November Newsletter
New Israel Fund's Calendar of Achievements
5765 (2004/05) was an historic year in which Israel withdrew from Gaza and four West Bank settlements while continuing construction of the Security Fence. New Israel Fund influenced both these issues by defending democracy among opponents of disengagement, fostering dialogue and community, and successfully petitioning the Supreme Court regarding the human rights violations caused by the Fence's current route.
The New Israel Fund family of organisations also won groundbreaking victories on the issues of equitable allocation of land for Israel's Arab and Bedouin minority, the fight against racism, gender equality, homosexual rights, the needs of the disabled, the environment and the recognition of non-Orthodox conversions. Take a look!
September/October 2004 (Tishrei)
Green Victory Over Eilat Fish Cages
The National Council for Planning and Construction ordered fish farmers in the Eilat region to remove fish cages from the Red Sea because they are irreversibly damaging the water's rare coral formations. The verdict was a victory for the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) and other environmental groups funded by New Israel Fund through the Green Environment Fund (GEF). The environmental groups have long claimed that waste from the fish is corroding the coral. The Council gave the farmers 14 months in which to gradually remove the fish.
"Over the past decade the green movement has come a long way in raising public awareness and generating public pressure. The challenge ahead is to build on this." Sigal Yaniv, Director of the GEF.
October/November 2004 (Cheshvan):
Court Rulings Advance Homosexual Rights
Israel's Attorney General Meni Mazuz handed a directive to judges to recognize the rights of same-sex couples in issues relating to money and property. This followed a precedent-setting verdict in the Nazareth District Court recognizing the inheritance rights of a gay couple following the death of one of the partners. New Israel Fund grantees including Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) were involved in these cases.
"The situation in Israel in terms of gay and lesbian rights is better than in a lot of countries, but I still encounter manifestations of homophobia." Dan Yakir, Legal Advisor, ACRI.
November/December 2004 (Kislev):
Supreme Court Victory For Israel's Female Basketball Champions
Ramat Hasharon, Israel's female basketball champions, and New Israel Fund grantee Israel Women's Network (IWN) won a ruling ordering the state-run Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) to air live coverage of their European championship matches. The Supreme Court ruled that the IBA must allocate more broadcast time for female sports and ordered the authority to provide live coverage of Ramat Hasharon's European quarterfinals. The verdict followed a "positive discrimination" ruling from the Supreme Court won by IWN last year that local authorities must allocate as much funds for female sports as for male sports.
"With violence against women on the rise, we stress the importance of empowering women. A woman who has a sense of her own value is less likely to be a victim of her partner." Ella Gera, IWN Executive Director
December/January 2005 (Tevet):
Breakthrough Fine for Husband Who Refuses Divorce
New Israel Fund grantee International Coalition For Agunah Rights (ICAR) won a precedent-setting ruling in the Jerusalem Family Court for an ultra-Orthodox woman with six children who had been waiting 15 years for her divorce. The rabbinical court had ordered her husband to grant the divorce, but he still refused. The Family Court finally ordered him to pay her $100,000 in damages, sending a clear message to over 10,000 Jewish men still refusing to give their wives a divorce.
"I am determined to find solutions for all Jewish women, whether they are Orthodox or secular. It is possible." Susan Weiss, founding member of ICAR and Director of New Israel Fund grantee Centre for Women's Justice.
January/February 2005 (Shevat):
Attorney General Concedes Land Sale Offers Are Discriminatory
Israel's Attorney General Meni Mazuz instructed the Israel Lands Administration (ILA) that it must no longer issue land sale offers restricted to Jewish Israelis. Mazuz's instruction followed a petition to the Supreme Court by New Israel Fund grantees ACRI, Adalah: Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel and Arab Center for Alternative Planning challenging the ILA's land sales policies as discriminatory. After consulting with senior members of the state prosecutor's office, Mazuz decided that the government's position was indeed discriminatory and could not be defended in court.
"Either we live together or we fight. I work as a nurse in the hospital in Hadera and I have seen the result of fighting when the victims of suicide bombers are brought to the hospital. For the victims, I was determined to win." Adel Ka'adan, who, assisted by ACRI, continues his 10-year struggle to move his family to an Israeli village.
February/March 2005 (Adar):
Ethiopian-Born Israeli Wins Compensation in Discrimination Case
The Arad Magistrates Court ordered the Arad Religious Council to pay Ethiopia-born Leah Ishtar $25,000 compensation. Ishtar and New Israel Fund grantee Tebeka – Center for Legal Aid and Advocacy For Ethiopian Jews in Israel sued the Religious Council after a kashrut supervisor told her that her Judaism was in doubt. The owner of the falafel stall where she worked had to fire her when it was made clear that he would lose his kashrut license if Ishtar remained. Later in the year, the Or Yehuda Municipality reversed a decision to bar 42 Ethiopian immigrant children from the city's schools following a Supreme Court petition from Tebeka.
"Cities were once fighting to house us. We have seen this trend change and many mayors have said that they don't want more Ethiopians in their city because we are undesirable. We must fight such prejudice with the full force of the law." Yitzhak Dessie, Founder & Executive Director of Tebeka, and the country's first Ethiopian-born immigrant to qualify as a lawyer.
March/April 2005 (Adar Bet)
New Knesset Law Paves the Way for Israel to Become One of the World's Most Accessible Countries for the Disabled
The Knesset unanimously approved the Accessibility Chapter of the Equal Rights for People with Disabilities Law. The law, which was formulated by New Israel Fund grantee Bizchut: Center for Human Rights for Persons with Disabilities, mandates that all public places and services must be accessible to people with physical, mental and development disabilities. The Law, once fully implemented, would make Israel one of the world's most accessible countries for the disabled and transform the lives of between 600,000 and 750,000 Israelis who suffer disabilities.
"For people like me the law has opened up new horizons, which will improve the quality of our lives beyond recognition." Oren Ganor, 28, is a Bizchut activist and suffers from a degenerative eye disease.
April/May 2005 (Nisan)
Supreme Court Recognizes Reform and Conservative Conversions in Israel
Israel's Supreme Court reached an historic decision partially recognizing the validity of Reform and Conservative conversions when would-be converts perform their Jewish studies in non-Orthodox settlings in Israel. The ruling stopped short of bestowing full legitimacy on non-Orthodox conversions, and still requires Israeli converts to travel abroad to a recognized Jewish community for a formal conversion ceremony. The Supreme Court decision followed a petition by New Israel Fund grantee Israel Religious Action Centre (IRAC) of the Movement for Progressive Judaism in Israel (Reform) on behalf of 14 Reform and Conservative converts.
"IRAC enabled me to learn about Judaism in a meaningful way. I felt Jewish before the Supreme Court verdict. However, it is not only important for me to be Jewish in my personal religious identity, I also needed for the law to recognize me as bein
May/June 2005 (Iyar)
Israel Government Recognizes Another Negev Bedouin Village
The Israeli government granted recognition to the unrecognised Negev Bedouin village of Umm Batin, representing an important victory in the fight for the recognition of 75,000 Bedouin living in 46 unrecognised villages. With this recognition, five of the eight villages in the Abu Basma region, where nearly one-third of the unrecognised Bedouin of the Negev live, have been recognised.
"We are winning the battle for recognition. The major struggle is to guarantee basic infrastructure services like sewage and electricity as well as health clinics and schools for these recognized villages." Dr. Thabet Abu-Ras, Executive Director of the Abu Basma Project, a joint initiative of NIF and JDC Israel.
June/July 2005 (Sivan)
Mixed Cities Vigil Halts Lod Demolitions
SHATIL's Mixed Cities Project recorded a significant victory when an ongoing vigil, organized with the community-based Lod Housing Forum, succeeded in stopping home demolitions in Lod's Ta'yush neighbourhood. For 50 days, seven families in the Arab neighbourhood maintained a vigil in protest tents, defying police and municipal demolition orders. The campaign drew more and more attention, until Knesset members and government officials voiced support for an equitable solution.
"We succeeded in mobilising Lod's Arabs to be part of civil society and take social responsibility for their future." Buthanya Dabit, Coordinator of SHATIL's Mixed Cities Project.
July/August 2005 (Tammuz)
New Law Outlaws Racist Chants at Soccer Matches
The Knesset passed a law allowing Israel's courts to sentence a soccer fan for up to one year in prison for racist chants such as "Death to Arabs." New Israel Fund's weekly index on the racist behaviour of fans, featured extensively in the Israeli press, and the publicity generated by this campaign, were a catalyst in moving the Knesset to act. And the parliamentary committee that formulated the legislation consulted regularly with New Israel Fund. New Israel Fund launched its New Voice in the Stadium campaign in 2003 to combat racism in Israeli soccer.
"Racism in soccer reflects attitudes throughout the country and tackling it in the stadiums will help reduce racism in society as a whole." Rifat Turk, Arab soccer star and former Israeli international, who today is Deputy Mayor of Tel Aviv and a member of New Israel Fund's Steering Committee Against Racism in Soccer.
August 2005 (Av)
New Israel Fund Campaign Achieves Civil Discourse in Disengagement Debate
On Tisha B'Av, the eve of disengagement, New Israel Fund organized a special event entitled "For These Things I Weep" (Lamentations 1:16) in which speakers from across the social and religious spectrum expressed their hopes and fears about Israel's future. The event was the culmination of New Israel Fund's campaign to encourage civil dialogue among all sectors of society and promote respect for the rule of law and democratic norms, by supporting national Orthodox organizations opposed to violence and working with the IDF and police on non-violent confrontation. This helped create an atmosphere in which disengagement was implemented without major violence.
"I am proud of the work we did in the field to reduce tension and the flames of incitement, and encourage social responsibility." Eliezer Ya'ari, Executive Director New Israel Fund Israel.
September 2005 (Elul)
Supreme Court Upholds Petition to Dismantle Section of the Fence
Israel's Supreme Court ordered the state to dismantle 13 km of the Security Fence already built near the Jewish West Bank settlement of Alfei Menashe. The judges ruled that the route of the fence violated Palestinian human rights. New Israel Fund grantees ACRI and Bimkom: Planners for Planning Rights assisted the Palestinian villagers in their petition. New Israel Fund was one of the first Israeli organizations to appreciate the humanitarian hardships caused by the Fence and coordinated a campaign to change the route of the Fence through emergency grants to organizations involved in the struggle.
"The legal precedents which have been achieved are serving organisations involved in an additional 40 Supreme Court petitions about the Fence." Dorit Karlin, Associate Director, who is responsible for the Separation Fence Program, New Israel Fund Israel.
Message from Alan Bolchover, New Israel Fund UK Chief Executive
Over the last two weeks I have been lucky enough to have spent time with friends and family in Israel over the Sukkot period. Everyone in Israel seems happy – and why not? The sun is shining, the humidity has disappeared, and everyone is on holiday.
But there was an underlying feeling that this “shared” joy is temporary. It is as if Sukkot was more of a “cease-fire” than a “holiday” before the politics begin again this week in earnest.
It worried me until I saw a friend who had both an orange and a blue ribbon on his car. I wondered if this was a movement to show the country was moving on from the argument of August. Alas I was wrong – he was pro, his wife was anti and they shared the car! Funny really, but I suppose if a married couple can disagree so passionately and can remain together, maybe there is still hope for the future.
In saying this, this month we chose to review the impressive list of hope and achievements sorted by the months of the Jewish year 5765. We hope you feel proud of these achievements, as without your help and generosity none of these would have been possible.
Thank you for your continued support.
