what I believe to be the correct interpretation of this practice.

Now, call me a cynic, but I believe that if you are sincere in asking forgiveness for a wrong done unto another person, you should demonstrate that by having the courage to face that person and admit your wrongdoing. That is, surely, the hardest element of apology and one that would be appreciated by the person to whom you are apologising, thus aiding the process of them agreeing to forgive you. The bizarre (in my view) Haredi practice of kaparot serves to deflect attention from the sin, and means that the sinner (for we are all sinners) tends not to have to be so introspective about his or her (but probably his, I would guess - do women perform kaparot?) sins as the chicken-spinning (I mean really, who came up with this idea??) serves as a sin-catcher for those sins we cannot remember.

super flying chicken

So apologising has definitely been in the news in Israel lately. What with the apology/admission to Egypt regarding the killing of Egyptian soldiers, who may or may not have been aiding the suspected attackers in the south of Israel last month. And the non-apology to Turkey for the killing of the 9 Turkish citizens aboard the Mavi Marmara, who may or may not have been intending to provoke just such a reaction from the IDF paratroopers who were sent to stop them breaking the siege on Gaza/defend Israel's sovereignty (it all depends on your perspective). I wonder if Bibi is doing any introspective thinking these days? For all the posturing of Erdogan in his not-so-hidden intentions of becoming the major player in the region, surely an apology, even if worded as "collateral damage" -  literally to keep the peace - could have been forthcoming from Israel? Unfortunately, with the official line being that the siege on Gaza is necessary for Israeli security, an apology for the deaths of those who came with violent intentions to breach that security will be a long time coming.

In more recent news has been, of course, the Palestinian bid for UN recognition of statehood. This has been opposed by the Israeli government primarily on the grounds that as a unilateral move by the Palestinians, it threatens Israeli security (again). The bid is also based on UN Resolution 181 (also known as the 1947 UN Partition Plan) and as such, these borders, if recognised, would consequently reduce Israeli territory. Significantly.

Israel's staunch ally, the USA, has also opposed the unilateral nature of the Palestinian bid and threatened to use its veto at the Security Council if necessary. At this point it may be worthwhile to remember two things. Firstly, Obama made many grand statements at the beginning of his term about reaching a final settlement in this conflict and establishing a long-overdue Palestinian state. Secondly, that the same USA is supposed to be an even-handed player in Middle East negotiations.

Recent events show both of these to be untrue. The threat of veto actually pales in comparison to the actual withdrawal, since August, of American aid  "designated for a wide range of humanitarian, educational and state capacity building projects" in the Palestinian Authority- apparently because of Abbas's intransigence in the face of American pressure to withdraw the statehood bid, as well as the (failed) attempt of Fatah and Hamas to reconcile their differences.

If these things are punishable inasmuch as they work against the US Administration's vision of how a peace agreement and Palestinian state should be achieved, then what of the Israeli government's continued (unilateral) expansion and development of settlements in occupied territory? Surely this is worth censure? or, dare I say, even punishment? Even Bush Snr had the balls to withold loan guarantees from Shamir's government because he saw that the money was paying for settlements that would continue to prevent peace being made (never mind the loud message of "fuck you" it sent to the Palestinians and the world). As Adam Keller points out in his excellent article, America's days as key Middle East negotiator are surely numbererd, in no small part because of the blind eye they turn to Israel's activity in the territories. What is needed is a strong ally - one who, as a true friend, isn't afraid to tell Israel that what she is doing is manifestly against her own interests.

Come on Obama, don't be a chicken.

 

at a glance

a moment to compare yesterday's speeches...

 

the big day

So tomorrow is almost here. The big day when the Palestinians will make their bid for statehood to be recognised by the UN General Assembly and Security Council. The Israeli newspapers are full of the machinations that are going on, seemingly endlessly, behind the scenes. With Bibi, Peres and Ron Prosor each doing their bit to persuade, convince and soothe a whole range of foreign dignitaries not to support the Palestinian bid. In his article in Ha'Aretz today, Adnan Primor weighs up the moral decision Israel is asking the European nations to make against the moral decision the Palestinians are pinning their hopes upon. Over at Ynet, Bibi is doing his best to stir up fear and distrust, although as he is talking to Likud it seems like he is preaching to the converted on this one.

Tomorrow is also the UN International Day of Peace. This event "Provides an opportunity for individuals, organisations and nations to create practical acts of peace on a shared date" - and as such I think would provide the perfect, ideal opportunity for Israel to make the ultimate move towards peace in the region: by recognising the Palestinian right to self-determination and voting in favour of the statehood bid.

*sigh* I should wake up from my dream now...

So in honour of the Day of Peace that tomorrow hopefully will be, I would like to share two things with you.

Firstly, a lovely lady I have befriended on Facebook, Zsuzsi Klara Schindler. She has published a note on her page which sincerely and eloquently asks for a peaceful response to whatever happens at the UN. I really couldn't have put it better myself so I am pleased that she has agreed to let me reproduce her thoughts here on my blog:

 Oh my dear friends; tomorrow begins the week when things will change the situation here and no one knows really knows what is going to change from zero to much; I have one wish to all my Jewish Israeli, Christian and Muslim Israeli and Palestinian friends; please write and tell all the people you know to do all we all can to avoid violence even when a crazy terrorist on either side might want to be the match to put the whole area on fire. Please let us ignore them and let us not give them the power to decide whats going on here, its so easy to ruin all and being at war, again, as usual. Please let us show the world that we can handle these changes like grown ups, with confidence,trust and patience. Thank you all my beloved friends.Salam, Shalom, peace.

Zsuzsi is a peace worker who has plenty of experience in trying (and succeeding!) in bringing Jewish and Arab Israelis together. She knows that it is possible to see the human in people beyond the labels we assign to each other and the fear, distrust and even hatred this can engender. The message of taking back the peace process from those who would use violence has more value than I can put into words. She did this for me and I can only say thank you.

Secondly is perhaps the most surprising thing I have come across in all the many hours I have been reading articles and watching videos about 'ha matsav' - the situation - in Israel. 

Unfortunately I cannot embed the video but I couldn't recommend anything more than for you to take 20 minutes out of your day to watch this astounding documentary - Settlers for Peace -  about settlers and Palestinians working together to further mutual understanding, trust and coexistence. It's amazing. It took my breath away - not only at how these people are truly dealing with the issues that face them in order to be able to leave a better future for their children but just at how brave these people are. On the most basic level of visiting each other in their homes (although the settlers are unable to invite their Palestinian friends to their homes because of the "fear" of their neighbours) I have nothing but admiration for them. And I NEVER thought I would write that about settlers!

co-existence IS possible

 I for one hope that the UN General Assembly passes the resolution that the PA submits tomorrow (taking it as read that the USA will use its veto). It seems as though the majority of international representatives would support the Palestinian bid, even if it fails at the Security Council.  Israel's assertion that taking a unilateral step like this shows that the PA isn't a true partner for peace - nonetheless she continues to unilaterally develop the settlements. Israel has to wake up and realise that she cannot stall on the peace process for ever - and if she wants a true partner for peace then it should be as an equal.

Until tomorrow....

 

So proud

Thanks to @Elizrael for tweeting this link - it's heartening to see Israelis making a stand for peace. Even though certain elements want to escalate the situation so that it is beyond redemption, we have to push hard for peace.

כל הכבוד חברים

The pro-peace demonstrators at the j14 rally that went ahead last night are chanting "We want to live in respect, in Gaza and in Ashdod" and "The people demand a cease-fire" - as you can see, not everyone in the crowd had the same sentiments.

  

Here we go again...

So sad.

This morning gunmen opened fire on a bus, a private car and a couple of other vehicles in the south of Israel. Apparently, there had been some intelligence (from Jordan?) that something was going to happen in the south, and we know that the last month or so has seen a number of rockets landing in that region. Luckily, due to the sparse population there, these rockets caused little damage. But they were nonetheless a sign that things were stirring.

And so 7 Israelis are dead and many more injured. Some soldiers going on weekend leave, others civilians.

So now the ball is in Israel's court - what should she do? What will she do? Do we even need to ask this question?

Of course Israel has the right to defend herself, but attacking Gaza (as has already happened as I write this post) hasn't worked to defend Israel up until now. As Albert Einstein said, "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

Yossi Gurvitz gives an excellent explanation of why Israel shouldn't attack Gaza on +972 Magazine.

Just as Palestinian (PRC? jihadist??) attacks on Israel do little to advance the Palestinian cause, Israeli revenge attacks do little to secure Israel. In both cases the only ones to benefit are those who want to stick obstinately to their guns (no pun intended) instead of moving forward towards a resolution. In Gaza, Hamas can say they are fighting the Zionist enemy and working to liberate the land, unlike Fatah. Of course Hamas knows Israel's likely response and so they can point to Israel and say "Look, we told you so! The evil Zionists want to kill all Palestinians!" Of course, Israel does herself no favours by playing directly into the hands of Hamas by doing exactly what Hamas wants: getting provoked and responding on a scale that dwarfs whatever attack she has recently suffered. Currently there is an additional bonus for the Israeli government enacting a large-scale response in that it would be a distraction from the j14 demonstrations.


I don't have an answer, but I do know that the ordinary people of Israel or Palestine gain nothing from this cycle of violence.

 

Wise words

From someone who really knows...

"We need to come to terms with our neighbours. 

That is a fundamental component of our national security."

Many thanks to Richard at Blog Zahav for posting this originally.

 

a ray of hope...

Well, I have been challenged this week to find some good news. Firstly by @Bassem_Sabry on Twitter and secondly by cousin Shirley in Israel. Well I like a challenge so I trawled the net and came up with a couple of good ones.

Firstly, I came across a great website, www.israel21c.org which looks at scientific and technological developments taking place in Israel now. Pythagoras Window, an Israeli company, has developed a new solar window that can generate power, reduce energy consumption and let in daylight, "promising a green revolution to the construction industry" according to Daniel Ben Tal's article.

my ray of hope 

Of course, the construction industry has been in the forefront of many Israeli minds of late, with hundreds of thousands of people demonstrating, primarily against the high cost of property in Israel, but also against the high cost of living in general. I was aware of the disparity between most people's wages and prices but the scale of the protests that began in Tel Aviv - on Rothschild Boulevard of all places - and slowly spread to Kiryat Shmona in the north and Beersheva in the south, have been staggering. It has been illuminating reading the news reports and tweets coming from Israel, and reassuring that Israelis are not as politically apathetic as was beginning to fear they had become. It was also good to see news that wasn't centred on the conflict, even though that issue has also crept in, and to see Jews and Arabs protesting together about the socio-economic issues that unite them as Israelis.

"Equality for all" (photo courtesy of Elizabeth Tsurkov)

Spurred on by this good news, I continued to socially network. I haven't spent this long in front of the computer since Championship Manager ate away at my fourth year at uni when I should've been researching the impact of Rabin's assassination.....


So I wanted to share with you some of the amazing organisations who are working in Israel/Palestine/Occupied Territories and beyond to encourage equality, opportunity, understanding and trust between people in that region.

Firstly, I came across YaLa-Young Leaders يالا-يا قادة الشباب יאללה-מנהיגים צעירים
(hey I can copy & paste Arabic & Hebrew into the blog! - another technological breakthrough!) a   young leader's movement which has been created to give the young generation (aged 15-30) in the Middle East a leading voice in shaping their future and destiny. See their facebook page and website for information and ways you can support them. I then came across Khalas, a Facebook page with the aim of helping to build a strong foundation of peace among people at the most fundamental level - that of friendship through a handshake. Like me, Khalas believes that "only individuals, like you and I, can create a change in the government and not the opposite ... that if you shake someone’s hand you are most likely to view him as your friend and not your enemy. There are so many organizations that try to do amazing things, however a real peace needs a strong foundation! To achieve a real peace we need to start from the basics"

Khalas has enabled me to find out about many other projects and organisations that exist online and in real time and space (!) that have, over the past week, rebuilt my hope in what I was beginning to think was a hopeless situation in Israel.  I now know there is an increasingly strong community of people from many backgrounds, who want to build a viable future for themselves, their children and grandchildren, and for whom this is more important than political or religious ideology. 


The two organisations that have stood out to me most from this have been Kulanana and JustVision. Each of these groups are fulfilling an increasingly important role in a media that is obsessed with the negative news of the conflict (of which there is plenty, of that there is no doubt).


Kulanana is focused on social cohesion within Israel, between the disparate ethnic and linguistic groups that make up Israeli society. Their aims for 2011 are outlined in the video below:

JustVision is an organisation that aims to raise the profile of the positive examples of co-existence, peaceful trust-building and co-operation between Israelis and Palestinians that are too often overlooked by the media. I am looking forward to learning more about the work of these organisations and hope to be able to contribute more directly to their efforts by the time I am living in Israel. For now though, I will do what I can, and that is blog, and tell you and hope that you too spread the word and support these wonderful organisations and individuals in their pursuit of a peaceful future. In the words of Robi Damelin (http://www.justvision.org/encounterpoint): 

“There’s no pro-Israeli or pro-Palestinian. There’s pro-solution.”   

Independent thinking

As Yom HaZikaron draws to a close and Yom Hatzmaut begins, I got to thinking ... and surfing. I have had a few contrasting experiences and read a range of opinions on both of these issues over the last few days.

Peace and independence - is it really so hard to have both...?

Firstly was the discussion-turned-confrontation with our old friends the Brighton branch of the 'Boycott Israel' campaign. After a perfectly lovely morning at the Brighton Festival Children's Parade and lunch at Wagamama's, we passed their table-and-flag setup outside Churchill Square. Now I don't always talk to these people: sometimes I get very defensive (moi??) and angry and I don't like to lose my cool. But on Saturday I thought 'bugger it' and started talking to an old guy who was handing out 'Boycott Israel' flyers. I started by asking him whether the group were encouraging people to boycott all represive regimes in the Middle East or just Israel (I like rhetorical questions). Credit where it's due, the old man admitted that many other regimes in the region are pretty dastardly (ya don't say...?) but no, only Israel was the target of this boycott. Interestingly he said that this was because Israel sold more goods to the west than other Middle Eastern states and I argued that this wasn't the case (petrol, dates, petrol oh, and petrol???). I also told him I thought they were only boycotting the Israeli goods that were easy to boycott i.e. the fruit and Dead Sea products on their flyers - I asked him if the group used the Internet (they do) and asked why they weren'y boycotting the Israeli processor technology (no answer) - I'm sure they weren't boycotting Israeli medical treatments either...

Anyhow, we remained in good humour and polite, which was nice, even though his lack of general knowledge and myth-accepted-as-fact was bewildering. He thought that Israel and Jews denied the suffering of the Roma during the Holocaust (I asked him if he'd ever been to Yad Vashem, of course he hadn't) and he seemed to think that "his idea" of a peace and reconciliation-type of commission would benefit the conflict (I informed him such groups - such as Combatants for Peace - already exist). In the end we realised we weren't about to convert the other and agreed to differ, although I hope he learned something from me... ;)

Then it got dirty...

I picked up a longer leaflet entitled 'The Basic Facts' and was surprised to read that in 1948-9 Israel forcibly exiled and massacred hundreds of thousands of Palestinians (I am paraphrasing because I don't have a copy of the leaflet with me) Now, I am not denying that many Palestinians were forced from their homes and forbidden to return in the 1948-9 war. But NOWHERE in the leaflet was a war mentioned. In fact to anyone who knew little about the conflict, on reading the 'basic facts' it would seem that there was no war in 1948-9 but instead a series of unprovoked acts of ethnic cleansing of Palestinians by Israeli terrorist forces. So I asked one woman who was distributing the leaflets why they thought it was acceptable to omit the quite important fact that the day after Israel declared independence, 5 Arab states invaded and a war was fought, which Israel subsequently won.

I don't think she understood my question, because she was talking about Jewish terrorists who were active before 1948 (OK, but doesn't answer the question) how the Zionists forced the Balfour Declaration (again, not an answer and also astoundingly inaccurate from a historical perspective). I asked her again and she said something about there 'being no Arab states at this time because they weren't really independent' - again I'm paraphrasing but I can't think where this woman gets her information from... She asked if I had heard of the Israeli historian Ilan Pappe (of course, I told her, I have an MA in Israeli Studies from UCL) and the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. I repeated that I was not contesting what is in the leaflet, just what has been left out, and that I thought the leaflet was overtly one-sided to the point of warping history to suit a message. At this point, with the woman shouting (not sure why... she was making little sense regardless of her volume, and she really wasn't listening to me) and Mark beginning to shout, and me doing a 'calm down, calm down!' Harry Enfield Scouser-type of thing, we decided to walk away... although I would have liked to continue our  debate to see if she would ever answer my question.........

Indeed, 1948 definitely gets the temperatures rising - you only have to look at the comments on Ha'Aretz's Facebook page to see how quickly all reason flees from people when commenting on this subject. And how quickly vitriol and hatred appears.

Other interesting, even seemingly paradoxical responses to today's and yesterday's commemorations/celebrations include: Gilad Shalit's brother shouting out at the Memorial Ceremony on Har Herzl and being forcibly removed as a result and Motti Fogel's (brother of Udi, murdered with most of his family at Itamar) speech at the Combatants for Peace parallel ceremony.

However, the following blog has made me laugh out loud more than once - Benji Lovitt strikes gold with his 63 things I love about Israel 

Enjoy! and Hag Sameach!

xxx

 

May the 4th be with you...

Ok, so I haven't just written this post so I can use that title - although I do like it a lot... (and recommend this link in celebration: The Force Volkswagen ad)

So much has been happening, in the world and in my own life, that each time I thought about blogging it got a bit overwhelming. So I thought I'd do what some say I do best: make a list...

The World List:

1. Arab Spring - I've blogged on Egypt but since then Libya and Syria, Bahrain and Yemen have also sprung... it's been exasperating watching Iraq mark II happen in Libya and bugger all happen in Syria as far as international responses have been concerned. Stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea and feeling helpless as all we do is watch and read...
2. Following on from this, if you only read one other blog, please read this one - A Gay Girl In Damascus - that I found via Rachel Shabi on Twitter. It's brilliantly written and has given me an incredible insight into current events in Syria.
3. Hamas-Fatah reconciliation - hopefully a good thing, at least for the Palestinian people. Israel's typical reaction draws a thin veil over her own unwillingness to move any peace process forward (doesn't the term 'peace process' sound terribly outdated now??)
4. Death of Bin Laden - a little surreal still, this one. I doubt it's going to make much difference to Islamic fundamentalism or the West's attitude towards the Middle East, which, after all, is largely based on its resources rather than its ideologies...

OK, so that's enough serious world stuff, this blog's been getting ever so political of late and so I want to bring it back tothe personal, which is what I intended it to be from the start.

My Own Life List:

1. We just got back from another lovely family holiday in Israel. I have managed to get Mark to seriously aim for August 2012 for the big Aliyah date. We'll see...
2. We nearly bought, then didn't nearly buy, then did nearly buy an off-plan property in Mazkeret Batya. Sof ha sippur, we aren't buying it (it's been a roller-coaster ride folks) but we have decided that we want to live in Mazkeret Batya, and having a particular place to aim for is great motivation.
3. MY SISTER IS PREGNANT!!!!!!!! - sorry, did I forget to mention that?? we are all very excited, especially now that she has managed to get her head out of the toilet/sick bucket, most of the time....

3 happy ladies in Israel - 2 happy cos they're in Israel, 1 happy cos she's not puking

I'm sure there's other stuff I've forgotten, but that's for another post. 


   

the state we're in...

Please take the time to look at this short film, put together by Peace Now, explaining in the simplest terms possible why we need a two state solution - and SOON.

A fundaMENTAL similarty?

When I originally posted Lessons mi Mitzraim I hadn't seen this article - but it seems that great minds think alike!

In an interesting article, Anshel Pfeffer writes:

"Of course there is a world of difference between the Islamist and the Israeli ultra-orthodox religious-right establishment, but they have one trait in common, and that is fundamentalism. They share a firm and unshakeable belief that in every instance, their religious code is supreme over all man-made legal systems, especially democracy. In other words, sharia or halakha trumps every other consideration."

Read the full article here.

Glass houses and stones (no pun intended...) all over again...

Promise?

So last Thursday was Louis Theroux meets the extremist Zionists, tonight is the first instalment of The Promise - which promises to be controversial as hell as well as apparently brilliant. Israel seems to be a popular topic on TV right now...


Having enjoyed many a Louis Theroux gawp-fest of weird and wacky individuals (most notably militia men in the USA, nutty Christians in the USA and Jimmy Saville in Roundhay Park) I anticipated some interesting perspective on the ultra Zionists, but was a little disappointed to be honest. Although Louis got into some interesting situations (the unrest in Silwan, a guided tour of a deserted Jewish 'sterile zone' in Hebron) he didn't (couldn't?) push some of the most pertinent points. He had a little go with an Australian guy who helps settlers buy properties in particularly sensitive Arab areas, but it struck me that these people are so media savvy, they know how to deal with and deflect such questions. The extremists came across as, well, extreme - but we knew that about them already didn't we?

is the promise of eye candy???? (no, probably not...)

Tonight's televisual offering promises (sorry) to be quite different. As a drama that jumps around in time between 1948 and 2001 and is the result of eleven years' research, The Promise has set the bar pretty high for itself. I suspect that many people will go in with preconceptions, not only about the conflict, but also about how it will be portrayed by Peter Kosminsky. I expect I will have my own preconceptions, and I hope to be challenged as well as entertained (?) by this programme. I'll be letting you  know...


Watch this space, but in the meantime, I think you should also watch The Promise...

A promise is a cloud; fulfillment is rain.  ~Arabian Proverb

Promise little and do much.  ~Hebrew Proverb

 
 

Democracy in action (cont. from previous post)

I was reading Ha'aretz today and saw that there's been a fair controversy about the death of Jawaher Abu Rahma. Israel has accused the PA of propagandising the story for the sake of another martyr yet the IDF's 'official explanation' of Abu Rahma's death has endured a number of forms. It seems that it is most likely that she died from some sort of allergic reaction to the tear gas, but I am not sure whether this is really the most important point any more. For me, Israel's official, ongoing response to the unravelling events (death of a young Palestinian woman, ongoing demonstrations in the West Bank and then in Tel Aviv) is the saddest thing as it becomes ever more defensive and aggressive.

My sadness is that we begin another year when the cycle of violence continues to revolve and hateful rhetoric continues to increase. Another young generation of Palestinians grow up with hatred towards Israelis and and another young generation of Israelis grow up in an increasingly intolerant and even racist society. And that's before they get the chance to face each other down at demonstrations and checkpoints.

A more recent story grabbing the headlines today was the parliamentary panel, established at the suggestion of Yisrael Beiteinu and supported by a majority of MKs, to examine the funding sources of certain left-wing and/or human rights groups in Israel. These groups have been accused of 'delegitimising the IDF' and the stated aim of the panel is to decide whether these groups are being supported by 'other groups with known links to terrorism'. I'm not sure who gets to decide what constitutes 'delegitimising the IDF' or whether the government plans to examine the negative effects of right-wing activities on the perceived 'legitimacy' of either the IDF or Israel but I can bet that Avigdor Lieberman won't be opening up his own party's books any time soon....

Spot the one who will always be remembered for pushing democracy forward....

"A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on programs of military defence than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death" 

Martin Luther King (Sunday sermon, the Sunday before his assassination 1968)

Happy New Year? Same sad old story...?

Bi'ilin is an Arab village in the West Bank, near the Israeli settlement of Modi'in Illit (not to be confused with Modi'in, the main city which is inside the Green Line). Since the security fence in that area closed off close to 60% of Bi'ilin's land, weekly demonstrations have been held every Friday. The Bi'ilin residents are supported by some international activists and now, since the unfortunate death of Jawaher Abu Rahma, a 36 year old resident of Bi'ilin, I am pleased to say that Israelis are also protesting against this government's and the army's tactics against protests in the Occupied Territories.






The video above was taken at the Tel Aviv demonstration on the 1st January 2011, opposite the military base at HaKirya, protesting the death of Jawaher Abu Rahma, caused by teargas inhaled at Bil'in the previous day. The slightly heavy handed approach of those policing the demonstration is nothing compared to the regular use of force and tear gas when demonstrations take place at villages or checkpoints in the West Bank.

I would just like to say that it makes me very proud to see hundreds of Israelis protesting the actions of the government and army that is there to protect them. The thing that makes me saddest is the fact that hundreds simply isn't enough. Where are all the thousands upon thousands of Israelis who mourned Rabin? Where are all the Israelis who want peace??

Come on Israel! Can 2011 be a year when Israelis mobilise for peace?

to be continued...

also worth a read - Lisa Goldman's article on +972

Give me strength...

I even went for a run this morning!

Energy seems to have been the theme of the last few days, what with me and Mark both running around like a couple of headless chickens after Roni. I honestly don't know where she gets her energy from.

However, 'energy' is 'Meretz' in Hebrew, and Meretz is of course the liberal, dovish left-wing political party in Israel. I have always thought that when I made aliyah I would be voting for Meretz. Of course I first started to think about making aliyah in the days when Meretz had influence in government. After all, when I first considered aliyah in the 1990s, my (distant) cousin and Meretz founder Shulamit Aloni had only fairly recently stepped down from her post as Education Minister in Rabin's government. Fifteen-odd years and an intifada later and things are vastly different today. Meretz is increasingly sidelined in Israeli politics and with it the voice of the left wing, peaceloving Israelis.

Until, it seems, the other night when driving into Tel Aviv, Mark and I were wondering why the traffic was so heavy. Of course, heavy traffic is not strange for Tel Aviv, even on a Shabbat evening, so perhaps we shouldn't have bothered wondering.... Anyway, out wonderings were soon answered as we drove down Kaplan St we saw a procession of a few thousand people, demonstrating against a new policy that has recently been backed by the governmnet: the notion that all Arab- and non-Jewish Israeli citizens should pledge allegiance to Israel as a Jewish state.

I am proud to report to you that democracy is alive and well in Israel as demonstrators shouted "Lieberman, Lieberman, gam facist ve gam gizan!" ("Lieberman, Lieberman, a facist and a racist!") and held placards declaring that "Jews and Arabs will not be enemies!"


I am not so naive as to think that this demonstration will reverse the political tide whereby Israel is moving ever more to the right, but I am so relieved that people are noticing this disturbing pattern and mobilising and doing something about it. A recent Ha'aretz article I read in this weekend's Herald Tribune supplement bemoaned the apathy of modern liberal 'Tel Avivi types' who care more about what's happening in their TV soaps than in the very real political life of Israel. I was so happy to find that there are Israelis who are truly awake to what's happening in their own lives, and acting to do something about it. I hope that I will become one of them.




PS I was going to leave it there but when browsing for coverage of this demonstration, it is front page in Haaretz, but nowhere to be found on the BBC website, or on The Guardian or Telegraph websites, who are just covering the actions of the settlers.... just an interesting thought, I thought.......


   

You wanna peace of me???

Well, today is the first day of the restarted peace talks between Israel and the PA in Washington. So, in the spirit of peace, what do I see on the headlines at Ha'Aretz and Jerusalem Online? That's right (I paraphrase) "Hamas claims responsibility for the shooting of 4 Israelis in the West Bank". It made me think...

I was transported back to the mid-late 90s when I was studying in Jerusalem and Bibi was PM, having won the previous election on his 'Peace with Security' ticket. I arrived in August 1997 just a few weeks after the double suicide bombing in Mahane Yehuda, and just a few weeks before the triple Ben Yehuda Street bombing. Yes I kow what you're thinking - 'Good peace with security Bibi, thanks'. Well... Bibi is PM again and I know that this attack is not necessarily comparable to the bombings of 1997 in target or scale... but the motivation - to derail the peace process - is doubtlessly the same.

The question is... will Bibi and Israel play into the hands of those who use violence to destroy hopes for peace?

The Guardian Online is running a story today that the setllers will defy the government's freeze on settlement building from 6pm tonight. And so the cycle continues: fanatics on one side provoke a fanatical response from fanatics on the other side...

Will the Israeli government and PA take the necessary steps to control and contain the fanaticism on their own side? Will there be enough (any?) trust between them to allow each to 'look after its own' (fanatics)? Both nations need peace and security - from the fanatics within as much as the fanatics without.

The optimist in me prays that Bibi won't use this as an excuse to fall back on the rhetoric of  'the Palestinians don't want peace' and that any settlers who defy the building freeze will be arrested and dealt with by the judicial process. The realist in me thinks that that's exactly what will happen - or at least that a blind eye will be turned to any breach of the building freeze.

According to Ha'Aretz, the PA has spent a great deal of effort trying to find who perpetrated the attack on Tuesday evening. Of course it is in the best interests of the PA to punish Hamas and keep the latest installment of the peace process going... I just hope that Bibi realises it's in Israel's best interests to stay in the process as well.

Fingers crossed then.

hmmm... who do you think he's imagining in his grasp...?

For Gilad

Today is Gilad Shalit's 24th birthday.

He has been held as a hostage in the Gaza Strip since 2006, when he was kidnapped from Israeli territory during a cross border raid.

Gilad Shalit, aged 20, just before his capture in 2006

Although there have been repeated promises made by the Israeli government to work towards freeing Gilad, no significant progress has been made since Hamas released the video of him in October 2009. CNN, YNet and other news outlets have been reporting that pressure is increasing on PM Netanyahu to make a deal with Hamas that would see Shalit released. I sometimes wonder what Gilad himself would think of the efforts that have been made: firstly the Gaza incursion that did Israel no international favours and failed to get him released, and secondly the negotiations over prisoner swaps - the Israeli government being expected to release 1,000 or so Palestinians in return for Gilad's own release.

I am hopeful of his release inasmuch as is it surely the right thing to do and demonstrates a willingness on behalf of the Israeli government to take bold steps towards finding an equitable solution to the many issues that exist between Israel and the Palestinians. However, with Netanyahu as PM I find it difficult to believe he would go through with releasing the numbers of prisoners it would take to enusre Gilad comes home.

Please click here to find out what you can do to help raise awareness of Gilad's plight and help pressure politicans to push for his release.

Thank you.

Heading for the good life...?

It's nice to know that Newsweek has named Israel as the 22nd best country to live in out of 100 countries. They have measured education, health, quality of life, economic dynamism and political environment as the yardsticks by which the countries have been measured. Israel has scored particularly well on Health but what interested me most was the 'Political Environment' rating. Israel came 27th (the UK came 33rd here) and was scored on 'freedom house rating', 'political participation' and 'political stability'.

I will have to remember this the next time I meet a member of the PSC who claims that Israel is an apartheid state. According to the Newsweek research, Israel has a more highly rated electoral process, functioning government (!) rule of law, associative and organisational rights, personal autonomy and individual rights and freedom of expression and belief that our dear old Great Britain.

You can see the research for yourself here

What is left?

Sometimes I think about what I'll miss about the UK once I've made Aliyah. When the Plan began, I would have said pubs. Now I'm (a fair bit) older (and a parent) I will say politeness, people indicating when they're driving and the friends I've made over the years who I will see a lot less often (but hopefully will not, thanks to the wonders of modern technology, lose touch with).

One thing I won't miss is the angry defensiveness I feel every time I see the Palestine Solidarity Campaign people at the stalls they set up in Brighton to 'spread the word' about Gaza (like it's never in the news...) and encourage people to boycott Israeli goods. Personally I buy fruit and veg I don't particularly need in Tesco when I see it's from Israel so I'm not the best person to try to convert to this particular cause. I was at the Brunswick Festival yesterday as Mark was doing spinal screenings for the clinic. It's a small scale, local community event that's been running for almost 30 years and is a really nice couple of days out (even if it's been a showery weekend this year...). Anyway, the PSC folks were there and I paused to read some of their literature about the blockade when a young lady thrust a leaflet into my hand that read 'Boycott Israeli goods'. I asked her if the PSC supported a boycott of Egyptian goods and she gave me a slightly puzzled look that sort of said 'uh oh' and I continued to remind her that Egypt is also blockading Gaza. She didn't have anything to say so I left, muttering to myself (as I am wont) about one sidedness....

Its strange really because I consider myself to be pretty left-wing and dovish when it comes to Israeli poitics, especially peace politics. However, it angers me that groups push such a one-sided agenda in this country. There was a half hour Panorama programme on the Mavi Marmara the other night which was generally very good (even congratulated by Honest Reporting so must've been good! (lol :-)) but still, the Egyptian role in the blockade was not mentioned even once. Maybe my dad was right that I would become more right-wing as I got older. Although I would like to disagree with him, I think that my views on Israel are more right wing here than they would be in Israel. It's probably a sort of defence mechanism for me, protecting my fellow Jews, that would be unneccessary in Israel, where the Jews all argue with each other anyway.

I am generally very proud of the British media, which gives a wide, varied and overall balanced report of the news when taken as a whole: and indeed this is something I will miss when I make aliyah. I will definitely be keeping up with the  British press online. One thing I won't miss is the trendy-anti-Israel rhetoric that's quite common in Brighton - at least when left-wingers protest in Israel, they know what they're protesting about.