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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Alighieri who wrote (291447)	6/17/2006 8:31:33 AM
From: Elroy	Respond to of 1571398

Who says Israelis are not racist? By As'ad Abdul Rahman, Special to Gulf News The results of a poll carried out by Geocartographia Research Institute headed by Professor Avi Degani are very disturbing not only for Palestinian Arabs but for all those who abhor racism and discrimination worldwide. The results show the extent of anti Palestinian/Arab sentiment most Israelis harbour. Some of the findings include: More than two-thirds of Israeli Jews would refuse to live in the same building with a Palestinian/Arab. Almost half would not allow a Palestinian/Arab in their home. 41 per cent want segregation in entertainment facilities. 40 per cent think Israel should "support the emigration of Arab citizens". 63 per cent consider Israeli Arab citizens as a potential security and demographic threat to the state. 34 per cent agreed with the notion that "Arab culture is inferior to the Israeli culture". 18 per cent stated they felt hatred when they heard someone speaking Arabic. These findings are outrageous enough on their own. The recent parliamentary elections in Israel only upheld these findings as parties that ran on anti-Arab platforms fared best. Israel Baiteina, which made major gains in the election, ran on a platform that advocates re-drawing the borders of the state in a way that would, if implemented, keep half a million Arabs in Galilee outside the new borders. The jubilant party Chairman Avigdor Lieberman said: "We have become the largest party in the national camp and I am certain that next time we will become Israel's ruling party". Rather than re-drawing Israel's borders to maintain a Jewish majority, other parties on the far right advocate "emigration" of Arabs. Such a course of action runs contrary to international law but then how many of Israel's actions conform with international law? The US with its veto-wielding powers in the Security Council is always ready to help Israel and relieve any unwelcome decision. Israel certainly is a racist state. Its own human rights activists call it that. The claim that Israel doesn't discriminate against non-Jews is absurd. The Jewish National Fund owns more than 90 per cent of the land in Israel. This land could never be sold to, rented to or leased to a non-Jew. If this is not discriminatory what is? Any Jew in the world is automatically eligible to become a citizen of the state the moment he steps in the country. Thus a Russian Jew, for example, can become a citizen, but a Palestinian driven out of his own country in 1948 cannot return. Special rights Supporters of Israel often claim that it is "the only democracy in the Middle East". Although all Israeli citizens, including Arabs (who constitute 20 per cent of the total population), have the right to vote in elections, discriminatory practices keep a large part of the population of Israel subjugated. But not all rights are citizenship rights. Other rights are defined as nationality rights and are reserved for Jews only. Jews only have exclusive use of land, privileged access to public and private employment, special educational rights, home mortgages, preferences for admission to universities and many others. Other special privileges are reserved for those who have served in the Israeli military. And military service is compulsory for all Jews, except for the ultra-orthodox who nonetheless get the same rights as other Jews but excludes the Israeli Arab. Despite Israel's booming economy, Israeli Arab unemployment is skyrocketing. In the year 2000, twice as many Israeli Arabs as Jewish citizens lived below the poverty line. Less than 5 per cent of government employees are Israeli Arabs who constitute more than 20 per cent of the total population, and more than 80 per cent of all student dropouts are Israeli Arabs. Unlike any other country in the world, Israel does not define itself as a state of its residents, or even a state of its citizens, but as a state of all the Jews in the world. Jews from anywhere in the world can travel to Israel, declare citizenship and be granted all the privileges of being Jewish that are denied to Palestinians who have lived in the area for hundreds of years. On another level, the wall that cuts off the best land from its Palestinian owners is explained by security needs. Shooting children, enclaves, harassment and humiliation at checkpoints deep inside the West Bank are all security needs. Racism has become so entrenched that any form of collective punishment of innocent people is justified in the eyes of the Israeli public. Fortunately, a growing number of Jews inside and outside Israel are beginning to defy the slanders of the Zionist Lobby and speak out against the human rights abuses Israel inflicts on the Palestinians. That is the duty of all people of conscience. Acts that would be considered unacceptable in the West cannot be condoned simply because they are done by Israelis to Palestinians. That is in itself an unacceptable and a racist attitude.