terrible apartheid

Telem – Speaking for Israelwww.telem.me

The Terrible,Terrible,

Israeli Apartheid.


(Or not…)

"The Terrible Apartheid" document is our way to show the awful and un-human apartheid, under which the Arab minority and other non-Jewish ethnic groups have to live in Israel. The following pages will present some of the victims of this unbearable regime.

This is a "Telem – Speaking for Israel" Israel Advocacy kit.

Please read, print and share with others.


Salim Joubran, Supreme Court Judge.


Judge Gourban was born in 1947. He studied in Acra and graduated Law School in the Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 1967 (the year after the Six-Days War). In 1982 he became a peace judge in Haifa. During that time he was a law professor in Haifa University. Since 2003 he is a judge in the Israeli Supreme Court.

In February 2012, during a ceremony in the Supreme Court, when other judges, as well as Shimon Peres, the president of Israel and Benjamin Netenyahu, the PM, stood up to sing the Israeli anthem, Goubran was standing among them, but he didn't sing.

Voices from the Israeli right condemned him for that, but the majority of the political system – left, center and right – including the PM, supported judge Goubran and respected his right to refrain from singing.

The Israeli anthem, "ha-Tikva", starts with the words "as long as deep in the heart / beats a Jewish soul", and speaks about the ancient desire of the Jewish nation to return home, to the Land of Israel. In the IDF, for example, non-Jewish soldiers and officers are excused from singing "ha-Tikva".


Raleb Majadele, Cabinet Member.

Mr. Majadele was raised in Baqa al-Gharbiyye, in the north of Israel.He is the eldest of 14 brothers. He turned to business and joined the Israeli Labor Party. In 2004 he became a member of the Knesset, the Israeli parliament. In 2007 he became the Minister of Science, Culture and Sport.

Mr. Majadele – then a member of cabinet – objected operation Cast Lead, that took place while he was at office. Since 2010 Mr. Majadele is once again a Knesset member.

In 2007 he said: "The roots of the Israeli Arab citizens of Israel were planted before the state was established. They are residents of this country with rights; their residency and citizenship are not open for negotiation."


Mohammad Barakeh, Knesset Member

Mr. Barakeh was born in Shefa Amr and studied mathematics in Tel-Aviv University. He joined the Israeli Communist Party and became a prominent leader in the Israeli Arab community.

In 1999 Mr. Barakeh became a Knesset member, as the chairman of the Hadash ("The Democratic front for Peace and Equality") party. Hadash calls for the evacuation of the Israeli settlements from Judea and Samaria, the establishment of a Palestinian state and supports the right of return of the Palestinian refugees.

Mr. Barakeh is an active MK, arguing strongly for his views and participating in rallies and demonstrations. When the second intifada, a wave of terrorism, began in 2000 he called it "the right answer in the right time". When Hezbollah kidnapped and murdered three Israeli soldiers from Israeli territory, also in 2000, Barakeh said that the act was Hezbollah's "right and duty".

In 2010 Barakeh visited Auschwitz, as part of a Knesset delegation.


Elinor Joseph, IDF Soldier

Elinor grew up in Haifa, and dreamt about studying medicine. She decided to volunteer to the IDF in 2010 following her father, who served in the Paratroopers Brigade. Being part of the Arab minority it was not a simple decision, but Elinor followed her dream. She became a medic in the Caracal battalion, an infantry unit, which includes both male and female soldiers in a combat role.

"I was born here," she says. "The people I love live here. My parents. My friends. It's a Jewish country? True. But this is also my land. I can't imagine myself living anywhere else. I think everybody should serve. You live here? Go defend your country. So what if I am Arab?"


Walid Badir, Football Player

Walid was born in Kafir-Qasim and began playing in his town's team as a teenager. He was discovered by Hapoel Petah-Tikva and then left for Wimbledon, where he scored a goal against Manchester United. He returned to Israel and played for few intense seasons in Maccabi Haifa, taking the championship four times in five years.

Today Walid is the captain of Hapoel Tel-Aviv – one of the central clubs in Israel. Since 1997 he plays in the Israeli National Team.


Mira Awad, Singer and Actress

Mira was born in Rameh, a village in Galilee. At the age of 18 she left for Haifa, to study at the university there. She also joined an Arab rock band and began considering a musical career. She went on to study at the Rimon School of Jazz and Contemporary Music and became a success story in Israel, recording with such artists as Noa and Idan Reichel. Mira participated in several Israeli television shows and starred in the Israeli Opera and the Cameri Theatre.

In 2009 Mira represented Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest together with Noa. She was the first Arab-Israeli to do so with "There Must Be Another Way", a song with Arabic and Hebrew lyrics.


Rania Okabi, Medical Doctor

Rania is the first Bedouin woman to become a medical doctor in Israel. She graduated from Ben-Gurion University in 2006. Coming from a very traditional desert society, it wasn't easy for her to go against the custom and pursue a career, especially in the medical field. She knew the risks: "it's hard for traditional Bedouin men to accept my profession… It means many hours not at home and working nights… It won't be easy to find a husband, but it won't be impossible also."

Rania, working in the 21st century medical world, still remembers where she came from. "I didn't forget my roots," she says. "I don't consider myself to be a traditional person, but I respect the Bedouin tradition and our culture, which is unique and noble".

Hundreds of Bedouin women are studying in universities in Israel today, while only two decades ago not a single one reached the academia. The tribal Bedouin society has strict rules concerning the woman's role in the family – and they don't include having a career. In recent years, though, more and more girls get higher education and find a place in the job market, combining tradition and modernity.


***

The purpose of this kit is to show that the Arab-Israeli society in Israel enjoys freedom and civil rights, just like the Jewish Israelis.

Is everything perfect? Of course not. The Arab-Israelis deal with a dual identity, trying to find the golden path between the Arab and the Israeli parts. Israel has yet a long way to go until it will reach true equality of opportunities and tolerance – but so does almost every other country with a significant minority.

Not all the people presented here will praise Israel, but the fact remains that we've met politicians, judges, artists, doctors and a soldier – people who achieved a position in the Israeli society, people who studied in Israeli universities, people who influence the Israeli policy and shape the Israeli culture. They all have the freedom of speech and they work through the political system in order to promote the Arab-Israeli community.

There is much work and we are far from perfection, but hey – apartheid?

I don't think so.

terrible apartheid

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