An Eye Opening Experience

MFL President Darlene Dziewit reports on her trip to Israel.

-Darlene Dziewit

I was invited to participate in a briefing mission to Israel sponsored by the Canada-Israel Committee. The Committee has sponsored similar trips for a number of groups in the past. This one was arranged for New Democrats from across Canada.

One of the Palestine settlements Darlene Dziewit saw during her trip to Israel.

Throughout our stay, the days were packed with events, meetings and tours. Over all, I believe we were given a reasonably balanced view of the situation in Israel. We met with Israeli citizens, both Jews and Muslims. We also met with Palestinians, both Muslim and Christian.

Members of our group had asked for certain briefings (e.g. union representatives, women's and gay rights activists, health care experts), and to the best of my knowledge our requests were fulfilled. We were unable to enter Romallah, as originally planned, or any other Palestinian city in either the West Bank or Gaza for reasons of security, due to the recent heightened violence between Hamas and Fatah. Our meetings with representatives from Palestinian areas were held in Jerusalem.

Darlene Dziewit at a Jerusalem overlook.

We were given a walking tour of Old Jerusalem, which is of great importance to Jews, Muslims and Christians alike. It became clear why there is so much strife among the various religious groups in Jerusalem - they exist, quite literally, immediately next to, and sometimes on top of, one another.

We visited Hadassah Hospital and received a presentation on the Israeli health care system from Professor Theodore Tulchinsky, who is an expert on public health. Of interest to those of us from Manitoba was the fact that Professor Tulchinsky was the Deputy Minister of Health in the Schreyer Government.

We met with Nawaf Massalha, a representative of Histadrut, Israel's fairly powerful Labour organization. Mr. Massalha spent most of his time discussing the political situation in Israel, which while interesting, was not about the labour movement in Israel. I did ask several questions.

During dinner we met with Professor Naomi Chazen, a leftist and expert on women's issues. Professor Chazen provided a different perspective on Palestinian-Israeli relations, in that she supports more dialogue and less defense.

We visited the Israeli Supreme Court, which is far more accessible to citizens than is the Canadian Court. It hears from anyone who wants to ask for a ruling, and is very busy. The building is beautiful and full of symbolism. It is also connected to the Knesset, Israel's parliament.

Darlene Dziewit and her group at the Seam Line.

We drove to the seam line (or security fence, or wall) on the outskirts of Jerusalem and received a briefing from a member of the IDF (Israeli Defense Force). The fence is almost complete. In most places, it is a double mesh fence which is patrolled and electronically monitored. There are sections, however that are cement wall. These areas, such as where we toured, are where the most sniper shootings have taken place. Once again I was struck by the proximity of everything. Just below the hill where we were standing was Palestinian territory, with Romallah just over the next hill.

We went to the Knesset and met with three MKs, or members of the Knesset. One of the MKs was Ronit Tirosh, a member of the ruling Kadima Party. The other two MKs were members on the Pensioners Party. Political discussions are always interesting, and this was no exception. The general consensus was that Israeli politics is volatile, and Kadima will not likely win the next election.

We next attended a briefing session with Daniel Taub, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We had some discussion on Israel's Strategic Outlook, including how the country could look if hostilities would cease long enough to negotiate.

From the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we attended a meeting and dinner with three Palestinian members of Fatah, and David Viveash who is Representative of Canada to the Palestinian Authority (there were no meetings with Hamas, since neither Israel nor Canada will enter into relations with Hamas). The meeting was interesting with the three members of Fatah having different styles of discussion. Two of them, Professor Bernard Sabella and Dr. Zahar Colosne voiced interest in trying to find solutions and did recognize Israel's right to exist. The third member we met with, Jihad Abuzniad, was not as conciliatory. Over dinner Professor Sabella told me that Fatah needs to learn how to handle a political campaign. My suggestion was to contact Canadian political parties, or the Canadian Labour Congress for advice.

Day four began with a breakfast meeting with Bassem Eid, of the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group. Mr. Eid and his group have been fighting to expose both human rights abuse and corruption in the Palestinian territory. He did not have anything good to say about the late Yasser Arafat, nor is he impressed with either Arafat’s successor or with Hamas.

In Tel Aviv (right) we had dinner with Canadian Ambassador Jon Allan and his wife, Clara Hirsh, who are both Winnipeggers. The following day over lunch we met with Tel Aviv City Councillor and gay rights activist Itai Pinkas. The marriage laws in Israel are based totally on religion, with no civic marriages. This is a challenge for gay couples who wish to marry, but since the state will register civic marriages held outside the country, a recent Israeli Supreme Court ruling allowing the Canadian marriages of Israeli couples (including Itai and his partner) gave some of our discussion a Canadian flavour.

There were a lot of serious discussions during the tour - but time for a little fun, too. Darlene Dziewit rides a camel - which she says was not one of the smoothest rides she's ever had.

I am grateful for the opportunity to have taken this trip to Israel. The doors opened to our group, and the chance to hear so many differing points of view were invaluable. Those who made presentations to the group were generous with their time and knowledge. The Canada-Israel Committee certainly holds a pro-Israel bias, but I never felt pushed or pressured to conform to any particular belief. For that I commend the Committee.

Personally I am, and always have been, sympathetic to Israel. I believe the Jews have a right to a country of their own. That has not changed. I do not, however, profess that a week in Israel has made me an expert on mid-eastern politics. It is an understatement to say that the situation is complex and very difficult. I know for certain that I will be watching the region more carefully, and I will be more analytical and critical when forming opinions from the media reports on events in Israel.