President Rivlin (the new Israeli
President) working on anti-racism program
Tells Reform leaders: 'This is a
terrible evil and a disgrace to Israeli life.'
By Or Kashti | Aug. 27, 2014 | Haaretz
President Reuven Rivlin has been
working in recent weeks on a multidisciplinary program to combat incitement and
violence, as he replied in a letter to the head of the Reform Movement who had
congratulated him when he took office. Several discussions about the program,
which is in the preliminary stages, have already taken place in various
government ministries, including the Education Ministry.
“Since I was chosen for my position,
I have devoted most of my time to a cross-border, cross-sector Israeli campaign
in the homes of all the soldiers who fell in Operation Protective Edge. I have
met amazing families and wonderful young people who display great energy, good
will, dedication and Zionism,” Rivlin wrote about two weeks ago to Reform
Movement leaders in Israel. “Still, I have not refrained from expressing my
fears of the rising voices of hatred, hotheadedness and racism in Israeli
society, particularly between Arab and Jewish citizens of Israel.”
Rivlin added, “These voices find
expression at sports matches, on social networks and in the media. This is a
terrible evil and a disgrace to Israeli life, which must find ways to isolate
and uproot it.”
Rivlin has spoken out several times
in recent weeks against displays of hatred and racism. In his first Knesset
speech after being sworn in as president, he said: “At this difficult time,
too, we must not close our eyes to the extremism and violence that have raised
their ugly heads among us.”
On July 30, he expressed support for
the “situation room of sanity” established by Gili Roman, a teacher at Hakfar
Hayarok High School, in which pupils respond “to violence and bullying with a
voice of moderation and tolerance.”
On August 6, Rivlin condemned the
racial slurs that had been shouted at Maharan Radi, a player on the Maccabi Tel
Aviv soccer team, and on August 17 he wrote, “The displays of incitement
against [married couple] Mahmoud [Mansour] and Morel [Malka] of Jaffa are
infuriating and distressing. ... There are tough and harsh disagreements among
us, but incitement, violence and racism have no place in Israeli society.”
In his letter to the heads of the
Reform Movement, Rivlin wrote, “Even before I was elected, and with greater
intensity since I was elected, I have been working together with my advisory
team on preparing and presenting a multidisciplinary program to combat
incitement and violence. I hope that this program will solidify the efforts to
combat violence in society as a whole, and contribute to a positive and
supportive atmosphere that will take the form of a long-term change in the
public climate in the State of Israel.” Sources in the president’s official
residence said that Rivlin’s work on the issue was “in the first stages of
preparation.”
The executive director of the Reform
Movement in Israel, Rabbi Gilad Kariv, sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yair Lapid urging the establishment of an
interministerial committee for the fight against racism, as stipulated in the
coalition agreement between Yesh Atid and Likud-Yisrael Beiteinu. No such
committee has been established yet.
