During the autumn months of each year, Palestinian olive farmers are getting ready to harvest their olive crops which are the main source of their livelihood. One would expect that this should go smoothly and without any incidents. However, this is far from the case, many Palestinians are attacked by the settlers, and they are harassed during the olive picking season for no reason.
This is appalling and there is no justification for this loutish behaviour by the occupying settlers in the West Bank. Is this the direction that Zionism is moving? As it is those settlers living in the occupied territories are also very right wing Zionists, and the justification for their hooliganism against their Palestinian inhabitants even gets support from their right wing fanatic rabbis who somehow goad them on in violence against the Palestinians.
Today, even the Security Forces turn a blind eye towards settler violence against the Palestinians and even if these hooligans are caught breaking the law (which by the way, is not enforced in the territories the way it is within the green line) they are treated very leniently and are released without much problems.
This was no less evident than during the Sukkot (Tabernacles) holiday when tens of thousands of Israelis accepted the Jewish National Fund's invitation to take their families to visit olive groves across the country. Many participated in the harvest celebrations and heard the tale of the olive tree, the symbol of peace. And as happens every year when the olive harvest begins, dozens of youths set out from the settlements and outposts to the olive groves of the West Bank to confront their Palestinian neighbors. They also threatened human rights activists who volunteered to help the harvesters and beat a photographer who came to document the Sukkot riots.
The Torah - focus of Simchat Torah - the holiday celebrating the conclusion of the annual reading cycle and its renewal, reminds the people of Israel that they were foreigners in Egypt, and prohibits them from exploiting foreigners, orphans or widows. But enlightened religious laws like these are themselves, foreign to the spirit of the hooligans who wear large skullcaps and dare to call themselves Torah-observant Jews.
These “Torah – observant” Jews – the zealous God-fearing religious Zionists have been stealing Palestinian agricultural lands since the 1967 occupation of the West Bank. They also steal the produce of these poor Palestinian farmers. Is there any wonder why the Palestinians are not enamored of Israelis when this type of behaviour is even sanctioned by their rabbis? These rabbis have remained silent and have not even condemned the shocking behaviour of their followers. The occupation has resulted in increased violence and theft by the illegal religious settler fanatics and there is no doubt that this represents the most sinister aspect of Israel’s “humane occupation” as the Zionists call it.Israel has failed in its duty to protect the Palestinian people from the hooliganism of the settlers who move around beating up Palestinians and even attacking the Israeli Security Forces who occasionally come to their (Palestinian) aid from these marauding, bestial settlers. Most of these attacks on Palestinians have occurred in Areas B and C which according to the Oslo Accords have placed the responsibility of security of the Palestinians on Israel’s shoulders. However, if the Palestinians were to behave in this fashion towards these settlers, the Israeli Security Forces would be out there ready to defend them. However because they are not Israelis but Palestinians, they are not entitled to the same protection as the loutish settlers.
Where are Israel’s religious leaders – the Rabbis who are the source of strength for the zealously observant in the occupied Palestinian lands? Silence is golden! By their silence they are also guilty of injustice by the result of the violence against the Palestinian olive harvesters.
Lately there has been an outcry because of the proposed beatification of Pope Pius xii, the reigning pope during the Hitler years. He had shown insensitivity towards the extermination of the Jewish People by Nazi Germany. He preferred to remain silent for the sake of expediency. Surely these rabbis are behaving in the same way by remaining silent while the settlers beat and abuse the Palestinian farmers while they are harvesting their crops, not to mention the theft of their lands and the total anarchy that exists in the southern Hebron Hills, Tel Rumeida and central Samaria. The Israel Police and Shin Bet security service also should not tolerate settlers' shameful attacks on olive harvesters and not only protect the settlers.
It all started on Kol Nidre Night (Eve of Yom Kippur). An Arab driver, JamalTaufik, 48, of Acre's OldCity, drove through a Jewish neighbourhood. He said he recognized the fact that he had made a mistake but denied speculations that he was drunk or was driving with loud music. This incident sparked off the most horrifying violence between Jews and Arab with chants of “Death to the Arabs”. Homes, shops and cars were burned and the whole incident blew out of all proportions.
I wonder if a Jew had driven a car through a Jewish neighbourhood in Akko on Yom Kippur it would have caused the same reaction. The Jewish driver would probably be stoned and that would be the end of the story. There would not have been a rampage against Jewish residents. Many Jews in Akko are racists. They used this opportunity to take the law into their own hands to carry out violence against their Arab neighbours.
JamalTaufik should not have driven through the Jewish neighbourhood on Yom Kippur. He was in the wrong. The reaction to this was also wrong. It further proves how fragile relationships are between Arabs and Jews in Akko and possibly even further afield. Riots would have occurred anyway, but because of the sensitiveness of Yom Kippur, a precedent for violence was created.
The virulence and the hate of Arabs have become pathological amongst many Israeli Jews from poor neighbourhoods
There are many reasons that created the tensions between both Arab and Jewish communities in Akko. In fact, these tensions go beyond Akko and it will only be a matter of time before ignition of a fuse will send both communities down the path of violence.
Israel is a country that is in total denial of discrimination of its Arab citizens. Arab citizens of Israel are identifying more and more with their Palestinian brethren in the occupied territories. Why the surprise? Is Israel giving its Arab citizens a feeling of identity with it? The answer is a very clear “No!” Israel has prided itself on the Jewish character of the state. How can we expect the Arab citizens of Israel to be able to identify with that? They are a non-Jewish minority. They form about 20 % of the Israeli population and this is a considerable minority whose feelings are not considered by the Israeli establishment. At worst, there is a paternalistic attitude in Israel’s relationship with its Arab citizens who, theoretically, have equal rights on a par with Israel’s Jewish citizens. In practice this is not true.
Israel’s Arab citizens, today do not wish to be referred to as Israeli Arabs but rather as Palestinians with Israeli citizenship. I have travelled through Arab villages on Independence Day and I noticed the complete absence of flags and joyous crowds in the street. Is this due to the memory of Al Naqba – the Catastrophe because of Israel’s establishment – which is a tragedy to the Palestinians? After asking them that question, I received an answer in the positive. The problem starts from this point. Israel has not given its Palestinian Arabs a sense of belonging. The national anthem, which supposed to reflect the aspirations of all Israel’s citizens, is very partisan when it comes to Israel’s Palestinian population.
Discrimination against Israel’s Arab population starts at school when children are the most impressionable. Human Rights Watch has published some rather disturbing findings and even though these findings are from the year 2000, nothing much has changed since then.
Nearly one in four of Israel's 1.6 million schoolchildren are educated in a public school system wholly separate from the majority. The children in this parallel school system are Israeli citizens of Palestinian Arab origin. Their schools are a world apart in quality from the public schools serving Israel's majority Jewish population. Often overcrowded and understaffed, poorly built, badly maintained, or simply unavailable, schools for Palestinian Arab children offer fewer facilities and educational opportunities than are offered other Israeli children.
The Israeli government operates two separate school systems, one for Jewish children and one for Palestinian Arab children. Discrimination against Palestinian Arab children colors every aspect of the two systems. Education Ministry authorities have acknowledged that the ministry spends less per student in the Arab system than in the Jewish school system. The majority's schools also receive additional state and state-sponsored private funding for school construction and special programs through other government agencies. The gap is enormous--on every criterion measured by Israeli authorities.
The disparities between the two systems examined in this report are identified in part through a review of official statistics. These findings are tested and complemented by the findings of Human Rights Watch's on-site visits to twenty-six schools in the two systems and our interviews with students, parents, teachers, administrators, and national education authorities.
Palestinian Arab children attend schools with larger classes and fewer teachers than do those in the Jewish school system, with some children having to travel long distances to reach the nearest school. Arab schools also contrast dramatically with the larger system in their frequent lack of basic learning facilities like libraries, computers, science laboratories, and even recreation space. In no Arab school did we see specialized facilities, such as film editing studios or theater rooms that we saw as a sign of excellence in some of the Jewish schools we visited. Palestinian Arab children with disabilities are particularly marginalized, with special education teachers and facilities often unavailable in the system, despite the highly developed special education programs of the Jewish school system.
The widening gap between Israel's Jewish majority and the Arab minority is worrying and poses many questions as to the country's Arab-Jewish coexistence. Nearly every day statements are heard from senior figures concerning the legitimacy of Arab citizens, and unbridled attacks have become routine: MK Israel Hasson of Yisrael Beiteinu talks about a second War of Independence against the Arab citizens in Israel, MK Otniel Schneller of Kadima talks about establishing task forces to examine the possibility of population exchanges and the head of the Shin Bet security service refers to the Arabs as a strategic threat. When statements of this kind are made how can we expect the Arab communities of Israel to love us?
When the Israeli Authorities are apathetic towards improving the relationships between the two peoples the results are plain for all to see. What happened in Akko was a spark and that set up a chain of tragic incidents. It could have been worse. At least, no lives were lost.
A number of areas of discrimination against Israel’s Arab citizens have increased over the past eight years:
Police violence toward Arab citizens: Since the events of October 2000, 34 Arab citizens have been killed by police, the most recent of which was the death of Sabri El Jarajawi, who died of his wounds in July 2008 after being assaulted by police. In most cases, no charges at all, or very lenient ones, have been pressed. The officers involved continue to work in their current positions. None of these officers was dismissed. The complete disregard of the police for the lives of Arab citizens, raises concerns proves that the police have blatantly ignored the findings of the Or Commission, which urged the police to adopt measures to reduce hostility toward Arab citizens.
Interrogation of political and social activists by Shin Bet: We have witnessed a growing trend whereby Arab social and political activists are interrogated by Shin Bet Security Services about lawful social and political activities. This trend limits legitimate public activity, and severely infringes on freedom of expression and thought and the right to political organization.
Planning freeze in Arab communities:Israel's planning authorities continue to disregard the development needs of Arab towns, thereby harming residents' living conditions. Due to lack of official planning procedures, thousands of houses have been built without the necessary permits. The families living in houses built without permits are deprived of basic services by the State such as water, electricity, etc. Similarly, because of the lack of planning, these communities suffer from a shortage of buildings to house public services such as health, education, and culture.
House demolition in Bedouin villages in the Negev: Each year, the State demolishes dozens of houses belonging to Arab-Bedouin families in unrecognized villages in the Negev. Each time this happens, dozens of families, including children, are abandoned, left without shelter. This ongoing policy breaches the Bedouins’ right to dignity, privacy, and security. Moreover, the government has recently stepped up its official policy of removing entire Bedouin communities from their lands in the Negev and moving them to a smaller area, forcing them to give up their traditional lifestyle, culture and economy.
The events of October 2000 were one of the most pronounced manifestations of institutionalized racism and discrimination against the Arab minority in Israel's history. The mindset of the police - the belief that they were facing an enemy rather than Israeli citizens during the demonstrations that day - led to the deaths of 13 people.
In a democratic country, the protection of minority rights is in the interest of both the minority and the majority. Racism and discrimination directed at one minority group undermines democracy and risks affecting other groups and society as a whole.
As we can see, Israel has not done enough to ensure that it is a country for all its citizens irrespective of their race, or religion. The emphasis of Israel being a Jewish state alienates a large non-Jewish minority who do not feel part of the country.
More needs to be done in the sphere of human rights to ensure that the Arab minorities feel part of this country, and not just “temporary sojourners” subjected to the racial whims of the right wing in the Knesset, who wish to follow the late Rehavim Ze’evi’s legacy of transfer of Arabs to the neighbouring Arab countries.
There should be more projects financed by the Ministry of Education to raise the standard of Arab education and encourage integration of Arab pupils and Jewish pupils in the same schools. Both Arab and Jewish pupils could learn together and each side could learn about the other’s culture and history within the school curriculum. This does not have to come at the expense of study of Torah in the case of Jewish pupils or the Koran in the case of Arab pupils.
A common patriotism held by both peoples as does exist in most countries of the world that have a heterogeneous population would go a long way in the promotion of coexistence which ought to start from an early age. Israel should be viewed as a secular state with a Jewish majority rather than a Jewish state. Obviously, the character of Israel is determined by the majority of its people which in this case is Jewish.
When there is a common patriotism held by both Arab and Jewish Israelis, riots would not occur and let us hope that the day will come when this will be achieved for the benefit of all Israel’s citizens. This would also go a long way to establishing peace with our Palestinian neighbours and an eventual open borders policy with cultural and worker exchanges.
As the New Year approaches, it is customary for many of us to take stock of our situation. This is done on a personal level as well as on a national level. Individuals make New Year resolutions which are forgotten once the holiday spirit subsides. Here in Israel, the holiday spirit is very often non-existent because of the stress of family obligations and in the case of many married couples there is an argument as to where the first night will be spent – at which in-laws. The stress of cooking and hosting is the order of the day and for those who are non-observant, it is a trial of nerves.
When we think of what was achieved over the past year from a national point of view, there are many disappointments. The peace process is stumbling and there does not seem to be light at the end of the dark tunnel. The incumbent prime minister, Ehud Olmert, has resigned because of suspicions of corruption contained in envelopes of money that were given to him by a wealthy businessman (or philanthropist – make your choice) Morris Talansky. The new leader of the Kadima Party, Tzippi Livni, has been given the task of forming a new government and replacing Olmert as prime minister. The Likud is waiting in the shadows for an opportunity with Bibi Netanyahu to trip her up so that new elections will be declared which means a certain victory for him and his party.
While we dip our apple slices in honey and eat until satiation, will there be many of us giving a thought to the plight of the Palestinians under the “humane occupation”? The abuse of Palestinians by the settlers in the territories over the years has somehow escaped the attention of the Israeli authorities. This definition of “humane occupation” is a contradiction. NO OCCUPATION IS HUMANE! This is an archaic Zionist concept and the proof of this is the behaviour of the illegal settlers and the soldiers at the check posts towards the Palestinians carrying on their daily lives.
The settler violence against innocent Palestinians is despicable. The perpetrators of this violence are right-wing Zionist Zealots who go about stoning Palestinians and destroying their crops whenever they have a chance. Most of these settlers see the legitimization in violence against Palestinians in their Judaism! The settlers have no right in settling on Palestinian lands under the “humane occupation” and taking the law into their own hands. They build illegal settlements on Palestinian lands and expect the Palestinian population to accept them.
This week we witnessed President Shimon Peres Speech to the UN General Assembly. It was a great speech and filled with much logic and sincerity as to Israel’s desire for peace. History will judge it one of President Peres’ greatest speeches. The Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, gave a speech to the UN General Assembly filled with racism and anybody reading into his address can see that this dictator is no democrat or a man of peace. The world’s attitude towards Ahmadinajad is one of appeasement. He should never have been given a platform to sprout his evil words of hate to the world.
Having mentioned this, I think that we should also view Israel – not only within the context of Shimon Peres’ speech but also in the reality on the ground – the “humane occupation” where there is an abuse of basic human rights of the Palestinians. These abuses do carry on and not much is reported. The crimes of the right-wing Zionist, religious settlers are very often overlooked and they are not held accountable for their harassment of Palestinians. While Israel is overlooking all these incidents and hardly any settler has been charged for these criminal acts, Israel’s position in the world as a “democratic state – a light to the nations” is weakened.
Even during negotiations on an agreement with the Palestinians, there is no freezing of settlements in the occupied territories in practice – only in theory. It is truly Israel’s “phony freeze of settlements” policy. This makes a great dent in Israel’s credibility because it gives the Jewish settlers in occupied lands the right to be above the law and they know it.
The illegal settlers in the territories are cancer in Israeli society. Their behaviour is abominable and their violence spreads even within the green line as witnessed about two days ago when an attempt was made to murder Professor Ze’ev Sternhell. This internationally renowned expert on fascist movements in Europe, a Holocaust survivor whose entire family was murdered by the Nazis, was not another victim of some "wild weed," but of Jewish fascism itself, which continues to extend its roots. The criminals who set the pipe bomb outside Sternhell's home come from the same "garden" as Yona Avrushmi, the murderer of Peace Now's Emil Grunzweig; Baruch Goldstein, responsible for the massacre in the Machpela Cave; Yigal Amir, the murderer of prime minister Yitzhak Rabin; and the West Bank outpost hooligans, who abuse both Palestinians and the security forces. If Yigal Amir was granted the right to couple with his wife in a prison cell and have a child, this adds legitimacy to his ilk that sees him as a hero. Are these values becoming part of Israel? If so it is not surprising that those who oppose the occupation are doing so at their own risk.
"The attempt to hurt Professor Sternhell is the result of the lenient attitude and weakness of the law enforcement agencies towards the extremist and fascist Right and the settlers in the Palestinian occupied territories," said a Communist Party of Israel declaration following the attack. And more: "This thuggish, dangerous act is the result of closing our eyes to the violence against Palestinians, peace and Left activists and all those who disagree with the thugs of the extremist Right. Don't talk to us about 'fringe groups,' this is a growing phenomenon in the Right and the police must take care of it". It is dreaming if we expect the police to take care of these targeted actions aimed at those opposing the occupation and coexistence with our Palestinian neighbours.
Fliers were found in the streets near Sternhell's home promising a reward of 1.1 million shekels to anyone who kills a member of Peace Now. "The time has come for a state according to the Jewish Law in Judea and Samaria! The time has come for the Kingdom of Judea!" declared the fliers. This is how the settlers think and those on the right-wing spectrum of Israeli politics who condemn this Jewish terrorism really have the same ideology in soft serve.
If the occupation remains legitimate as it does today, all those who oppose it and wish to have peace with the Palestinians are on the firing line of the right-wing extremists. This endangers Israel’s democracy and must be condemned.
As Rosh Hashanah approaches, we need to reaffirm our belief in peace and coexistence with our Palestinian neighbours. We must condemn the settler movement that stones Palestinians and usurps their lands. Only if we do this can we eat our apples dipped in honey with satisfaction and with hope for a better world for all in the coming year?
On first observation, one would say that the two are not connected at all. However on examining this closer, there is more that meets the eye than what can be taken at face value. An Israeli-Arab friend was discussing this with me and I realized that what he said rang a chord with my way of thinking for whatever it is worth. Those who are involved in hit men operations on various crime families were more than likely also involved in cruel raids in Palestinian homes and being quick with the trigger.
They know how to break into Palestinian homes and kick Palestinian children out of beds in the middle of the night and conduct searches. Now they have been demobilized from the security forces. They are hired as hit men for the warring crime gangs in Netanya, Lod, Bat Yam, Jerusalem and other areas where opposing crime family syndicates are active.
The crime syndicates of Israel and those who support the continued occupation have one thing in common and that is lack of sensitivity for the human condition and an ambitious desire out of greed to increase their influence and extort others to tow their line. There is a number of opposing crime families and the police are only beginning to scratch the surface of the problem. Some examples of crime families cartels are: Abutbul, Alperon, Abergil and Ze’ev Rosenstein (who is at present serving a sentence for illegal drug trafficking). In the territories, it is the greed of settlers taking away Palestinian lands and building settlements in their place. This is done by stealth. Israel discusses peace with the Palestinians while at the same time a phony freeze on building new settlements is declared. This does not do much for Israel’s credibility in negotiating with the Palestinian leadership. If many Knesset members are corrupt and dishonest, how can we expect them to be honest when negotiating with the Palestinian leadership?
The moment one closes one’s eyes to the Palestinian side and justifies all kinds of draconian measures against the Palestinians in the name of security, then the abuse will land up in Israel as well under the control of lawless crime syndicates of various shapes and sizes. It is a part of the deterioration of Israeli society into indifference when it comes to injustices even if it is directed towards their own.
As if this is not enough, many members of the Knesset have also fallen foul of the law on suspected bribery and corruption charges. Head of this list is Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.This is all part of a general deterioration in Israeli society because of a number of factors.
Meanwhile, Olmert’s Kadima held primaries and Tzippi Livne, the Foreign Minister - a rather mediocre MK with a clean record (you do not have to be great to succeed Olmert; you just need a clean record untainted by suspicions of crime and corruption not to mention toadying with wealthy people who hand out money in envelopes).
Under these circumstances, Israel has no leaders. The parties in the coalition have not resigned because of the various cartels of power that has become very much a part of the ruling Kadima coalition. Apart from threats of breaking up the coalition, nothing has come from Labour, the main coalition party or the other miserable parties that are part of the Knesset Cartel.
In practice, this means that apart from other internal issues such as education, economics, health services as well as salaries of employees are placed on the back burner. The peace process is almost non-existent and the occupation continues with all the insensitivities towards the plight of Palestinians. The Security Forces brutality continues towards pregnant women at check posts as well as other critically ill Palestinians in need of emergency care.
A society that is losing its heart gets the poor leadership that it deserves. The occupation is creating an insensitive, corrupt Israeli society. It is a catalyst for crime gangs of all kinds to prosper as well as an impetus for the continuation of a cruel occupation that encourages settler violence against Palestinians. Human values in Israel are being eroded and this is a true cancer in Israeli society.
Table Mountain - majestically overlooks Cape Town and the cold Atlantic Ocean.
During the month of August 2008, my wife and I travelled to Cape Town to visit my mother, sister and family. While we were there, I could not help making certain comparisons between the way South Africa had handled her race problems and had solved many of them. Israel, on the other hand, has not made much headway in solving her problems with the Palestinians.
South Africa’s problems during the evil apartheid years were racial. The whites had dominated the blacks and they were without any address whatsoever. The situation in Israel cannot really be compared to apartheid South Africa. It is different. Nevertheless, the problem with the Palestinians can be divided into two:
Security problems – Some Palestinians were involved in terrorist attacks against Israelis during the first and second Intifada years. This resulted in Israel taking retaliatory actions which unfortunately had also caused untold suffering amongst the innocent Palestinian population.
Racial problems – there has been an increased emphasis on Israel being referred to as a Jewish State. The innuendo by this statement is that those who are not Jewish may not have the same status and if one were to read some statements by establishment rabbis this feeling is further reinforced. Maybe it is here that some parallels may be found similar to the apartheid system in South Africa.
However, the racial aspect does remain and this can be found in the way Israel is usurping Palestinian lands by forced removals of Palestinians from their agricultural lands in the occupied territories, clearing the way for Jewish settlement expansion. This continues all the time. There is an overlap of security and racial issues. The security fence whose purpose is to protect Israelis from Palestinian terrorist infiltration encroaches into Palestinian agricultural lands creating enormous logistic problems for Palestinian farmers to cultivate their lands which is interspersed with roadblocks and brutal body searches. Also Palestinian homes are demolished without warning in many cases to make way for illegal settlement expansion. This has nothing to do with Palestinian terrorist action but plenty to do with Israeli greed to usurp Palestinian lands for high class settlement expansion and the building of new settlements for Zionist zealots. All this is occurring under the guise of “freezing existing settlements, and halting the building of new settlements”. On the ground the situation is different.
Had the security fence been built along the green line and not crossed into the Palestinian lands the case for its necessity to protect Israeli citizens from terror would be stronger and justified.
While in South Africa, I noticed how the different races had integrated to form a common multiracial society. Blacks and whites are working shoulder to shoulder in executive jobs, factories, the professions and in all aspects of life. I never saw any hostility between the races at all. South Africa was blessed with one of the greatest leaders of the last decade of the 20th Century – Nelson Mandela! He had a tremendous influence in the relative peaceful transition from a tyrannical apartheid state to a multiracial democratic state.
Here in Israel/Palestine, a leader of the calibre of Nelson Mandela is lacking.
South Africa has many problems, but race is not one of them.
Another serious problem is the AIDS problem which was not addressed by President Thabo Mbeki in the past. Southern Africa remains the region worst-affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. A combination of factors seem to be responsible for this including: poverty and social instability, high levels of sexually transmitted infections, the low status of women, sexual violence, high mobility (particularly migrant labour), and lack of good governance. South Africa has the sixth highest prevalence of HIV in the world, with 18.8% of the population estimated to be infected. The UNAIDS 2006 Global Report, estimated that 320 000 people died of AIDS related deaths in South Africa during 2005. South Africa is regarded as having the most severe HIV epidemic in the world.
Many South Africans won their freedom from apartheid but lost it to AIDS.
Despite all these serious problems, there is a feeling of a common patriotism shared by all South Africans, irrespective of their race, colour or creed. We, who live in volatile Israel/Palestine, could learn from the way South Africa had solved its racial issues and instilled a common feeling of “we are in this together and we owe it to ourselves and our children to move forward together for a better South Africa”. This feeling unfortunately is lacking in this part of the world and from this we can learn from South Africa’s experience on solving race problems.
On previous visits to South Africa during the past ten years, unemployment was so high and the large numbers of illegal immigrants entering South Africa to seek work had exacerbated the unemployment situation. Homeless people were found seeking shelter under bus shelters, park benches and just about every public place imaginable. There were also many street venders peddling products that were for sale in upbeat stores at cheaper prices. Today there is an improvement in the situation.
On my recent visit, there were fewer homeless and beggars. There used to be parking meters for those parking at the side of the pavements. These meters have been replaced by parking attendants who give out parking tickets for a nominal fee. This is one of the many ingenious ways to create jobs.
The shopping malls are very upbeat and are a real treat – very inviting to spend money! Wherever one goes one becomes more and more aware of how apartheid has collapsed being replaced by a multiracial society with an eye towards a better future.
The beauty of the CapePeninsula is unsurpassed with the majestic TableMountain greeting one on arrival at Cape TownAirport by plane.
After a rather quiet summer week with nothing much occurring, apart from the usual reports of car accidents and a mafia gang killing an innocent mother caught in the crossfire on Bat Yam Beach, south of Tel Aviv, PM Ehud Olmert made his dramatic announcement of resigning and not standing for re-election as leader of the Kadima Party. This did not come as any surprise to us. He is suspected of very severe financial irregularities which could result in a criminal indictment. He has been receiving money in envelopes from Maurice Talansky, a US Jewish fundraiser, and the financing of his plane fares by rather dubious means giving rise to grave suspicions. He has been under much pressure from his party colleagues as well as the opposition to resign so that he could spend time clearing his name. What should concern us amongst many things is the direction of the peace negotiations with the Palestinians and the indirect negotiations with Syria.
The suspicions of corruption against Olmert have weakened his premiership and it is a pity that he had not resigned earlier allowing the air to be cleared even if it means new elections. There are two serious contesters for the leadership of the Kadima Party, Shaul Mofaz and Tzippi Livni. The latter seems to be more popular. However, it is unlikely that either candidate, whoever is chosen to replace Olmert in the Kadima Party, will be able to form a coalition. It seems that new general elections are just around the corner.
On the one hand, Olmert has been weakened so much by the criminal suspicions against him that he is unable to function in order to make the bold decisions required to negotiate a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict while on the other hand, the Israeli electorate will move further to the right in its voting patterns and Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu, the Likud leader, will more than like be Israel’s next prime minister. This will be disastrous for the peace negotiations with the Palestinians and the chances of initiating direct negotiations with Syria. This could result in further polarization and a possible end to the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas-ruled Gaza. Bibi will try to create a broad base coalition including Kadima, Labour and Shas as well as the plethora of right wing parties. Labour under Barak will be further weakened and Israel will move towards a total stalemate in peace negotiations. This could result in escalation of violence and the rather shaky cease-fire with Hamas, which exists in the south of the country, could be shattered. The Likud and its right wing allies are hawkish and their attitudes are not conducive to peace. Illegal settlements in the West Bank will be expanded at a greater pace and this would eat into the Palestinian territories even further. An independent Palestinian state will never be achieved because of illegal Israeli settlements which would make the Palestinian state non-viable. It is the Likud grand plan to bluff the Palestinians into a false belief of achieving a Palestinian state. How this can be achieved with parallel illegal settlement expansion in the territories is anybody’s guess.
Now Syria is moving towards a form of compromise with the US and Israel even though this movement is very tentative at this stage. It is also unpredictable. The slightest move by Israel towards more uncompromising positions Likud-style could push Syria back into the Iranian camp from which it has not divested itself entirely if at all. Whatever Syria does, Lebanon will follow suit. Lebanon is still under Syrian influence and if Syria makes peace with Israel so will Lebanon. Lebanon has the added problem of Hezbollah which would strengthen its anti-Israel stance in line with Iran’s Ahmadinajad.
Much of the financial irregularities occurred when Olmert was mayor of Jerusalem. Nevertheless the moment these suspicions hang over his head like the sword of Damocles, it weakens his power in the eyes of the Israeli public and his ability to govern. His decision to resign was the correct one under these circumstances.
The biggest dangers facing Israel are the collapse of the peace talks with Syria even though they are indirect under Turkish mediation and the negotiations with the Palestinians despite the fact that the negotiations with the latter are only partial as Hamas has been excluded because of their inability to come to terms with Israel’s existence and cease their terror activities which they have put on hold at the moment under the cease-fire agreement.
Meanwhile, under Olmert there had been tentative movements towards some form of peace negotiations with the Palestinians even though it may not be representative of all the Palestinians because Gaza under Hamas is out of the negotiation picture entirely.
We have no reason to believe that new elections will bring in a new government more amenable to peace with the Palestinians. Rather the contrary is possible. The Likud’s agenda is peace with the Golan Heights and large tracts of Palestinian land under Israeli occupation.
This would be disastrous for Israel and it would give the illegal settlers legitimacy to expand and destroy the two-state solution. The abuse of Palestinians by the illegal loutish settlers will continue and the incidents like those that occurred in the southern Hebron district will continue. Under the Likud, the settlers will gain an ally more sympathetic to settlement expansion.
According to B’tselem, the IsraeliInformationCenter for Human Rights in the OccupiedPalestinianTerritories, the incident took place on 7 July, in Nil’in, a village in the central West Bank.
Palestinians and foreign peace activists hold regular and mostly non-violent protests against the confiscation by Israel of private Palestinian land for the construction of the “Separation Wall,” the gigantic barrier Israel is building in the area.
Vast swaths of Palestinian farms, orchards and groves have been seized by Israel under the pretext of building the wall, most of which is built deep in the West Bank far away from the so-called Green Line, the former armistice line between Israel proper and the occupied Palestinian territory.
What will happen after Olmert is anybody’s guess. There is no room for much optimism as the swing of the electorate will be towards the right and this means further human rights abuses against the Palestinian population.
The scenes of tragedy visible on TV screens of two coffins draped with Israeli flags that passed the Lebanese border left all of us feeling helpless, identifying, and sympathizing with the Regev and Goldwasser families of the two dead soldiers. Thoughts running through my mind at that moment were thoughts of remorse for Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, an evil and charismatic manipulating leader of Hezbollah. The Hezbollah organization of Shiite Islamist extremists hate Israel so much that it perceives Israelis, not as humans but as monsters. The rules of war do not apply in the Hezbollah psyche. Even in war, there are rules concerning treatment of prisoners-of -war that are observed as stipulated in the Geneva Convention. As Hezbollah does not represent Lebanon but is a worrisome entity within Lebanon that operates independently, it does not have any obligation to keep any international agreements or uphold the Geneva Convention on treatment of abducted soldiers. Hezbollah does not even give a thought to any human aspect at all. THEY ARE BARBARIANS WITH NO HUMAN COMPASSION!!!!
The psychological torture that the evil Nasrallah and his creeps have caused the Goldwasser and Regev families is cruelty at its worst. His manipulations and his despicable rhetoric portray this beastly human being at the height of his power. He knew that the two kidnapped soldiers were dead after they were attacked by Hezbollah terrorists two years ago. He made cruel and caustic remarks conducting himself in a fashion befitting the lowest form of bestial behaviour. He played along using his psychological, sadistic mannerisms of deception. This filthy beast of deception is a coward! He is “brave” sitting in his bunker, fearing for his existence and leaves his bunker rarely. He has no human feelings. His whereabouts are unknown. He knows that his days are numbered and he will be annihilated eventually. He is prolonging his life by hiding in his stinking bunker. He comes up for air, welcoming child murderers as heroes. It is hard to believe that this notorious beast has any love even for his own people. He is a puppet of the evil Ahmadinajad regime of Iran. The Lebanese People, who have suffered so much, have no great love for Nasrallah and his evil Hezbollah. They are responsible for so much of the bloodshed and human suffering in Lebanon as well as the anarchy reigning there.
Nasrallah exhibited his “bravery” to welcome the child murderer, Samir Kuntar, whose claim to fame was murdering a four year old child by striking her head with the butt of his rifle until she was killed in 1979. What a hero he is in the eyes of the Hezbollah thugs! This murderous beast was exchanged for the coffins of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev. For 105 weeks, the Goldwasser and Regev families were kept in the dark as to the fate of their sons. This is so despicable and cruel! It just illustrates what kind of barbarians Hezbollah with its leader Nasrallah really are. They are fascists devoid of any compassion for the human condition. Do they feel that by their despicable act, they will weaken the resolve of decent human beings all over the world to condemn this kind of behaviour? They will not harm Israel, on the contrary, they will strengthen Israel and with it they will destroy any hope for a rapprochement between Israel and Lebanon.
The scenes of jubilation in Beirut at child murderer Kuntar’s release was a macabre spectacle illustrating the height of barbarianism that segments of the Lebanese people are capable. He was paraded in battle fatigues. Kuntar “fought a great battle” by killing an innocent 4 year old child in such a brutal fashion.
Nasrallah knew that the only way he could hit Israel is by kidnapping its soldiers, killing them and keeping up the great lie by not giving out information as to their fate. In this way he could exact a very high price for dead soldiers and prolonging the cruelty for a long time. Israel has no solution for this kidnapping tactic.
Even in Gaza, there were celebrations by Hamas supporters for the release of Samir Kuntar. It is a case of the enemy of my enemy is my friend. This is what cultivates the relationship between Hamas and Hezbollah. There is no great love between Hamas and Hezbollah. The former is Sunni while the latter is Shiite. These two sects in Islam are not on good terms and this is bound to influence the relationship between the two groups in the future. Today, their common hate for Israel unites them. This means that Israel will be very cautious in its dealings with Hamas so that they can achieve the release of Gilad Shalit who is being held in captivity by Hamas in Gaza. To add insult to injury Nasrallah has made a cynical offer to act as mediator to gain Gilad Shalit’s release. What lies in his mind with his “defensive strategy”, as he puts it, is anybody’s guess. Israel has rejected his “offer” outright. Israel reportedly declined Nasrallah's overtures from a desire not to raise Nasrallah's status in the Arab world. Nasrallah garnered intense media attention Wednesday, promising to make address Israel and the West during the celebrations planned to mark Kuntar's release. He did make a brief public appearance, his first since January, and appeared ill at ease. He knows that with every public appearance his life is endangered.
The whole scenario of the prisoner exchange for two coffins was a tragedy and it gave the Hezbollah a reason to celebrate its success. Unfortunately, there was no other way out for Israel in this exchange. Israel’s soft underbelly is its susceptibility to enemy abductions of its soldiers and while there is no effective means at Israel’s disposal to prevent this from occurring in the future, it will remain an effective weapon to extract from Israel a very high price in negotiations for the release of abducted Israeli soldiers whether they are dead or alive.
The story of the occupation is well known and I have written about it many times in my articles. The euphoria of Israel after the Six Day War of 1967 when it captured the West Bank, Eastern Jerusalem, Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights is also well documented. However 41 years of occupation has eroded Israeli society and made many of us aware of many abuses that are occurring because of the “humane” Israeli Army treatment of the Palestinians over the years. Human rights groups (international human rights groups as well as Israeli groups) are providing evidence of human rights abuses regularly.
Israelis have always been proud of the “humaneness” of their army. On closer examination, when the incidents of army abuses and Israeli whitewashing of these incidents become evident, there is not very much of which to be proud.
The time is overripe to come to terms with the fact that the occupation is corrupting Israeli society beyond its limits. Israel claims that it does not wish to colonize another people (the Palestinians) but in practice this is what they are doing. Evidence of this is so widespread that it cannot be denied anymore.
The encouraging of illegal settlements in captured territories is ample proof of Israel’s intentions to colonize the Palestinians and rule over them. The claim of a “humane occupation” is a total paradox. An occupation can never be humane, especially when the intention is to take over Palestinian lands and encourage Israeli settlements. This occurred at the expense of another people. How can one build Israeli settlements ‘humanely” while displacing the Palestinian population and then talk about a “humane occupation”? Naturally this also means expanding existing illegal settlements because of natural population growth, displacing more Palestinians in the process.
It is absurd to believe that Israel has no desire to colonize the Palestinians when in practice the evidence points to the contrary. If this assumption were true, Israel would never have encouraged illegal settlements in territories captured during the Six Day War of June 1967. It should have kept the territories as a bargaining chip that would be returned to the Palestinian people under a peace agreement. It would not have been necessary to uproot a single settler as none would have been there.
Unfortunately, this was not the case, and here both sides must bear the blame for what had happened. The Khartoum Resolutions of 1st September, 1967 “no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with it, and insistence on the rights of the Palestinian people in their own country” was the attitude of the Arab states then. It also resulted in Israel’s attitude towards colonizing the occupied territories by encouraging settlement. The Israeli leadership felt that if this was the Arab attitude, they had the right to annex the territories and encourage Jewish settlement there as there was no partner for peace negotiations after the Six Day War. Time proved that this was a disastrous decision on Israel’s part and resulted in the establishment of illegal settlements and further usurpation of Palestinian lands. The Israeli leadership had made impulsive decisions that had backfired. This also resulted in the subsequent War of Attrition, Yom Kippur War of October 1973, the 1987 Intifada and the more serious 2000 Intifada with its tragic spate of suicide bombings and widespread retaliations resulting in severe bloodshed on both sides.
There is no doubt that the occupation with its illegal settlements has harmed Israel’s stature in the world. Israel holds onto the territories by force. Palestinian human rights in the territories have been curtailed and cases of army abuses against the Palestinian population only aggravate the situation.
The occupation affects everybody, Israelis as well as Palestinians. It affects the Israeli psyche by resulting dehumanizing the Palestinians as a people. Many Israelis view the Palestinians as beasts who are only interested in killing Israelis whenever the opportunity arises. They see the Palestinians as potential terrorists waiting to strike and to destroy Israelis wherever they can.
The Palestinian views the Israeli as a gun toting soldier who is waiting to abuse him and beat him up. Contact between the two peoples on a human level has now reached a minimum and this is a very sad state of affairs. It is almost impossible for Palestinian and Israelis to meet and get to know one another.
Yeshayahu Leibowitz, a professor at HebrewUniversity and a leading Israeli intellectual--who was also an observant Jew--stated that Israel must immediately withdraw from the occupied territories. He argued that the occupation was unjust and would inevitably lead to the oppression and subjugation of the Palestinians, and to the corruption if not destruction of Israeli society. Until his death in the mid-1990s, he continued to criticize the occupation, using piercing, prophetic language to condemn the immorality of Israeli policies. For years, Leibowitz also averred that if 500 reservist soldiers would simultaneously refuse to serve in the territories, the occupation would end. He also stated that the Israeli Army run the risk of becoming Judeo-Nazis because of the occupation. In order to maintain the occupation, the army has to use force and introduce tough measures against the Palestinian population. This means check posts, humiliating house searches, abuse of power and the destruction and confiscation of Palestinian agricultural land for Jewish settlement. This is a long way from the “humane occupation”.
While the occupation remains unchanged, the chances of the establishment of an independent Palestinian state will never occur. If anything, it brings the reality of a binational state closer to fruition, despite Israeli denials to the contrary. It also does not benefit Israeli society as the occupation becomes more entrenched. It will only exacerbate the hatred between the two peoples even further and Israel stands the chance of becoming an amoral and corrupt society. Signs of this are already occurring in the government as the cruel occupation remains in place despite the cosmetic handshakes at various summit meetings between the Israeli and Palestinian leadership that consists of two very weak and ineffectual leaders weighed down by their own personal problems.
