Israeli food critic Gil Hovav, left, and Jack Gottlieb. (photo by Shahar Azran)
The newly formed World Jewish Heritage Fund (WJH) recently unveiled a planned global digital platform to protect and promote Jewish cultural heritage around the world during an event at the haute Israeli eatery Balaboosta in the heart of New York’s Soho neighborhood.
WJH founder Jack Gottlieb, an American expatriate based in Tel Aviv, introduced the ambitious project at the trendy restaurant on Jan. 14 night with the e-book Israel’s Top 100 Ethnic Restaurants serving as a digital appetizer to a wider menu of planned technology, including mobile applications, that will put the power of online, collaborative communications in the hands of the Jewish community to preserve Jewish heritage.
“We decided that what was needed was a kind of UNESCO for Judaism,” Gottlieb said. “Think of us as a cross between UNESCO, Wikipedia and Trip Advisor, with Jewish heritage and culture being the unique components tying it all together.”
Gottlieb founded the WJH as a nonprofit to preserve and protect the world’s Jewish heritage sites after he realized that no other organization was solely dedicated to that mission. After a trip to see Jewish sites in Belarus and Ukraine, Gottlieb said he realized “they had no voice; no one knew about them and they were falling into disrepair. I thought, ‘Can we do something about this?’” he said.
So, Gottlieb set out to build what he calls the World Jewish Heritage Preservation Model. “Using digital-tourism tools in order to push more and more visitors to Jewish heritage sites and cultural events will create incentives for countries, local authorities and organizations to keep preserving and investing in their Jewish heritage assets, which will further promote tourism to these sites and events, creating an eco-system of Jewish heritage tourism,” he explained.
The first type of heritage the organization is set up to preserve is Jewish culinary heritage, via its new e-book about Israel’s hidden ethnic culinary gems, and an e-book series to follow, about Jewish cuisine in North America and Europe. “We chose food as the first aspect of our heritage we’re trying to preserve, as it represents such an important part of our culture,” Gottlieb said. “It’s the stories behind the food, and behind the people who make it, that are the gateway to so many other aspects of our heritage.”
WJHtravel, a travel app, is currently in beta testing, and is available at the App Store; the WJHpedia, a community-based resource, fully integrated with both the app and the e-book, is available online for users to share their experiences of Jewish heritage travel all around the world.
To help celebrate the event, Balaboosta offered classic and modern Israeli foods, like fried olives, mini falafel, kubeh, bourekas, Moroccan carrot salad and a lemony cocktail made with arak. Also telling the WJH story was Israeli food critic, author and TV personality Gil Hovav, who regaled a crowd of food bloggers and other foodies with stories about his life in Israeli cuisine.
Dr. Ayelet Erez, a visiting clinician scientist from the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot, Israel, was invited to speak at B.C. Children’s Hospital earlier this month.
The group was comprised of clinicians, researchers and clinical lab scientists. The event was organized by Dr. Hilary Vallance, a Weizmann Vancouver chapter member, who is director of the B.C. Newborn Screening Program and the Biochemical Genetics Lab within the department of pathology at the hospital.
Erez gave a talk on argininosuccinic aciduria (ASA), a rare inherited disorder caused by a lack of the functional gene necessary to make an enzyme called argininosuccinate lyase. Her talk led to a discussion with members of the hospital’s metabolic division in attendance regarding various aspects of her research and how her findings could potentially improve the practice of treating patients with argininosuccinate lyase deficiency here in British Columbia.
For more information on Erez or Weizmann Canada events in Vancouver, contact Jan Goldenberg, jan@weizmann.ca, or call 1-855-337-9611.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas at the United Nations General Assembly in September 2014. (photo from UN photo/Amanda Voisard)
The Israeli government has launched a public diplomacy campaign to discredit the legitimacy of the International Criminal Court’s recent decision to start an inquiry into what the Palestinians call Israeli “war crimes” in the disputed territories.
According to ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, the inquiry – which was initiated after a request by the Palestinian Authority – is not a formal investigation, but rather “a process of examining the information available in order to reach a fully informed determination on whether there is a reasonable basis to proceed with an investigation pursuant to the criteria established by the [ICC’s] Rome Statute.”
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas recently signed the Rome Statute in order to join the ICC after failing to get a UN Security Council resolution passed that called for Israel’s withdrawal from the disputed territories by 2017.
Israel’s campaign against the ICC inquiry will focus on the fact that the because the charges were filed by the PA, which is not a state, the court has no authority to act. In addition, the campaign will point out the court’s bias against Israel – a country on the frontline of the war against terrorism that makes sure to abide by international law by way of an independent legal system.
The Israeli government decided to launch the public diplomacy campaign at an emergency meeting in response to the ICC decision that was convened by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. The meeting, which took place at Netanyahu’s office, was attended by Israeli security, legal and diplomatic officials.
The ICC’s decision to launch the inquiry into Israeli actions is “the height of hypocrisy and the opposite of justice,” Netanyahu said on Sunday at the start of this week’s cabinet meeting, two days after the court announced the inquiry.
“During my years of public service, both as UN ambassador and as prime minister, I encountered these kinds of events, but this decision by the [ICC] prosecutor is in a league of its own,” Netanyahu said. “It gives international legitimacy to international terrorism.”
The prime minister said Israel would fight the ICC’s decision with every means it has available, including the enlistment of its allies. Along those lines, Israel is lobbying member states of the ICC to cut funding for the tribunal, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Sunday. Israel, which like the United States does not belong to the ICC, hopes to dent funding for the court that is drawn from its 122 member states in accordance with the size of member states’ economies, said Lieberman.
“We will demand of our friends in Canada, in Australia and in Germany simply to stop funding it,” Lieberman told Israel Radio.
Canada’s Foreign Minister John Baird, left, meets with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu earlier this week. (photo by Kobi Gideon/GPO)
After a hostile greeting by protesters in the Palestinian Authority capital of Ramallah, who pelted his convoy with shoes and eggs, Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird returned to Jerusalem to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and President Reuven Rivlin.
According to reports, Ramallah activists carried signs reading “Baird you are not welcome in Palestine.” Baird has opposed the PA’s bid for war crimes charges against Israel and other moves by the PA at the United Nations. Ottawa has also been vocally supportive of Israel during Stephen Harper’s tenure.
The foreign minister’s visit came on the anniversary of Harper’s tour of the region in 2014. Baird hoped to reaffirm Canada’s commitment to the strategic partnership and agreements forged on that visit. “Canada deeply values its close ties with Israel,” Baird said prior to his trip.
Baird traveled to Ramallah Sunday morning to meet with PA Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki. At that meeting, which Baird called “cordial and constructive,” Baird and Maliki discussed Canada’s “desire for a future of peace and prosperity, stability and security for both Palestinians and Israelis.”
Baird said Canada considers itself a “friend” to both Israel and the Palestinian Authority. “As friends, we have candid and frank exchanges on areas where we differ in opinion,” he said, adding that he asked Maliki to “strongly reconsider the consequences of moving forward with any action that may be counterproductive to a negotiated solution with the state of Israel.”
Last week, the PA brought war crimes charges against Israel at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, along with ongoing efforts to seek sanctions at the UN. Baird said these moves, “will not contribute to peace and security in the region.”
As Canadians, said Baird, “we strongly support Israel’s right to defend itself, and we will play our part to defend Israel from international attempts to delegitimize it.”
“Canada believes strongly in a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinian Authority,” Baird said prior to the trip. “Negotiations provide the only viable path to lasting peace.”
Returning from Ramallah Sunday afternoon, Baird met privately with Lieberman.
Lieberman has earned scorn with his plan to annex Israeli Arab villages to the PA. Under Lieberman’s plan, only those Arab citizens who moved to Israeli-controlled areas and pledged loyalty to the state of Israel would retain their current citizenship. Once considered a contender for prime minister, Lieberman’s chances have been diminished considerably by recent corruption allegations.
The ministers jointly signed four memoranda of understanding and agreements, including a declaration of solidarity and friendship, and a declaration on trade that Baird said aims “to double the value of our [countries’] commercial relationship.”
Baird said that with the rise of worldwide terrorism, including October’s attack on the Parliament buildings in Ottawa, “the relationship between Canada and Israel is stronger than ever been, and getting stronger every day.”
Business development between the two countries will be targeted specifically in the area of defence, security and cyber security, Baird said.
Canadian Ambassador Vivian Bercovici and other official representatives from both countries remained after Baird’s departure for award presentations to the 10 finalists of Grand Challenges Israel (GCI). Inspired by Grand Challenges Canada (GCC), which is led by chief executive officer Peter Singer, who received the Order of Canada in 2011, GCI rewards entrepreneurs for advances in affordable health care for the developing world. Finalists, chosen from more than 100 entries, presented innovations in water purification, disease diagnosis and an affordable wheelchair for children. Worldwide, the Grand Challenges initiative was launched by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in 2003.
Baird’s trip to the region included a stop in Egypt, which he visited prior to the Israel leg of his trip. There, he met with Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry but failed to ensure the release of Canadian-Egyptian journalist Mohamed Fahmy, convicted for being a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, a group that is now banned in Egypt.
A year ago, on Jan. 20, Harper became the first Canadian prime minister to speak in the Knesset. His remarks about Israel’s right to exist and defend itself received a standing ovation, along with jeers and catcalls from Israeli Arab MKs who walked out in protest. On that visit, Harper pledged millions of dollars in increased support for the PA. Although Harper’s visit was well received by the Israeli media, the Canadian press was critical of Harper’s large delegation and “rigid” pro-Israel stance.
Baird’s Israel agenda originally included stops at the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, both atop the Temple Mount area behind the Western Wall in Jerusalem. No reason was given for the decision to cancel visits there. Harper canceled a similar visit a year ago.
Baird met Netanyahu on Monday afternoon before leaving Israel. He continued to Davos, Switzerland, to attend the 2015 World Economic Forum from Jan. 21-24.
– For more national Jewish news, visit cjnews.com.
Paris terror suspect Hayat Boumedienne’s recent escape from France to Syria has renewed concern about Turkey’s ability and willingness to prevent terrorists from transiting through its territory.
Boumedienne is the romantic partner and alleged accomplice of Amedy Coulibaly, who was shot dead by police after killing four people in a kosher supermarket and shooting a police officer in Paris on Jan. 9. Airport footage shows Boumedienne’s arrival from Madrid to Istanbul on Jan. 2, and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavusoglu said she crossed the border to Syria six days later.
Turkey has been the subject of intense criticism from Western governments and commentators over its perceived lack of effort in stemming the flow of foreign fighters crossing its borders. However, some think this isn’t quite fair.
“I think it’s somewhat of a misplaced criticism,” said Sinan Ülgen, a scholar at Carnegie Europe. Though the Turkish government may have formerly looked the other way at the activities of Islamist groups because of a desire to bring down the Assad regime at any cost, “that policy by and large had changed by April 2014,” according to Ülgen.
At that time, Interior Minister Efkan Ala made an effort to enhance border security, “having realized the risks of getting into that sort of relationship with extremist groups,” said Ülgen. However, researcher Gareth Jenkins says it’s still very easy for foreign fighters to cross through Turkey.
“When you look at the ease with which [terrorists and would-be fighters] are able to go back and forth across the border, there still isn’t a full clampdown,” Jenkins said. “It’s not as easy as it used to be, but it’s still pretty easy.” He said he recently personally witnessed fighters in a Turkish village near the Syrian border. “There were jihadists sitting around waiting to go across.”
With some 40 million tourists visiting Turkey every year, border security is no easy task, but Jenkins says security forces could be doing a lot more. He claimed that difficulty over border security isn’t the only reason for Turkey’s failure at curbing the flow of foreign citizens seeking to join the ranks of ISIS and other groups.
Residents and staff from three of Shalom Residences’ homes in front of the home on Enniskillen Avenue. (photo by Kelsey Halldorson)
A few months ago, Shalom Residences was given the green light from Manitoba Family Services to add a new home in Winnipeg’s South End.
With the vision that people with intellectual disabilities should be full members of the community and that the community is responsible for ensuring that social, residential, religious and cultural opportunities exist to make this possible, a group of parents and other community volunteers founded Shalom Residences as a nonprofit organization in 1978. The first Shalom Residences home opened in 1980.
“Since 1980, Shalom Residences has added five more homes, expanding to provide service to 28 people (22 of whom live in six community residences/group living in single family homes),” said Nancy Hughes, the organization’s executive director since 1991. “These homes have two to five people living together, with staff working in shifts.
“The other six people we serve are in our Supported Independent Living (SIL) program. They each rent their own apartments and have staff support for 10 to 28 hours per week (for budgeting, shopping, meal planning and preparation, housekeeping, etc).”
Currently, all community residences and apartments are located in Winnipeg’s West Kildonan and Garden City areas.
“We’ve always gone about expansion in a careful, gradual way, and future planning includes a home for younger adults in the South End of the city,” said Hughes. “There is a very real need for this within the Jewish and general communities. We’re continuing to lobby our major funder, the [provincial government], to assist us to develop this resource.”
The organization also receives a grant from the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba to hire a part-time Jewish identity coordinator.
Shalom Residences provides Judaic-oriented programs, which includes developing community awareness and increased community acceptance of people with intellectual disabilities as full and equal citizens.
“Although we foster a Jewish milieu, our admission policies are non-sectarian,” noted Hughes. The organization’s ultimate objective is to enable those in its programs to achieve their potential as community members and to become as self-sufficient as possible.
“The people we support have a wide range of abilities and needs, so we offer a higher level of assistance in the community residences and a more independent arrangement in SIL,” said Hughes.
“For the first time, we’re looking in the South End of the city, [and] we have three young people who’ll be funded for this new home,” she said about the residence funding that was recently approved.
The search for a house will take place in River Heights and Crescentwood, and it possibly will include the neighborhoods of Lindenwoods and Charleswood. Once the house is selected, Shalom Residences will buy and renovate it for wheelchair accessibility.
The government will provide ongoing funding for staffing, food and shelter, but Shalom Residences needs to cover the down payment for the house and the initial furnishings. “We could certainly use donations towards some of the costs,” said Hughes.
According to Hughes, this is the first time the government has offered funding for young adults. “We’re very happy to be able to help people leave their family home and start an adult life of their own at a younger age,” she said.
One of the young adults for whom the funding was granted is Micah, one of a pair of twins born with disabilities on the autism spectrum. Micah’s mother, Karla Berbrayer, said, “He has a visual impairment as well as mild cerebral palsy. There is some developmental delay. Although Micah can do his times tables up to the 20 times level, and count to 500 in Hebrew, French and Spanish, he has challenges with daily living skills. My husband and I long ago accepted the fact that Micah cannot be left unattended in the home, and will always require a caregiver.”
The family has been planning for a home for Micah – and has been working with Hughes – for some 10 years, including petitioning the government for the funding, with the stipulation that Micah live in a Jewish setting in the South End with two other individuals close to his age. In their view, Shalom Residences was the only option.
“My husband and I keep a kosher home and observe all the Jewish holidays,” said Berbrayer. “The Jewish religion is a very important aspect of our lives, and we have raised all our children to value their Jewish identity.”
Berbrayer’s husband joined Shalom Residences’ board 20 years ago. He eventually became president and has remained active within the organization.
“We had begun to accept the concept that a new home in the South End for Micah may never happen,” said Berbrayer. “As recently as this fall, I said to my husband, ‘I don’t know that this will ever happen.’”
In November, the couple received the news that the funding for Micah had been approved and that a house would be opened in the South End for him and the two other individuals with whom they asked for him to be housed.
“I burst into tears when the news came,” said Berbrayer. “It was such an unbelievable accomplishment. I felt that I didn’t care how long it would take for the move to transpire, because now I knew that it would happen.”
She expressed gratitude to the government for the decision, and called the new home “a huge step for the organization,” noting that it had been a long time since a new residence had been opened, and that none has been located in the city’s South End.
There is a fundraising dinner for Shalom Residences planned for June. To purchase tickets, for more information or to volunteer, visit shalomresidences.com, email shalom@mts.net or call 1-204-582-7064.
Rebeca Kuropatwais a freelance writer living in Winnipeg.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Ron Prosor speaks in Vancouver on Feb. 3 and in Victoria on Feb. 4. (photo from Ron Prosor via Jewish National Fund Vancouver)
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations says Canada’s foreign policy is at the “heart of the world’s moral compass.”
In an email interview with the Jewish Independent, Ambassador Ron Prosor credited Canada as being a voice of reason and justice.
“Prime Minister [Stephen] Harper and Foreign Minister John Baird have proven time and again to be true friends to Israel,” Prosor said. “They are at the heart of the world’s moral compass.… Canada is standing with Israel as we stand on the frontline in the battle against terror. They are often the first to denounce the anti-Israel bias and stand up as the voice of justice and reason. There are many examples of this bond: Canada was a strong proponent of the effort to make Yom Kippur an official UN holiday; it partnered with us to organize the upcoming special session in the General Assembly on antisemitism; and was one of the few countries to condemn the Syrian delegate … for comparing Israel’s policy to that of the Nazis.”
Prosor spoke to the paper in advance of his visit here in early February, hosted by Jewish National Fund of Canada, British Columbia. He will speak Feb. 3 in Vancouver at Congregation Beth Israel, at 7:30 p.m., and in Victoria the following day, at 7:30 p.m., at Congregation Emanu-El.
Prosor criticized efforts by the Palestinian Authority to gain recognition at the UN and at the International Criminal Court, saying it is an effort to avoid a negotiated resolution to the conflict.
“The Palestinians have found every possible opportunity to avoid direct negotiations with Israel,” he said. “They have engaged in a never-ending string of political games, literally shooting in all directions and missing the real target. The fact of the matter is that their habit of bypassing negotiations by taking unilateral action and blaming everyone but themselves will only move us further from peace. It’s time for the Palestinians to aim higher and find constructive solutions – beginning by engaging in meaningful dialogue.”
The United Nations is the body that, in 1947, passed the Partition Resolution intended to create a Jewish and an Arab state in Palestine. Israel’s critics routinely note that the very agency that is responsible for its existence is repeatedly on record condemning Israeli policies. Prosor responds that the UN is not the same body it was nearly 70 years ago.
“The landscape of the UN has changed dramatically since its founding,” Prosor said. “Today, fewer than half of its member states are democracies. The halls of the UN used to ring with calls for human rights and human dignity; today, they ring with voices demonizing and delegitimizing the Jewish state. This year, the UN passed 20 resolutions condemning Israel. In comparison, the world’s worst human rights abusers – Iran, Syria, and North Korea – each received one condemnation. This anti-Israel bias pervades the UN system.”
Many of the UN’s most vociferous condemnations of Israel emanate from the UN Human Right Council (UNHRC).
“For years, the Human Rights Council has singled out Israel for condemnation,” Prosor said. “I have to note that some of the world’s most repressive regimes, including Saudi Arabia and Cuba, are members of the Human Rights Council.”
Saudi Arabia is currently in the international spotlight for carrying out the first of 20 court-ordered floggings of democracy blogger Raif Badawi. After Friday prayers a week ago, Badawi, who created the blog Free Saudi Liberals, was lashed 50 times over the course of 15 minutes in a public square in front of a mosque in Jeddah. He is scheduled to receive the same punishment for a total of 20 successive Fridays, or 1,000 lashes. This is in addition to his sentence of 10 years in prison.
Despite this immediate example and other atrocities perpetrated by elected members of UNHRC, the body’s attentions are overwhelmingly focused on the Jewish state, Prosor said.
“To date, there have been 22 emergency meetings of the HRC to deal with situations around the world – 33 percent of them dealt with Israel,” Prosor said. “Additionally, Israel is singled out during regular sessions. Article 4 of the Council’s agenda examines the abuses of every single country in the world, except one. Israel – and Israel alone – has its own permanent place on the agenda: Article 7. This isn’t just a double standard, it’s a triple standard. One standard for democracies, one standard for dictators and a whole other impossible standard for Israel.”
“Another example is the UN’s UNISPAL [UN Information System on the Question of Palestine] website,” Prosor said. “It has advertised ‘apartheid tours’ in Israel and promoted a petition calling for the Canadian prime minister to cancel a visit to Israel.
“The UN could be playing a more constructive role by investing less time targeting Israel and more time advancing peace and security, economic growth, women’s rights, minority rights and so on,” he said. “None of this will be possible so long as the institution is held hostage by the world’s most repressive regimes.”
Though he is the lead representative of Israel at an organization that sometimes seems to have condemnation of the Jewish state as its primary mission, Prosor insists he is not intimidated.
“I walk the halls of this organization tall and proud of my extraordinary nation, one of the freest and more democratic countries on earth,” he said. “At the UN, I feel it is important to show the world what Israel is about beyond our conflict. We have so much innovation and ingenuity to share in agriculture, medicine, high-tech, education and more. We are a nation of just eight million that has produced 12 Nobel prizes, that sends satellites into space, puts electric cars on the road and develops the technology to power everything from cellphones to solar panels to medical devices. I feel privileged to represent Israel and the Jewish people.”
Prosor said he is bringing a message to Canada that emphasizes the parallels between the two countries.
“Israel and Canada share the same value system – we believe in democracy, justice, human rights and peace,” he said. “Together, we are standing firm amidst the stormy seas of global diplomacy to make the world a more peaceful place. The UN needs more countries like Canada – countries that are willing to take a stand and defend our common values.”
Rasha Athamni was the first Israeli selected to represent the nation as a youth delegate to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, serving during the 69th session from September through November 2014. The youth delegates program was started 1981 but, until then, Israel had not chosen to participate.
Rasha Athamni was the Israeli youth delegate to the 69th session of the General Assembly, which ran from September through November 2014. (photo from undesadspd.org)
Athamni, 29, was raised in the Israeli Arab town of Baka Al-Gharbiyah, the youngest of nine children and the first in her family to graduate high school and university; her parents do not read or write. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and English literature from Jerusalem’s Hebrew University and is currently working on her master’s in English literature. She also guides tours of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset. In her first interview with media, Athamni spoke with the Media Line.
TML: What prompted you to apply to become a United Nations youth delegate … and on behalf of the state of Israel, no less?
RA: Ever since I was a child, my biggest dream was to become a member in this UN society because that’s the ideal, the universality, people go out and help others that are in need. I am a citizen of Israel and I have a right to apply and to go through the interviews, and that’s what I did. When I got the acceptance letter, I was just thrilled. Hundreds applied after there was a call for applicants published on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ website. Only 12 or 13 were invited to go through the interview and I was one of them. And then, after the final decision, I got be the first and only youth delegate for Israel for the UN.
TML: Is there a distinction between Israeli Arabs and Palestinians living in Israel and, if so, what is the difference?
RA: Well, it’s a bit complicated – that’s the best adjective that I can use to describe it. It’s a question every Arab citizen in Israel has to answer sooner or later. On the one hand, my mother’s side is Arabic; my parents are Arabs. On the other hand, I live in the centre of Israel and I have an Israeli ID and passport. But, I’m not Jewish, so it’s very complicated. You really need to establish a sense of yourself that is solid enough to represent Israel, especially at the UN.
TML: How did you end up where you are today, studying for a second degree at Hebrew University?
RA: I was primarily motivated by my mother because, ever since I was a little kid, she told me it was very important for me to go to school because that would be the best [chance] that I would have in our society and that I should appreciate that because she herself couldn’t do it. All she really wants in life is that one of her kids becomes a doctor. I didn’t become a doctor. That was disappointment number one, but I did get a degree in psychology and English literature from the best university in Israel, and now I’m doing my master’s in English literature.
TML: How did you get involved with the Israeli government?
RA: About two years ago, the students association at the Hebrew University was looking for a coordinator for a coexistence project that brought together eight Jewish and eight Arab Israeli women students. I applied and got the job. It was a very fascinating year for me and for each one of those students that participated.
It’s very funny when you think about it. Even though they study the same courses and they go to the same classes, you’d see the majority of Jewish students would sit on one side of the hall and the minority on the other side, so there’s this psychological barrier between them. After they got to learn about each other and meet each other, then the hate recedes. That’s beyond nationality, ethnicity or religion. That’s when that barrier just disappeared and they started to sit and study with each other. The Jewish girl would go and teach the Arab girl Hebrew and the Arab girl would go and teach the Jewish girl English.
One of the girls used to work as a tour guide in the Knesset. I needed to support myself, so I got information from her and I applied for the job, and I still give tours in Arabic, Hebrew and English.
TML: How did your family react to that?
RA: My family is very apolitical. They grew up in a society where it was taboo to talk about politics because for them that meant either jail or exile. For me, now, that sounds like paranoia, being afraid to express your own opinion because of your background. There is some truth in that, but they just took it to the extreme. My family was really scared that my being involved in politics or social change or anything that has to do with the state of Israel could mean the demise of my image in my own community, and that’s a fear that they’re still experiencing. My mother, every time I call her, tells me that I shouldn’t do that and it’s never too late back out.
TML: Was there backlash from other Arabs or from Arabs who happen to be of Israeli descent?
RA: At the UN, no. They’re all very diplomatic. Whenever I introduced myself, they said, “Good job as the youth delegate of Israel,” even though that person was from Jordan, Yemen or Egypt. It just didn’t make any sense because they would attack Israel in the committee for human rights but they had no problem talking to an Israeli in the corridors.
TML: You said you represented Israel, responding to different discussions that go on in the United Nations.
RA: After I was picked to represent the youth of Israel, I had a two-month training period at the Foreign Ministry, then traveled to New York for three months, where my job was to summarize the meetings of the committee on human rights. I attended informal briefings at which UN delegates would discuss the terms and wordings of the resolutions, and would also go to events that the delegation would be invited to.
My most prominent moment came when I delivered a speech on behalf of the youth of Israel. This was at the opening of the first meeting of the human rights committee. When it was time for the youth delegation to speak, they spoke about the rights of the youth, why is it really important. Youth belong to a very strange category because they are not children and are not yet adults, so we tend to disregard their needs. A person needs to get a first degree and a second degree in order to just have the opportunity to apply for a job. These are just some of the topics that we covered, along with health, gender equality and education, which is very basic in our country but in other countries is a goal to strive for.
TML: Two of your passions are human rights and social responsibility. What issues were most challenging?
RA: Whenever I attended meetings of the committee for human rights, I had to sit in Israel’s space and, just sitting there, I felt terrified. On my first day, to my left there was Iran. In front of me was Egypt and Jordan, and behind me was Qatar. I felt what Israel feels like at the international level, being under attack even though this was my first experience hearing the attacks. What was interesting for me was how every country would attack Israel disregarding what they do within their own borders. You’d hear the delegation from Syria attacking Israel for violations on human rights, which doesn’t make much sense. A country representing their own people needs to address their own problems rather than pretending that everything is fine within their own borders, and then attack[ing] another country and join[ing] with others who are against it. That country most of the time happens to be Israel.
TML: As an Israeli citizen, how did that make you feel?
RA: It didn’t feel fair. There are always two sides to a conflict. It seemed that one side is more represented than the other side – that other side is Israel. I just felt that someone needs to be given a floor to express and talk about [the] good things that Israel is doing: the humanitarian assistance that Israel is giving to Gaza and the West Bank. There is a project called Save a Child’s Heart. Every Tuesday, a child from Gaza goes to Israel for heart surgery. There are also negatives, but you can’t just focus on that. There is much hope that is being missed when everyone focuses on the bad stuff.
