February Newsletter
Change For The Better' – Major Haaretz Feature Depicts the Deep Impact of New Israel Fund and SHATIL on Israeli Society
New Israel Fund Israel Executive Director Eliezer Yaari and SHATIL Executive Director Rachel Liel as they appear in Haaretz article
Haaretz contained a major feature on New Israel Fund and SHATIL in both the print and online versions and in both English and Hebrew. Entitled “Change For The Better,” and written by Ruth Sinai, the article opens, “Ever since its establishment 26 years ago, the New Israel Fund and its operational arm, SHATIL, have acted to promote the development of civil society in Israel ”
The article incorporates interviews with both New Israel Fund Israel Executive Director Eliezer Yaari and SHATIL Executive Director Rachel Liel ; reviews New Israel Fund's achievements since 1979; and provides an insight into the daily workings of its grantees, as well as how they cooperate in order to tackle the complex issues confronting Israel.
The feature says, “New Israel Fund is like a venture capital fund: It raises money, identifies worthy targets for investment, gives them monetary support and launches them.” The article goes on to say, “There is hardly any significant socially oriented organisation today in Israel that does not owe its existence to the New Israel Fund – from the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), through the National Council for the Child and the Movement for Quality Government, to the parents' committee of the Al-Azazmeh Bedouin tribe.”
The article even refers to the latest UN recognition of New Israel Fund through SHATIL. “This month the New Israel Fund, through Shatil, won recognition from the United Nations as an organisation that works in the spirit of the UN Charter and promotes its values. Its candidacy was submitted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in the context of activity that aims to show Israel 's civil society to the world. In addition to Shatil, the Israel Women's Network - which was also established with the help of the New Israel Fund - and Zaka (the emergency rescue and recovery organization) - were also recognised.”
The article even mentions the $20 million a year figure that the organisation raises from American Jewry, however neglected to mention that our contributors not only come form the US Jewry but also the UK, Israel, Europe, Canada and Australia. In fact, thanks to the generosity of our UK supporters in 2005, we managed to double our UK income to £1m.
Read the article.
University of Haifa Survey: Israeli Arab Leaders More Radical than Supporters
HAIFA . January 16 – Israeli Arab leaders are much more radical than their supporters. One result is they remain in perpetual opposition to Israel 's ruling government, unable to gain the support or understanding of the Jewish public, which they need to improve the status of the country's Arab minority.
These conclusions emerge from a survey of the Israeli Arab public conducted by Prof. Sammy Smooha of the University of Haifa. It is one of this sociologist's ongoing measures of Jewish-Arab relations.
'The lack of correspondence between the positions of Arab leaders not connected with the Jewish establishment and Arab voters for Arab parties is striking, Smooha said. For example, he found that whereas 60.2% of the voters for Arab parties agree that Arab citizens need to accept Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, only 18.2% of the non-establishment leaders do. Overwhelmingly these leaders define themselves as anti-Zionist (85.7%), but most of their voters do not (only 32% do).
Asked whether Palestinian refugees should receive appropriate compensation and in return be allowed to return to a Palestinian state, only 22.4% of the leaders, versus 65.4% of the voters agreed to the proposition.
The leaders' radicalism also manifests itself in attitudes toward illegal demonstrations. This means of struggle received the support of 34.7% of the leaders, but merely 7.3% of their supporters.
The general Arab community largely-82.1%-believes that with the settlement of the Palestinian question, all the claims of each side and the conflict will come to an end. Less than half the non-establishment Israeli Arab leadership believes this-44.9%.
Apparently, Smooha commented, Israeli Arab leaders think that the Palestinians will be ill satisfied with any agreement and there will be no end to the conflict.
The survey was based on 700 face-to-face interviews with the Arab public, as well as with 85 Arab public figures, 49 of whom operate outside the Jewish establishment.
"If the positions of the non-establishment leadership are more radical than those of voters for Arab parties, they are all the more radical than the more moderate stands taken by Arab voters for Jewish parties," Smooha claims. By not being partners to decision-making and management of the State, he continues, "their distancing from responsibility enables them to preserve ideological purity. They do not have to be flexible or compromise."
At the same, he notes, they "cannot give real solutions to their supporters and so are forced to make do with marketing ideas in order to gain public support."
The growing competition among Arab leaders for the Arab public' s support, Smooha believes, constitutes a lever for the escalation of positions. "All they have to give their public is protest, criticism of the government, support of the Palestinian people, and demands for changes in policy and the regime. There are no appointments (to office), no budgets, no changes in policy or other resources."
The University of Haifa sociologist concludes that co-opting Arabs into the government may contribute to a closing of the gap in positions between Israeli Arabs and Jews.
Independent Media Review and Analysis (IMRA): The survey was carried out in 2004. A detailed copy of the report complete with 80 tables can be found at: http://caf.org.il/assets/indexeng.pdf
Knesset Establishes Equal Opportunity Employment Commission
MK Naomi Chazan (right) and Alice Miller after her successful petition in Israel 's Supreme Court in 1995
In a victory for women and minorities in Israel , the Knesset has voted to form an Equal Opportunity Employment Commission. The proposal for the Commission was submitted by veteran New Israel Fund grantee Israel Women's Network (IWN) within the framework of its campaign to abolish gender discrimination in the workplace.
Israeli legislation prohibiting discrimination in employment and salaries is very advanced. However, the experience in Israel , as elsewhere, is that legislation in itself is not sufficient in ensuring equal opportunities. The new Commission is designed to supervise enforcement of the existing legislation and to handle employment discrimination on the basis of nationality, ethnic origins, age, religion, personal status, sexual orientation and political affiliation. Discrimination on the basis of gender is a particular problem in Israel , since women are discriminated against not only generally, but also as mothers and while they are pregnant.
Female Fighter Pilot: Coincidentally, in the same week as this landmark achievement for women's equal opportunity rights, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) held a press conference to introduce the air force's second female fighter pilot. Lieutenant Naama paid tribute to Alice Miller, who ten years ago broke the barriers of prejudice when she successfully appealed to the Supreme Court for her right to be accepted to an Israel Air Force pilot's course. "I don't know Alice Miller," said Lieutenant Naama, "but I owe her an enormous debt of gratitude."
The ruling in November 1995 stemmed from a petition by IWN and flagship New Israel Fund grantee Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) on behalf of Alice Miller, who was represented by ACRI attorney and New Israel Fund Law Fellow Neta Ziv, who subsequently became a member of New Israel Fund's Board of Directors. In her presentation to the Supreme Court Ziv said, "The Israel Air Force has much to learn from the process by which the US Air Force has mobilised women pilots."
The new Equal Opportunity Employment Commission is the latest product of the successful struggle for gender quality being waged by the New Israel Fund community, of which the acceptance of women into IDF pilot's courses was a major symbolic and precedent-setting milestone.
Olive Tree Vandalism Reflects Wider Problem of Lawless Extremists
Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz has set up a team to investigate the damaging of Palestinian olive trees by Jewish vigilantes in the West Bank . According to the Israel Police, Jewish extremists damaged 733 Palestinian olive trees during 2005. However, B'Tselem, The Israeli Information Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories , a veteran member of the New Israel Fund family, estimates that at least 2,750 olive trees belonging to Palestinians were damaged over the past year.
B'Tselem also showed photographs of damaged trees to an eminent expert at the Hebrew University who was able to refute claims by far right-wing sources that trees had been negligently pruned.
New Israel Fund has been an integral part of a rapidly growing chorus of protest at the spiteful behaviour of Jewish extremists towards Palestinian farmers. Last month New Israel Fund condemned the phenomenon and called on the Defence Minister to take action. New Israel Fund is also acting as a conduit for the collection of contributions, which are being channelled to the rehabilitation of agricultural lands and trees belonging to Palestinian farmers in the West Bank that have been damaged by Jewish vigilantes. New Israel Fund, together with various organisations, is now planning a public event on the destruction of the olive trees in order to recruit more Israelis to the campaign and to press the authorities to take action to stamp out this phenomenon.
Read more about this in the English language version of ynet and in Haaretz and this editorial.
Soccer Race Riots Demonstrate Fragility of Jewish Arab Coexistence
Last week's post-match violent racist confrontation between the Jewish fans of Betar Jerusalem and the Arab supporters of Bnei Sakhnin reflected the simmering hostility between Israel 's Arabs and Jews. Hundreds of opposing fans clashed on the pitch after the game and it took 350 police more than an hour to restore order.
"The events in Sakhnin represent not only a threat to soccer but also prove how fragile is the coexistence between the different sectors of Israeli society," said Eliezer Yaari , New Israel Fund Israel Executive Director. "New Israel Fund, which has been warning of this danger for the past three years through its volunteer observers programme, will intensify its educational efforts by creating a new and positive dialogue in Israeli society."
In the wake of the riots, New Israel Fund called on the Knesset's Violence in Sport committee to take action over the events in Sakhnin. New Israel Fund's volunteer observers, who record racist behaviour for the weekly Racism Index that is published in the Israeli press, were able to provide the media with detailed documentation of the events in Sakhnin. YNet , Israel 's most popular Internet news site featured an article about New Israel Fund's call for action. The public concern over the events in Sakhnin contrasts with the indifference toward racism in Israel soccer, which prevailed before New Israel Fund's New Voice in the Stadium campaign to combat the phenomenon began in 2003.
English FA To Visit Israel To Launch New Israel Fund's Kick It Out In Israel
Israel and England are opponents in Euro 2008 but the partnership between the two countries in combating racism will deepen next month with the launching of ‘Kick It Out Israel' by New Israel Fund based on the English Kick It Out campaign.
Special guest at the ‘Kick It Out Israel' launch will be Liverpool and England legend John Barnes, who will be travelling to Israel on 5 th March for the fourth time, having previously visited with England , Liverpool and as Celtic manager.
"Kick It Out has done great work in England ," Barnes told the JC. "When I was a player the crowds were terribly racist in England and today that has almost all disappeared. It's only a start. Of course a racist fan may keep his mouth shut in the stadium but outside the ground he's still a racist. But it's an important start."
Barnes has been involved with ‘Kick It Out' since its founding in 1994. "Kick It Out does great work by arranging anti-racist events week in and week out," he said. "And we players complemented the programme through media appearances and interviews. I think Israel can really benefit from such a programme. The main problem there between Jewish and Arab fans is very similar to the Rangers/Celtic religious prejudice I encountered when I was in Glasgow as manager of Celtic. When it boils down to it racism and religious prejudice are the same so I think Kick It Out can work in Israel."
Barnes will lead a senior FA delegation to Israel , which will include Simon Johnson, the FA's Director of Corporate Affairs, FA Project Manager Brendon Batson, Lucy Faulkner, FA's Ethics and Sports Equity Manager, Jane Bateman, FA's Head of International Relations and Kick It Out Director Piara Powar.
A special New Israel Fund Delegation is also being taken out by NIF CEO, Alan Bolchover who has helped build up a partnership with the FA.
"We think that Kick It Out is the right programme for Israel at the right time," explained Alan Bolchover , New Israel Fund UK 's CEO. "If it can do for Israeli football what it has achieved here in England then that will also be an important contribution for coexistence between Israeli Jews and Arabs."
Kick It Out Israel will be a partnership between New Israel Fund, the Israel FA, the Israel PFA, the English FA and Kick It Out in England . Established in 1979 NIF promotes human rights, social and economic justice and religious pluralism in Israel .
The launch will take place in Israel on 6th March in the presence of the 12 captains from all Israel's
New Israel Fund Documentary Screened on TV
Chana Kehat, founder of New Israel Fund grantee Religious Women's Forum
For the past few months, New Israel Fund has been working together with Israel ' s Channel Two, to produce an innovative documentary series, which will bring attention to Israel 's future social leaders. The series is called “Against All The Odds” and it tells the stories of social change activists who, with the assistance from New Israel Fund and SHATIL, have empowered themselves and their surroundings, and by so doing brought a ray of hope to their communities and Israeli society in general.
The programme started in Israel in January and is scheduled to be screened weekly for 13 weeks. Each week a leading social activist from the New Israel Fund community will be featured in a half an hour documentary.
The first program in the series, features Chana Kehat, founder of New Israel Fund grantee Religious Women's Forum (Kollech). Chana is a mother of six, and a resident of Neve Daniel in Gush Etzion. Kollech advocates gender equality within the framework of halacha. Kehat speaks of her organisation's feminist Orthodox activities, which include rooting out rabbis who have sexually harassed women. She reveals that she herself was sexually harassed by a neighbour when she was a child.
View the first part of the ‘Against All Odds' TV series in Hebrew with English subtitles by clicking on the below button.
Message from Alan Bolchover, New Israel Fund UK Chief Executive
As the world waits to see how Ariel Sharon's incapacitation and Hamas's victory in the PA polls affects the political landscape in the Middle East, there is one thing we can count on and that is that the future holds both great peril and great promise.
The strength of a democracy is best demonstrated when it faces an existential security threat or an unexpected succession crisis. In the current situation Israel's democracy is meeting those challenges. The designation of Ehud Olmert as Acting Prime Minister was made swiftly, the Attorney General announced that elections would take place as scheduled on 28 th March, and the political parties demonstrated their maturity and sensitivity by ceasing to campaign during this period of uncertainty about Sharon's health.
But the election battle will now commence in full sway. It will dictate the intentions and direction for Israel in the next few years, which will in turn affect our own agenda at New Israel Fund. Our issues of poverty, minority rights, civil marriage and divorce, disengagement, the security fence and education will all be raised and we welcome the debate surrounding these issues. We hope they manage to be heard over the natural concerns about security.
Thank you for your continued support.
