Rabbi seeks peace

An Israeli rabbi works for peace and justice in Israel and Palestine

Witherspooner Darrell Yeaney shares this report from a rabbi who sees non-violence as offering some hope in the continuing conflicts between Israelis and Palestinians

Israeli rabbi finds hope in nonviolent resistance

[5-28-01]

from The Center for Policy Analysis on Palestine / 2425-35 Virginia Ave., NW / Washington, DC

"Growing up . . . in the American Jewish community, it was assumed that a basic part of what it means to be a Jew is to be concerned with universal human rights and social justice," said Rabbi Arik Ascherman at a Center briefing on 21 May 2001. Ascherman is the Executive Director of Rabbis for Human Rights (RHR), an organization that defends the rights of Palestinians and Israelis through lobbying, "direct advocacy," and "acts of civil disobedience."

When Ascherman first moved to Israel, he discovered that most Israelis are secular, and see religious Judaism as a "mixture of extreme nationalism and particularism." The "first mandate" of RHR is to defend economic and social rights, ranging from improving access to health care in Israel to challenging Israel's harsh occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. An "equally important mandate perhaps is to be a voice introducing into people's intellectual universe" that humanism is a significant part of Judaism. Because Genesis states that "all human beings are created in God's image, . . . Judaism cannot condone the mistreatment or oppression or humiliation of any human being."

Prior to the current intifada, RHR's "main thrust" in the Occupied Territories was to challenge Israel's creation of facts on the ground. The organization defended both the Jahalin Bedouin, who were pushed off their land "encampment by encampment" by the Maale Adumin settlement, and Palestinians facing home demolitions. Forcing the Bedouin off their land and destroying homes are "both ways of keeping Area C," or the majority of West Bank land, as "free of a Palestinian presence as possible." Israel even destroys the homes of Palestinians with clean records and clear rights to their land.

In June and July of 1998, there were generally one or two demolitions every day. On a single day in July, Israel demolished five homes. "To see this happen, to feel so powerless, to see the violence, to go back home to Jerusalem where life went on as if nothing happened" was for Rabbi Ben Hollander, a member of RHR who witnessed the destruction, "the absolute worst day of his life." However, "the absolute best day of his life was when in an act of civil disobedience, we came back and we rebuilt [one of the] home[s]." The work of RHR, the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, and other organizations, in partnership with Palestinians, hada positive effect. The number of demolitions eventually went "way down" and were "almost non-existent." Since the intifada, however, the number has greatly increased. There are currently 2,000 standing demolition orders.

Ascherman highlighted four basic positions held by Israeli progressives since the uprising began. First, although overplayed by the media, "a great number of people . . . have become angry" with the level of Palestinian violence and are no longer active in the peace movement. The second group is comprised of those who argue that there is symmetry between Israel and the Palestinians and they share equal responsibility for the violence. In the third group are those who say the Oslo process was always flawed and they are pleased that it failed. Moreover, they add, the failure is "all Israel's fault, and in that context, the Palestinians are justified in waging their struggle for national liberation by any means possible." Finally, there are those who share the position of RHR. They believe that "all violence is wrong," "morally unacceptable, and . . . strategically counter-productive." However, "we reject the idea of symmetry. . . . At the end of the day, it is Israel who holds most of the cards." This is true regarding the current crisis and the events leading up to it.

Ascherman cited a report from B'Tselem: The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories. The "picture that emerged" from their study of the intifada and Israel's crack-down was that "Israel shot first" with the intent "to injure or kill, not just to disperse." B'Tselem also concluded that often, Israelis fired when they were not in danger. In response to the notion that Palestinians are sending their children out to die, B'Tselem asserted that the Palestinian Authority (PA) could have done more to "keep them away," but children were not deliberately sent to the front lines. Ascherman knows many Palestinians parents who tried to prevent their children from going to flash points.

Ascherman believes that Ariel Sharon's visit to the Haram al-Sharif was not the cause of the uprising, but was the spark on "dry tinder." The explosive situation was created by the continuation of unrelenting home demolitions, water shortages, land confiscations, and other Israeli violations of Palestinian rights running "parallel to the negotiations." Many Palestinians concluded: "This is not a peace process." Even if it is, they would add, there will not be anything left of their homes and land by the time the process is completed.

As for the crisis that resulted, Ascherman fears that "we're just in for a five to ten year cycle of violence until people get tired of killing each other." Nonetheless, he hopes that Israel "will take actions to reduce the violence." He continued by saying, "I'm in favor of some kind of international force," largely because he thinks this may help Palestinians feel more secure and more comfortable with stepping back from violent activities as well.

"I personally have undergone a transformation of sorts" in the last few months, continued Ascherman. He has become more convinced that there needs to be a move from protest to active nonviolent resistance, such as removing Israeli roadblocks in the Occupied Territories. "Increasingly, people are coming back to their senses a bit" in Israel and are opposing the wholesale punishment of the Palestinian population. Together, Palestinians and Israelis are actively involved in nonviolent resistance. When asked if nonviolence is working, he said that stories of RHR's activities have reached the level of PA President Yasser Arafat, and support for nonviolence is developing. Some see positive results coming from nonviolent activities. These developments are "cause[s] for hope."

The "bottom line," said Ascherman, is that he is "being selfish." If Ascherman did nothing to challenge the ongoing violations of human rights, he wondered how he would respond when a few years from now his two-year-old daughter asked him, "Daddy, where were you when . . . ?"

NOTE
The above text is based on remarks delivered on 21 May 2001 by Rabbi Arik Ascherman, Executive Director of Rabbis for Human Rights. His views do not necessarily reflect those of CPAP or The Jerusalem Fund. This "For the Record" was written by CPAP Publications Manager Wendy Lehman; it may be used without permission but with proper attribution to the Center for Policy Analysis on Palestine.