By Ted Belman
I attended this conference today and it was quite exciting.
Abraham Sion, Chair of The Centre for Law and Mass Media gave the opening address. He is a law professor and advocate of keeping Judea and Samaria.
The most interesting panel was on International Law and the settlements in Judea and Samaria which was chaired by attorney Marc Zell, former partner of Doublas Feith. Alan Baker, member of the Levy Commission, advocated for the Report’s acceptance, Prof Gerald Adler, sat in for Howard Grief, and expounded on his specialty, international law. He is a very old classmate of mine from law school.
What made the panel catch fire was that Talia Sasson the author of the Sasson Report on the settlements that Israel adopted and followed for about 6 years, took part. It is this report that the right hates and the Levy Commission took issue with. She willingly entered the lion’s den and staunchly defended it and staunchly attacked the Levy Report for ignoring the Israel Supreme Court.
That got everybody’s dander up including that of the panelists who all rebutted her. Zell went so far as to impune her Report saying it was politically motivated due to her active involvement with the Geneva Initiative and the Meretz Party. Sion in his closing remarks also tore into her for deny our right to build in Judea and Samaria.
The next panel considered what would happen if Jordan is taken over by a Palestinian Government, at least it was supposed to consider it. The panelist included Motti Kedar, who acquitted himself well as always. Architect Yoram Ginsberg, a long time advocate of keeping Judea and Samaria, was a new voice for me. He made a point that I have made in the past. Israel doesn’t exist in the West and shouldn’t be ruled by its norms. It must accommodate to its neighbourhood. He was dead set against giving citizenship at all. He cited that many people live in countries that don’t offer them citizenship and no one complains.
William Koenig, White House Correspondent in Washington was an eloquent speaker and spoke for our friends in Congress and Senate and in the fly-over country who wanted Israel to hang on to Judea and Samaria. I went up to him after his panel segment ended, to get to meet him, thinking he would be a worthwhile contact. Before I could introduce myself to him he read my name card and immediately said “I know you, I have been getting your daily email for years”. Made my day. We agreed to get together.
Other people I chatted with included Mort Klein, Nadia Matar, Motti Kedar, Mordechai Nisan, author of Only Israel, West of the River, Ari Briggs, Head of Regavim, and Martin Sherman.
I expect all these people, with the exception of Klein and Koenig, to attend a meeting I am setting up in Jerusalem in July to attempt to get everyone on board with an agreed political action plan to annex all of Judea and Samaria or just Area C as they determine. I will keep you posted.
I want to give special mention to another individual whom I met at the conference, namely Aharon Pulver, Executive Director of Israel Independence Fund. I had never heard of that fund before and he informed me that it was the antithesis of the NIF. The fund supports many right wing causes like Regavim and Israel Law Forum. It is funded by a limited number of well to do Zionists.
There is hope for us right wingers yet.
I am all for it and I am an independent.
Don’t fall into the Left’s semantic trap. “right wingers” has become a pejorative term.
Perhaps you can suggest a better label. Independent thinkers? Conservatives? Realists (unfortunately the latter term has been appropriated by the anti-Israel crowd)?
@ Laura:
Good to know.
It wouldn’t be a proper Jewish gathering without arguments.
my #5 comment to Doreen Weeks in moderation
Doreen O. Weeks Said:
There are precedents for the establishment of an affirmative action policy designed to restore justice and mitigate damage. The illegal british immigration policy, the illegal Jordanian occupation and the illegal Israeli obstruction of internationally guaranteed jewish legal settlement rights west of the Jordan river need correcting. The only fair correction would be an accelerated program of Jewish settlement in a short time. There are large portions of govt lands, originally intended for jewish settlement, in YS that could be offered as free land grants to Jews making aliya. Affirmative action policies have become a globally accepted legal tool to restore Justice and mitigate damage. First the re-establishment of the legality of Jewish settlement, second the re-establishment of the legal imperative to “encourage” that settlement according to international law, then the affirmative action plan to restore justice.
Very good news, seems like common sense is on the rise.
“However, applying Israeli law over Judea and Samaria needs to be complemented by a wave of aliyah,” declared Matar.
a very good point to be considered. Israelis and Jews should accept no double standards which the west likes to impose on the jews. I doubt that there is any “extreme” proposal that has not already been done by others without complaint or objection. Why should Israel be the west’s version of the “ideal” state?
Bravo, good luck.
If at all relevant: please find out if any one has an argument against Jewish legal settlement without arguments involving the state of Israel or confusing the states responsibilities, and claims, with those of the Jewish people referred to in the LON Mandate..
Sounded good.