JPRS ID: 9752 USSR REPORT ECONOMIC AFFAIRS

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JPFS L/9998
21 September 1981 .
. Near East North Africa Re ort
p
- (FOUO 32/81)
Fg~~ FOREIGN BROADCAST INFORMATION SERVICE
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JPRS L/9998
21 September 1981
- NEAR EAST/NORTH AFRICA REPORT
(FOUO 32/81)
- CONTENTS
ISRAEL
Sephardic Views on Peace, International Relations Discussed
(NEW OUTLOOK, Jul-Aug 81) 1
Peace Attitudes Viewed, by Shalom Cohen
Presidenton Sephardic Community, by Yitzhak Navon
Sephardi Leader interviewed, Elie Eliachar Interview
Sephardi Federation Leader on Peace, by Nessim D. Gaon
Sephardim: Peace With Egypt, by Mordecai Jules Soussan
Attitudes Toward Begin, David Sitton Interview
~ Ashkenazi Cultural Hegemony, by Sammy Smouha
MOROCCO
Libya's Support of PE?LISARIO Continued
(Ian Black; THE GUARDIAN, 9 Sep 81) ~4
- - a- [ II I- NE & A- 121 FOUO J
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ISRAEL
SEPHARDIC VIEWS ON PEA,CE, INTERNATIONAL REIATIONS DISCUSSED
Peace Attitudes Viewed
Tel Aviv NEW OUTLOOK in English Jul Aug 81 pp 35, 66
~Ar~icle by Shalom Cohen: "Destruction of the Myth"~
~Text]
The Sephazdis - and Peace. Two subjects types, examples of this include: the Sephardis
which have never been dealt with together are lary and addicted to a.ak, they beat their
, except to ;.-~~~ly that the Sephardis are hostile wi~es - after malQng th~sm produce a dozen
to peace. Buz, it is said, Israel vvants peace, ldds of course - they have an implacable
The Sephardi Jews - the term used to define hatred for the Arabs ancl, it gces without
all Jevus originatinq from Arab and Moslem saying, are opposed to peac2. �
countries, even though the literal meaning of Litfle can be done ~o shake fixed stereo-
the term would limit it to JeHS of "Spanish" types whichare adheredtoblindly, "con~irmed"
oriqin - actually consdtute the majority of and "proved" repeatedly throuqhout almost
~ the Jewish populatior. of Lsrael. Even if we two generations by "researchars". It was
- maintain that all Ashkenazi Jews favor peace, necessarv for certain truths tu be
even then those who want peace would be only declared from the r~c+ftops, loudly if not violent-
a minority. But God knows tkero are plenty ly, in order to cast doubt on these myths, and
of Ashkenazis in the Israeli equivalent of that is why New Oudook, convinced that
the Rejection camp. So either of the followinq Jews and Arabs can and should live in peac~
statements has got to be false: that the Sephar- in the same land, have decided to tackle this
dis are not hostile to peace - or that Israel thorny problem. ~
dces not want peace. It is not our int ention to claim tha: *1~e
- No or..e in Israel has ever yet be~n sufficiendy entire Sephardi com.~uniry is devoted to the
disturbed by these widely held assumptions cause of peace, but rather to state our firm
to point out this t7aqrant contradiction. This is conviction that, without their massive parti-
most probably because, as in everythinq dealing cipation, peace can neve: be achieved. That is
with Sephardi Jews, th~se in power prefer to why it is so vital to re-establish the balance
hold on to the set stereotypes which ttiey of information and to help acquaint the public
- themselves created, displaying a rea~as~kable with those who have undertaken to dec:icate
consistency in this matter. Without seeldng to themselves to peace - a role well fitted to tre
list all the attributes pertaining to these ster~o- Seph.ardis, not only because they r~present thP
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majority of Israelis but also because of their uphold the most outstan~inq aspects of Israeli
history and the mission it confe~s on them in Sephardism, and who today, as in the past,

� the liqht of a past of peaceful co-existence play a major role in the process of politization
based on mutual understanding. if the Sephardi of Oriantal Jews.
Jews had not existed, the State of Israel would Ws hope we have ~uade some contribution
have had to invent them, so as to facilitate towards countecinq the prejudices so widely ~ �
its inteqration into the family of Middle F.ast held aqainst the Sepharciis by pointinq out
= nations. the problams faced by the Sephardi commu-
In this month's issue of New Oudook we nities in Israel and the Diaspora, by showing
have published several articles, and excerpts that oriental Jetnrs are w~ell repnsented in the ~
from articles, which appeared in Les Sepharades camp of peace and dialoque with the Arab
et la Paix, a recent New Outlook publication wodd. From now on, no one can any longer
in French. claim ignorance of their contribution.
We have not attempted to present a collec- Even if our eflort has nat allowed one to
_ tion of erudite studies on Chiental Jewry, coaclude that the Sephardis are the most
but preferred instead, to qive them the oppor- fe~vent supportecs of peace, we hope at least
tuniry to speak for themselves. Thus, we have to have helped gsove that they do not nurture
not confined ourselves to official personalities the fierce hatred of the Arabs that is so often
- whose words one is accustomed to reading or attributed to them by researchers.
- hearinq, but have also asked militants who While the terms Sephardis and "peace" may
not be synonymous, neither are they mutually
exclusive.
President on Sephardic Co~unity
Tel Avi.v NEW OUTLOOK in Er~~~~~~, Jul-Aug 81 pp 36-39
V
~Articl~ by President Yitzhak Navon: "Roots and a Future"] ~
~Text~
Of all Israel's achievements, the most original Icibbu3zim risks a questioninq of the pianeering
and worthwhile is the Kibbutz. Even the ideals, '~vhilst the qrowing gap between the ,
greatest utopians never in their wildest dreams ldbbutzim and their environment causes the
envisioned the solidificarion of this rype of focmer to retreat more and more into itself.
society, founded upon equaliry and justice. The fact that the ldbbutzim must resort to
Though those few thousand Israelis in question salaried worker~ has touched upon their morals.
consritute about 3% of the populatia�, their But when a worker from Migdal Ha'emek
~ impact far outweighs their numbecs. In the employed in the faucet factory of the neigh-
Knesset they hold no less than 16�~ of the boring Kibbutz Alonim is not allowed to use
seats, and not one political party fails to the Olympic-sized pool there, the abandon-
. include ldbbutz members on their voting ment of fundamental pioneerinq ideals is
lisu: reflected in a most particular fashion.
In addition, Israel is one of the few ~,laces on Amonq other equally remarkable and oriqinal
eazth where the cultural ann economic level of achievements is the powerful Histadrut, whose
~ the rural sector is not below that of the large objective is to defend the workers' interests, .
- city; indeed, at times, even surpassing it. not only in terms of salary, but on the levels
But the high standard of living achieved in most of culture and health too. It was not the
. 2 ~
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workers who draqged the Histadrut into their neither studying nor worlanq reaches the
struggles; on the contrary, the Histadrut quided ~?o~~� Violence and corruption ace iu-
them over long years by posing national and ~~9 - a consequence of the emulation of
pioneering challenges. That much said, what what gces on elsewhere.
worker today would speak of the cenual 'The mass-media have altered our sense of time
office of the Histadrut as "our home" without and space and we are bortowinq more and more
- being ridiculed? The rupture is not due to customs and concepts foreign to Judaism and
strif~ or a lack of discipline; it is sunply the the Q~alitY of life to which we aspire. These
direct consequence of the abandonment by problems would probably be troubling ira a
this huge organiution of its original uniqueness. homogenous society o8 people with shared
Similarly the I.D.F ("Tzahal") having formed p~ep~' ~ a SO~e~ ~ heterogeneous and
an illustrious part of our history, remains aa complex as ours they are even more ciistur-
inteqrating Factor of the Israeli people. Basically ~g� The Israeli population is made up of
composed of reserve troops, Tzahal is an anti- ~~an~ from 102 countries, spealdnq 82
militaristic army that proclaims peace. Having lan~~' come not only
said this, one can only deplore the excessive from far-away and diversified countries, but
politicking amongst its generals, while young also from by~qone eras: some stroll out of the
~ Israelis are ready to volunteer themselves for 19th century, whereas others come with ideas
any mission. and experiences leapinq into the 21st. 'The
The population of three million inhabitants linquistic diversity does not pose solely a
lends itself to varied and supportive cultural technical problem, since languaqe problems are
activity. Thus, more than 3,200 books wece by no means limited to communication. Qur
printed last year. In addition to the 77 monthly Question is to figure out how to create
papers and 577 various periodicals, 27 daily a nation out of all these ethnic groups and how
newspapers appeaz in several lanquages. And to define a cultural and spiritual image for
culturally, the Jews are particularly pampered. o~' new society.
On opening the newspaper to the entertain- A Common Past
ments page, I was offered a choice of 23 Foreign sociologisu; principally Americans,
plays of which five were for children, six dance tend to establish a parallel between Israel and ~
and musical performances and 16 shows - all ~e United States. Just as Israelis of African or
on the same evening. Tonight they are perform- ~ckground would be linked to Chinese,
� ing Shakespeare, Pinter, Miller, Ibsen and puerto Rican oc Black Americans, Ashkenazi
Chekov, as well as ten original plays in Hebrew, Israelis would be compared with WASPs (White
of whiah one deals with the problems of an pnglo~Saxon Protestants) in this scenario.
Arab student arrivinq in Tel P~viv. Add to To them, the problems and solutions for these ~
that scores of orqanized exhibitions in the yroups seem identical. Thank goodness, the ~
cities and towns and you have a density of ~~tion in Israel is much more reassuring
activity proportionately qreater than the ~~eir conclusions would have us think.
population. The common denominator amongst American
A heavy shadow casts itself, however, upon ~ y~nerally a quest for material
this idyllic scenario. A large majority of Israelis ~.be~9~ and at times, foc political freedom
remain outside of the circle of these activities. or freedom of expression. But no spiritual
Israel still has close to 250,000 illiterates over link united an Italian immiqrant to one from ~
che aqe of 14, two-thirds of whom oriqinate po~d or Mexico. If it had been possible for
from Africa and Asia, whilst one-'rd are each to have settled in Canada or Argentina,
Poles and Rumanians whose education was ~ey ",~a~d have just as well done so. This is
most probably interrupted by World War II. not Israei's case. All of those who came here
Even today, Jews originatinq from the Arab ~a~~ of years of history and
~ countries constitute only 119'0 of university common aspirations ~ it is historical and
students. The aumber of youths who are spiritual attachment that was foremast in their
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choice. Whether from Morocco, Rumania, who are not rich. For an answer, one must
- Afghanistan or the United States, we aU carry Took elsewhere than at material concerns,
in our memories the flight from Eqypt, the ~ an azea that has nothinq to do with how �
~ qiving of ~he Commandments ('i'orah) on many square metens make up the home or how
Mount Sinai, our nation's past in the Holy many yeais were spent in education. It is the
Land, the words of our prophets, the destruc- ~~~d~'s perception of his own identity
tion of the Temple and the exile, and finally, and the image that his peers relay. Jewish
our regained independence. ;mmigcants from all over found themselves
_ The P~oble~s of a Morai Order confronted with a society different from
their own, one centered not only around new
What we all aspire to, expressed differently, customs and ideas, but one that overlapped into
bu~ laden with the same deep and fundamental ~~h~~, It was cleaz to them that once ~
meaning, is the cteation of an independent stepiring foot into the Promised Land, they had
Jewish life. The two thousand yea~s of our to adhere tp these new ways. 'I'hey thus began ~
dispersion to the four comers of the world have, to destroy all that made them unique, even
in effect, separated our past and our aspirations. ~eir values concerning fami7y traditions and
~ How is it poasible to fill up such a gap in time? re~~9 ~ faz as their pronunciation of
- The most frequent response could not be more Hebrew, their style of dress, their attachment
_ concise: housinq and education. Solutions to the rynagogue, their family names, their
that are difficult to realize because of their m~~, ~~y W~~ ~~y ~d to sacrifice on the
cost, but that deserve w~eighty consideration. ~~r of intecg~ation in their sincere wish to be
We are told to build so many t,'~ousands of ~ of the stan~ard melting pot in Israel.
apartments , to allocate such and such a bndget gome have paid deady to reach their goals.
to education and then only have to sit back ~~e~ ~g it out got scarred in the process
and wait to reap the fruits of our ]abor. ~ bego~ ~~a~y to their corners, whereas
I do not by any means underestimate the most of them, essentially the young people,
- necessity of such measures. At the same time, suspended between two poles, with� .
I am aware that they will not solve everything: ~ o~t ~~y swinc,pnq one way or the other.
they do not go after the root of the problem - ~eir story reminds us of a Talmudic tale
the moral order. There e~dst two diametrically about the crow. "Why," asks the Talmud,
opposed examples. In Ramat (3an, where ~~dces the crow seem to waddle�" Struck
many Iraqi immigrants have setded, .all t~?e one day by the dove's qraceful and dance=like
outward necessary siqns of an integrated .
step, the crow envied her and told himself
community are brought together. Many of the deep down, "1, too, will dance like her!" ,
- resdents have continued into higher education: But while trying to copy her, he broke a
lawyers, shopkeepers and doctor~ who have ~n9~ ~~9 ~m a lauqhing stock of the whole
concluded their military service brilliandy ~~d brood. Disqraced, the crow decided
live well in comfc~rtable appartments. Hovrever, ait. But he was
tfie election list they put forth in the last to qo back to his original q
regional elecrions was "Iraqi". For what Style or~his icnit ti'on of the gra
eful dove.
reason? ~ y~ ~y ~e crow waddles so awkwardly.
Many Israelis of African and Asian background
have the talent, education and satisfactory Encouraging the young Moroccan
meterial means to go into law, trade and From now on, we must ask what makes the
banldng, while not attaininq poligcal leader� yo~9 Israeli of Moroccan oriqin, when asked
ship on a national level. And yet, it is highly about his backqround, respond, "I'm from
possibde to draw up a list of mi~isters and southem France," or with definite animosity,
representatives ~f non-African or Asian oriqin ~~from Morocco, so what!" What process
- who have succeeded ~vithout higher education- ,~y~~d succeed in brinqing him around to
some even without a secondary education - answer straight out, "I'm from Morocco."
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I personally do not think that awarding him a pnd yet, we need not worry aboui Israeli and
scholarship or suppplying him with housing, pmb cultures clashing: even under rough
two measures that I would nonetheless promote, conditions dtirinq the lonq generations that we
would help at all. Only somethinq capable have lived in Arab lands, have not the Jews
of modifying his own self- image would bring retained their identity and their, .heritage.
him peace of mind. We can now hope for their un'squeness and their faithfulness to
such results thanks to several acrions directed Zion? At the right moment, they came to
towards a new seif-evaluation of the richness Israel by the hundreds of thousands. I am
of his cultural heritage: the study of the North o~,p~d to those ~vho would dangle before
African Jewish community's history and its our eyes the pendul~un of "Levantization"
spiritual and philosophical contributions after the siqning of the peace treaty with
throughout the generadons. These include Eqypt. Even if we should one day siqn peace
the conuibutions of the outstanding community treaties with a11 the Arab nations, I am con-
by great thinkecs whom the whole pe~ple can ~at we are without a doubt capable
call their own. The sons of this community of developing a sociery of qreat moral character,
who were truly courageous soldie~s, and whose one endowed with an oriqinal cultural identity
settling of farmir~g villaaes and development af strong foundations.
towns gready chanqed the face of I;:rael. p~ ~nqness to promote these values in
Our duty is to encourage this younq Moruccan th;s regazd will be especially decisive. Knowing
to qain pride in his heritage and the contribu- ~e Arab lanquage and cultiire, the ways and
tions of his ascendants in the buildinq of the ~~toms of our neighbors and an intensive
State of Israel. study of them should not necessarily induce
Such a process will put him at ease even more ~e Israeli to denounce his own identity and
so that he will of necessity, fall back upon the values. Not more than knowing the English
securiry of his sunoundinq er_vironment. languaqe and culture makes a person British.
Only at this stage of his self-acceptance and The Arabs' love of their lanquage and cultural
assimilation should we talk about the Polish heritage is such that I often wind up envyinq
and Russian pioneers that drained the swamps, them. I would only v~nsh that there were as
lived i, tents to overcome malaria, and estab- many of my Israeli brothers that would love
lished the foundations for the great undertalcinq their own lanquaqe and retain their own heritaqe
that became the State of Israel. Then we can as much. We would gain much, in effect, from
' hope for substantial progress on the level of the example of the Arabs, mcst notably in
education and participation in political leader- their hospitality, their politeness, their attach-
~ ship. ment to family values and the respect , of the
What I have just expressed about the Moroccan youth for elders. Neither our uniqueness nor
community gces for most of the other "Eastem" our heritage would be put to test. Quite the
- communities. In the absence of such a course contrary. I experience great pleasure from
of action, one can expect either a move tov~rards listening to the songs of the wonderful
introspection or aggression and violence. Eqyptian singer, Oum Kalsoum, just as I enjoy,
This policy being even mor~ urgent today on another level, the works of Bach or of
than ever before, Israel must take up the Beethoven. I am also asked at times if"that
- challenge of peace and call on the Eastern unendinq monotony dcesn't tire you out?"
communities, throuqh their history and their To which I respond, "How long dces one of
culture, to be proud of their particular con- Wagner's operas last?" It is perfecdy natural .
tributions. There are those that shout about for Oriental Jews to like Arab music. Did it
~ the dangers of "Levantitation" that the peace ever prevent them from developing a rich and
treary with Eqypt would facilitate. It seems diversified Jewish culture or test their love of
that they know nothing about it. Since, what Zion? When the shofar of the rebirth of Israel
dces "Levantization" actually mean beside called out, they hastened by the hundreds of
a superficial and tacky imitation of a foreiqn thousands to fight our battles, create towns .
culture? and cities and make the desert bloom. It is
One can already deplore the start of American, about time that all Israeli citizens learn what
British, or French influence on Israeli culture. the facts are instead of burdening their
Sephardic brothers with their worries from afar.
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Sephardi Lea.der Interviewed
Tel Aviv NEW OUTLOOK in English Ju1-Aug 81 pp 40-45
Clnterview with Elie Eliachar by Hillel Schenker: "Living With the Jews"~
CText~
Question: As I understand it, the two demand was very simple; it was not that there
dominant themes in your life have been the a need to separate because of religious
struggle fa: better treatment for Sephardi and ~understandinqs or other community differe-
Oriental Jews and better understanding with nces, he simply said, �'VYhy should all the
the A~abs. This is what you wrote in the intro- Ashkenazis' money go to the Sephardi qovern-
ductio~ to the end of the book with Philip ment? Let all contributions be sent to us so
Gillon, we c~n form an Ashkenazi Collel or entity."
Answer: Yes. Money, tlierefore, brought about the separation
Question: You wrote ~iving with the Palesti- of the c~ommunity.
nians to deal with one of the questions. And Other communities, such as the North
now you've written Living with the Jews to Africans, followed, wor~cinq to obtain indi-
deal with the other. What have you tried to vidually Yhe ~.ontriburi+ons from their own
do in the second book? countries of origin. The previous unity was
Answer: In order to answer this question I have disintegrated. ThuS the Ashkenazim were
to ga into a bit of history - part of it prior separated int~a different entities, as were the
to 1914 - and tell you about the Palestine Sephardim anc~ Arientals, weakening the
of the time. Until let us say 1830-1840 there unity of the Jewish people in the Holy Land.
was only one Jewish community in Jerusalem, IVGsunderstandinq between oldtimers and
the majority of which was Sephardi 'and nevu~omers, as is the case wherever there
Oriental. Any Ashkenazi was welcome and is large-scale immiqration, began here also.
_ every Ashkenazi shared and became part and But as early as 1664 the Sephardi community
parcel of that community, known as "Knesset had sent a special deleqation to Istanbul
Israel: Sephardi Communiry". Then a great requestinq pernrission for xhe Ashkenazim to
Ashkenazi Rabbi, Reb Menachem of Shklow, come and settle in Jerusalem and to build
came to Jerusalem, after the Plaque their own synagpgue. This case was reported
and the destruction of Safed by the peasants' by a Catk~olic pilgrim, Eugene Roqer, in his
rebellion, and decided to establish an Ashkenazi book A Visit to the Holy Land. Misunder-
community, a Collel. Although he was alone stand6tigs also armse be~ause of tt:e problem of
at the time, he paid nine Sephardi Jews to run language and the historical separation of the
a minyan to pray in the Mossah Ashkenaz various 3eavish communities for centuries. Let
and establish a separste community. Instead of m,e point out tha4 Zionism has existed since
fightinq for unity, we had a case of a great ~e captives from Jerusalem chanted the psalms:
Rabbi ~ghting for separation and achieving ~~It I forget thee G Jenisalem" and "How .
it. The material advantage, money, was his can I sing the songs of Zion ~n captivity?"
object. Before this, all money for Palestine a~ ~e shores o~ tlie Euphrates in Babylon. �
had come through the organized community, That's Zionism, and that is the true historical
which divided it in accordance with need, and sequence of it. The precursor of political
also allocated it to the Four Holy Cities - Zionism was absonutely forgotten. It was Rabbi
"Arba Aratzot": Hebron, Safed, Tiberias Yehudah Alkalay, who, axty yeais before
and, of course, Jerusalem. This preserved the Henl, wrote his wonderful booklet Shema
unity of the Jews in Palestine. Reb Menachem Israel !(Hear O Israei In this booklet he laid
of Shklow appealed to all the Ashkenazi down all the details for the establishment of a
communities abroad (with whom he had Jewish state in ralestine. Most of his ,
various contacts, whether throuqh family suggestions are law in the Herzelian Zionist
ties .or conespondence and visits) a~d his Movement. He inclu~led matters of which ' .
Herzl never dreamt, such as the fact that there
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were Arabs in Palestine, and how to behave Answer: No, they weren't. They were only
in consequence. accepted while everythinq was still in its
Under Ottoman rule, no one could be a infancy. You see, the Bcitish, with their famous
member of any group that had national aspi� policy not to act through revolution but by
rations, whethgr Arab, Armenian (you know evolution, didn't chanqe conditions for tNVO or
what happened to the Armenians), Jewish, three years after 1917. Unti11920�1 they main-
Greek or Rumanian. Therefore .the first tained everythin9 as it was, under military
polirical Zionists like Yehuda Alkalay had ~o au But soon the British Government stood by
camouflage what they did, pretending it was
in the interests of the Ottoman Empire. At the Balfour Declarauon, recoqnizinq the Zionist
the first Zionist Congress there were only Organization as the principal Jewish
two or three Sephardi representatives, since representation. This meant the abolition of thr
they couldn't come from the Turkish Empire. ~Phardi elite, tied as it was to Turkey, lii
They were afraid to participate. When Herzl favor of the Ashkenazi majority cepresentinq
visited Jerusalem my qreat-grandfather, who ~e ~o~t Conqress and its organization tied
was the Chief Rabbi, the Rishon Lezion, to the Balfour Declaration.
received a written instruction statinq that nuestion: I i~elieve that when you were in the
nobody was to meet Herzl, that if he were First Knesset you were the first person to use
ceceived with any special honors as a leader the term "the Second Israel". What exactly
then the Jewish comntunity throughout the did you mean when you said that? '
Turkish Empire would suffer bitterly. So he Answer: I meant that there was a separation.
senc his assistant, younq Rabbi Jacob Meir, to Not the one that exists all over the democratic
explain matters to Herzl. world between the "haves" and the "have-
The Zionist Orqanization was established nots", as for instance in the States, or the
on a special model: that it would provide and underprivileqed classes in England. It's not
_ attend to the needs of the declared Zionisu a~matter of class, it's a matter of an entire
duly represented at the Zionist Congress; communiry. Yet I have never acted as a
in other words, if you were an Ashkenazi or Sep.hardi or as an Ashkenazi; my battles were
a Yemenite or a Sephardi who had no and are for the unity of the Jewish people.
representative in the Zionist Conqcess to Once Ben-Gurion stood up at the Knesset to .
start with, you were forqotten, a left~over, not answer an accusation of mine about the
taken care of at all. In 1918 the .problem ma'abarot (transient-camps) and said, "I
became apparent. I was a born Zic+nist, not only represent� more Sephaidim than Elie Eliachar,
because I was born in the old city of Jerusalem who has only four members of the Knesset"
on Mount Zion, but because there was a long (that's what I had at the First Knesset) "whilst
tradition of Zionism in my family. When I have the majoriry here as you can see. More
I returned from the Turkish Army and the Sephardim voted for me and my party".
British occupied Palestine, I joined the most In answer I said, "Mr. Prime Minister, how
radical movements, the embryos of the socialist right you are! I represented not one Sephardi.
movement, etc. To my surprise I realized that Not even my wife, who is an Ashkenazi. I
it was not only a question of ideoloqical represent nobody. Please answer me. Is there
separaaon, which did not disturb the a pcoblem lmown as a communal problem
Ashkenazim. In my book I describe how this ~t adversely affects the Oriental com-
developed. In 1917, while I was still in the ~~ti~?,~ He answered, "Yes". So thea
Turkish Army, younger elements such as I said, "That's all. I represent a problem.
Yehudah Burla, the great Sephardi author, ~~e problem were .Polish (the place you
Menashe Man, David Avisar and teachecs and come from) I would qo to Warsaw, obtain the ~
scholars formed a youch orqanization called franchise of a Polish citizen and a Polish pass-
Histadrut Hatzeirim Hasepharadim, in order and come and defend the Polish case as
to share and participate in the Zionist a Jew, a Zionist and an Israeli.' But since you
movement. Yet they could achieve litfle. are not defendinq the Sephardim yoa say you
Question: Were they accepted into tfie ~p~~nt, and you do not attend to their
movement? ills, someone must raise this grave problem.
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This I do, again, not as a Sephardi, not as an Question: I was wondring how you felt al~out
Ashkenazi, but as a Jew". the Black Panthers?
Question: This is something I'm trying to
undentand. Do you believe that there should ~swer: I reiterate~, there is no independent
be separate Sephardi action to deal with the Sephardi representacion toda}~ in any central
problem? authoriry like the .Knesset, the Cabinet of
Answer: No. I believe that you cannot contain ministers or local authority~. Why? Because
a maj~rity of the Jewish people in Israel today anyone sitting in the Knesset like Abu�Hatzeira ~
without a proper representation of their own. or David Levy or 1NIr. 149oshe Nessim could .
That's the position today and that developed be discharqed if he ever uoiced his own opinions
all along and against all comon sense because aqainst the party, t}se whip of which would
of the proportianal system of election. 'I'his d~end on them and fo~cce them to toe the line.
system completely abolishes any contact or ~e only such case in the history of Israeli
link between the electorate and the represen- politics was when Prof. Avner Shaki, the
tatives. Under this system there is nobody to deputy Minister fnr Education, went aqainst
whom you can appeal to defend your case in ~
his party, the N.R.P. Within a week he was
t?:a i.~eqislative or the Executive. You vote ,
for a list of a hundred and twenty names, most ousted. They cau~d dare do it. Mr. Levy dcesn t
of whom you don't know. You cannot teU a represent anybo~y; Mr~ Abu-Hatzeira represents
member of the Knesset, "I voted for you in Abu-Hat~e3ra. Mr. Levy ~y order of his party
my constituency". This is the root of the can allmcate millinns af dollars for settlements
developmant of the present~day situation in in Judea and Samaria and elsewhere, but he
Israel. The caucus of the political parties not help the Ohalim people of his own
presents to you a list of a hundred and twenty ori~ ~d social backqround. The three
names, of which you might know ten or twelve, ~p~.~ MInist~rs couldn't help. So Prime
and you vote. The result of this is that whilst ~nister 8eqin appealed to the President of
we (the Sephardim) make up approximately ~e Worid Sephardi Federation, Dr. Nessim
70% of the total Jewish population of Israel
today, we have not more than twenty-two ~on, to come to the rescue. Can anyone .
or twenty�four members in the. Knesset. Pretend, then, that the second Ismel is ade-
Twenty�four is 20%, which is the best indi- quately represenfed and protected?
cation. So when I am asked, "Why don't you Question: Does this mean that a separate
orqanize?" I say, "For qoodness sake, how can Sephardi party should be formed?
we organize vuhen all Knesset members get pnswer: No, I don't believe that the Sephar-
about a million pounds each from the tax- ~ have the means to ~ght this way. It would
payers' funds for their re~lection, moreover, ~ke centuries if you depended on this method.
a Sephardi or Ashkenazi wishing to be elected ~e priental communities suffer from the
has to provide millions of pounds for his fact that in their countries of origin they were
campaiqninq and deposit IS 1,500 or 2,000
as a fixed amount that is confiscated if he is never allowed to practise civil rights. They~
not elected. In addition to that, Mr, Yadin and ne~?er given the right to elect, and when
Mr, Begin receive about IS 4-6000 monthly they did vote for a municipalitY or for Parlia-
for every member of their parties in the Knesset ment they were dictated to. It's true that in
Now ~ow can you fight this situauon? Egypt and other Arab countries we had Mini-
Moreover, all polidcal parties have an income sters of Finance but, as is the case here, they ~
- from other sections of the govemment budget were moninated. Until the eve of our indepen- ~
and from the Jewish Agency for their dence we had a Minister of Finance in Baqhdad�
campaigning. No Sephardi can ever be elected WQ ~d M.Ps in Cairo, but they were all nomi-
except as a member of the biq parties - the nated by the party in power. We still need to
Likud, the Alignment, etc., vowing allecpance improve our knowledge and appreciation of
_ to the Party, not to his community. I therefore ~~c righis and civic responsibilities. ~
declare that the non-Ashkenazi elements are Question: no you feel this is basically a ques-
not truly represented. tion of education and time?
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a,
Answer: No, it's a question of acculturation, ~r between Oriental and non-Oriental masses.
unfortunately. What happened is this: 4hose ~e only way to remedy this is nothing less
belonqir:g to th~ second generation are not ~an ~ alteration of tt~e rystem of elections.
improvir:g their situation. We made the I wouldn't care at all if the�one hundred and
people forget their past by removing them twent3t members of the Knesset were Ashke-
from their traditional life. Here we put them n~, ~ they were elected under the sysiem
throuqh bad schooling: improper schools c,f a constituency, because then a member of
without proper equipment, or educated quali- ~e Kn~set~ would not stand a dog's chance of
fied teachers. Sc,metimes we sent qirls who ~ei~q te.elected if he didn't defend the needs
hadn't ~inished secondary school and who of his constituents. This is, in my...opinion,
didn't know Hebrew, to teach the newcomers. axiomatically the first step toward a re-united
These were setded at the ooundaries of the people. You ask me why I didn't raise the ques-
Negev or the boundaries of Galilee ~nd as a tion in the First Knesset: Well, here is the answer
result of the shted acculturaaon imposed upon ~ my book Living With Jews I published an
them, they knew a little bit about Bialik and exchange of correpondence between myself
Tchernihovsky and whatnot, but they didn't ~d Ben-Gurion. The parties are not interested
know anythinq whatsoever about their past and are only~paying ~ip-service to the problem.
culture. When they came home they couldn't T~ Yiqael Yadin, for example. What a
speak with their parents; they had nothing in g~ei He went into the Knesset promising
common. This acculturadon was the greatest to ~ight for social welfaze and for the change of
_ cultural . crime of Israel. The your:ger gene- election system into a peisonal, majoritarian
ration of the mass immigration was acculturated ~d district~oriented system - the proper
fint by being told that they didn't have any demxratic system. Well, what has he done?
culture of their own and then that the only Not even a proper. appearance of the subject in .
culture was Ashkenazi. Which is .~rronq. The ~e ~{ne~set~
Ashkenazi culture without the basic Question: Last year Edgar Bronfman, the
Jewish culture of :ha Sephardis dcesn't exist, Preside~t of the World Jewish Congress,
because the whole Jewish culture vtiras not w~ote a number of very controversial articles.
cc~ated in Wacsaw or in New York. It was Hs was very critical of some of the positions
creat~;' in Babylon and Jerusalem and Safed of the Israeli gover~ment ooncerning the
and Tiberias and Spafn. ..Once, jokinqly, Territorias and the Palestinians. He also made ~
I asked President Shazar, "What are you so the comment that ha was afraid that if Israeli
proud of? Abraham was an Iraqi, Moses was an society became more Oriental it would lose its
Eqyptian. The Talmud was wrtten by the ties with the rest of world Jewry, which is
Babylonian Jevus." By the way, I published basically Western. What answer w:.e:!.~. you�give .
two articles in "New Oudook" two or three to this type of comment?
. years ago on these questions. One was called, ,4nsyver; I have not read Mr. Bronfman's
"Born to Fail" and the other "The Ivon- articles. I rely on your statement. As for his
presence of the Sephardim". fears that Israel is becoming Orienial, I would
Questio~: So how do you feel about the avise him to adopt the theme of Arthur Koest-
rt~ethod of activity of the Black Panthen and of ler's book The Thirteenth Tribe, and say that
the Ohalim movement in terms of trying to the Ashkenazis have nothinq to do with the
cope with their problem? Jews of ~ Palestine, that they a*e desceadants
Answer: It is only the beqinninq of becoming of the Khazars and so on. I discuss the subject ~
conscious of their own e~dstence and of their ~~y ~k. Bronfman is not alone. He is
civic riqhts. If no attention is paid to it by the qivinq vent to what certain Israelis have claimed
powers-that-be, of the political parties�left, in excusing the e~dstence of the underpriv7ec~d~
right and center - the danger is that the Oriental communities. As they put it, it is clear
moment will come when there may be a civil that there is a problem. These are Je~nrs, they
�
1
.
~
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said, coming from the Adas mountains; they impact. I would rather see him as Minister of
lack education, etc. I describe in my book Education. 'I'here he could have much more
how a certain person told one of the greatest influence. The fact that he is President does
leaders of the democratic world that 65% of the prove one thinq. It shows only that Sephardim
Jewish population in Israel have never eaten ~an any po~~on very well, as Navon dces.
with a fork, never sat on a chair and never saw For example, Mr. Recanati from the Discount
or used a toilet flush. This same person was gank, which is a worldwide empire; would, if
appointed by the Knesset to solve the problem he agreed, make an excellent Minister of
of the gaps t~etween the communities. So what Finance, much better than the one we have
can you expect? Till Aryeh Pincus ( former now, or any we have had before.
Jewish Aqency Chairman) appeared this is how Question: You have said that the Oriental
~ they wanted to excuse the situation. They Jews can be a bridge, at least with the Arabs.
forqet that Moroccan boy who conquered Could you elaborate on that?
� the highest Syrian position in the Yom Kippur pny~wer: I don't think this is true of the
War and, when asked how he did it, said that he younger generation, who are beinq assimilated
had been told it was the eyes of the State.The by the Ashkanzi political tendencies. Like all
Ashkenazis aren't coming to Israel while assimilated people, they want to be more
these boys are sacri~cinq their lives. My blood Catholic than the Pope. They haven't lived
- boils to hear such crazy comments. In the with the Arabs. If a referendum were held you
Yom Kippur War 60~0 of the fallen were would find a majority amonqst the Sephardim
Oriental. So how can he dare say that we support the idea of a Palestinian independent
aren't qood Jews or that we are not equal to state, peace, co~~ostence and collaboration.
the Ashkenazis of the "shted" from which he Question: What is your vision ot tne future?
oriqinates. My Council once published a book� Are you optimistic that we will wo~k out our
let in Engl:sh called Danger-Jewish Racialism. problems? ~
If Mr. Bronfman said what you tell me, he and pnswer: I am very pessimistic. Addressinq a
others like him would seem to be the apostles larqe audience of army commanders, professors
of such racialism. and other famous Orientalists, I said that if ~
Question: How do you feel, on the other hand, wre proceed on this course Israel will be remem-,
about Nessim Gaon, also a wealthy Jew not bered as an adventuce which lasted maybe a
living here and coming to offer advice? hundred years. I do not want that to happen.
Answer: Is Mr. Gaon the only rich Jew who I want permanency for Israel in the Middle East,
has not come to Israel? I ask you, why should ~th or without American dollars. We should
- he always be referred to as the millionaire? He look at South Africa and learn the moral. We
didn't come of his own volition; he was invited. ~not control more than a million and a half
Apparently Mr. Beqin, realizing that this is a p~~ ~~e occupied territories and another
dme-bomb and wanting to avoid trouble with half a million Arabs in Israel. They will always
the polic~, decided to fight the whole thing qrabs: To pre~erve Israel we must find
lyinq low, so to speak. Dr. Gaon is qenerous a~y to satisfy the national demands of the
and willinq; he was misled, in my opinion, p~~~, ~ot be done by anybody
- and remember, he is President cf the World but ourselves. No western leader has any right
5ephardi Federation and comes to Israel as dces W}~~cever to tell the Palestinians what is qood
his cou~!~rpart, the wealthy Fisher (never for them: neither the President of the U.S.A.,
referred to as a rich Ashkenazi!) or Prime Minister Be~n, nor Mr. Rabin, Peres
Question: Do you believe that the fact that or Yadin. Not even President Sadat. It is only
Yitzhak Navon, a Sephardi who has bean for their own representatives to decide. We
- elected Prosident, has had a positiva impact too were terrorists once. In 1948 I sat on the
on the situatian? Supreme Council for Defense and Security
Answ~er: No. It has not ~ad a fundamental Ben�Gurion and we sent our boys to be
~
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killed and to kill. Now Mr. Beqin speaks strongly ~?swer: Only this - that ,I am a Jew, I am an
about the killing of women and children. But Israeli and I am a Zionist by conviction. The
what did we do then? And what are we doing only raison d'etre of Israel is its Jewishness,
now in Lebanon if not killinq men, women and not ruling over millions. For this reason I want
children? We will lose nothinq if we speak P~~ ~e ~abs and with the Palestinians.
with Arafat? It will only strenqthen us, because Without that we shall never taave peace in the
we will have sat with him and come to some Middle East. We shall never be able to survive
sort of understanding. Otherwise how can we except by the power of our a?ms and soldiers.
even keep Jerusalem? Never in Jewish history There are more than a hundred million Arabs
did we have one- complete stretch of land and more millions of Moslems. They anay unite
ruled by us as we had until 1967. We must try some day and try to destroy Issael. That
to live here harmoniously as part and parcel of must be averted at all costs. We need a strong
the area, without lonqinq to be Europeans or army to act as a deterrent, but at the same time
Americans. Here we must be a Middle Eastern let us try with peaceful relations and co~exist-
entity. Only now are we becoming aware of the ence. The entire Israeli establishment must be
importance of learninq Arabia Look at this ready to return to the area of the Middle East
book of mine which was translated without ~~out neglecting whati the West can offer us
permisaon by the greatest publishing company bY ~Y of science, ~echnoloqy, philosophy,
~ in the Arab world, Dar � EI-Maaref. 'I'here is etc. But we are Semites and as such we must
a twentyone page introduction written by Anis re~ to the area. We should discover what
Mansur. It says that this is the book that for unites us with the other peoples living here
thirty years the Arab world has been waitinq for. and not what differentiates vs from them.
Question: Do you have a final word to say to ~d more power to the editors of "New
the "New Outlook" ~eaders? Outlook" for their couraqe and devorion to
peace and understandinq.
Sephardi Federation Leader on Peace ~
Tel Aviv NEW OUTLOOK in English Jul-Aug 81 pp 46-47
_ ~Article by Nessim D. Gaon, President, World Sephardi Federation: :"Reflections
on Peace"~ ~
~Text~ ~
The Presidential elections in the USA have to these polirical and strategia considerations,
had the effect of reactivatinq neqotiations enormous economic interests come into play:
for a Middle East peace. In our wodd, worn concern for oil supplies has radically altered
as it is by so manY conflicts, the search for the rules of the political qame and shaken up
peace and stability in the Middle East has o1d alliances�
~roused mare passion and interest amonq Both the .?rab supporters of the Rejection
_ peoples, nations and governments than almost Front and the Tsraeli nationalists are hardening
any other focus of conflict. their positions from . one day to the next.
The qlobal political chess-board is in flux, In such a context, where morality, faimess
and the divisions into spheres of influence and common sense are so often ovemiled,
_ aqreed upon between the Soviet Union and the can one expect reason to qet the better of
United States at Yalta were shaken by last passion or justice ~ of military and economic
year's evenu ia Afghanistan and the armed power, or that this part of the world w11 stop.
conflict between Iraq and Iran. In addition writinq its history in the blood of its children?
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You may think this belongs more to the ~lcomed on the Israeli side. It was through
cateqory of wishful thinking than likely politi- negotiations, sometimes difficult but always
cal forecast. But these same political, strateqic constructive, that the peace treaty materi-
and economic interests are bound, sooner or ~Z~ ~~~n two peoples who have been
later, to cause a change in the balance of forces en~~ ~ fratricidal war for thirty years.
in the reqion and the Big Powers will have to In order to achieve this peace, Israel did not
rea~U an understandinq or face the risk of
confrontation in a conflict that could prove hesitate to agree to extensive concessions to
fatal for all protagonists. Eqypt, which is intent on recovering all the
All those who still believe in the goodness of territories occupied since the Six-Day Waz.
man may be allowed to hope that the people Why has this peace process not been extended
thgmselves - Arab and Jewish alike - will to the neighboring Arab states?
move ahead of their . own govemments in When will the leaders who are entrusted
forming contacts and dialoque. For no Jewish with responsibilitY for the fate of their peoples
or Arab mother, wife or head of family, .be9in to realize that, even though policies may
whether hawk or dove in outlook, can remain at 5rst be diametricallY opposed, it is only
unmoved by the record of mourninq and thcouqh disc~.ssion and neqotiation that the
sufferinq caused by continued vi~lence and conditions for understanding can be arrived
recurrent wars, however pernicious the influence at.
- of official propaganda may be. The time has It was around the negotiation table that the
come for this multitude of anonymous indi- erstwh~e enemies of long standinq, France
viduals, the men and women of good will, to ~d ~~y~ ~y arrived at a situation
express themselves and learn to qet to know whereby today they are leading members of
each other better. It is a process that has the emerqing partnerslriP af Europe.
already bequn, both in Israel and abroad. Would it be faz�fetched to think that
Some Israelis and Jews livinq abroad have ~'~t be~~n Israel and its close
been openly and frequently in constructive n~i9h~~~ such as Jordan and Syria, could
and courageous dialoque, to criticize the ~o it possible to pinpoint the Pales-
policies of the Israeli qovernment and political Problem - which cannot, under any
parties on such issues as setttement in the ~ evaded - and to facilitate a
territories, the- jurisdicial definition of Pales- solution. The Palestinian people ouqht to be
tinian autonomy and the inevitable con- master of their own fate. But the time has
sequences of these policies. come for them to solemnly renounce their
Charter, which aians at the destruction of the
The Arab world must admit that first, State of Israel, and to offer all the necessary
Israel e~dsts, and second - that it is there to quarantees. Hfow much lonqer must we wait
stay. Israel, for its part, must understand that to see other heads of State follow the
qiven its geographic situation, its history and example of Pre~dent Sadat, and take a similar
oriqins, it must live with the Arab world, co- initiative?
exist with it, with mutual respect for every ~ Is it not urgent and vital to defuse the
state's right to exist and to absolute securiry situation; this would mean that one side re-
~ nounce acu of violence which, though seen
for all.
The peace treaty between Egypt and Israel as acts of war, aze acts of violence committed
is the most strildng manifestation of the desire against tarqets that may be civilians, inclu-
for peace on the part of the heads of State ding children, and for the other side to renounce
of both nations. the policy of settlement in the territories, a
President Sadat displayed immense political cause of so much unrest and aqqravation?
- courage in coming to Israel. He presented his It is time that men of good will on both ~
concept of peace with the qreatest clarity and sides came forward to speak out.
loyalty, and his proposals wece favorably �
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Can the Middle East go on being the powder- q~~
~~h brought together deleqates from
keg that it is today, and the object of such ~~e Mediterranean countries Arab and
passion on all sides, without becoming a mortal ~eli, around the same table�
danger to all? Why is it beyond the powers of ~ y~ a project thai~ should certainly be
imagination for men and women of good will encouraged, provided it is not exploited by any
and courage, who represeat no one but them- political group on either side to further its
selves but who, in the final instance, are the o~ ~r~ interests that would detract
people most involved in the conflict since it from its credibility and effectiveness.
is their own lives and those of their children In this context, the World Sephardi Federation
� ~ that are at stake - to be able to sst np one clearly has a�leading role to play.
or more international committees with t~?e Given their oric,pn, their lives in the~ ~b
- fallowinq objectives, without setting ~Y countries, their perPect understanding of all
exclusive conditions: of the character, traditions and public,
1. to exchanqe points of view and, in doinq so, p~~~~ and s~ ~e of the Arab world, the
seek common ground! ~p~~ Je~ ~~~e ~a oriyinate from the
2. to learn to get to know each other, with pmb countries - could become the initiators
a view to creating a climate more conducive ~d promoters of such contacts so vital for the
to understanchng;
3. thereby to become one of the bridqes vital at~inment of a climate that would nurture
for a more constructive dialoque between the detente and understanding.
~ nations and their governments! 'Phen the time w~71 come for a Summit
Conference attended by representatives of all
4. to contribute to the achievement of an ~e ~oples and states concemed, without
- ~ overall peace setdement, involvinq the Pales-
tinians, that would help realize the hurnan, exception. .
It is high time we all bore in mind the fact
intellectual and energy potential of this region, ~at we are all the Children of Abraham, be
maldng it into one of the strongest an~i most it through Issac or Ishmael. ~
prosperous regions of the world. ~y for fraternity not remain
This notion was proposed during a Collo-
Sephardim: Peace With Egypt
Tel Aviv NEW OUTLOOK in English Jul-Aug 81 pp 48-50
~Article by Mordecai Jules Soussan: "Sadat, Sephardim and the Peace Process"~
~rext~ .
As a result of the peace treaty with Eqypt, But one of the major "hopes" of this era is
Israel has entered a new era of "hopes and for the Oriental majority - the 60% of Jews
fears". "Hopes", on the one hand, because from Arab countries that Sadat, throuqh his
the risk of war with the Arab world has initiative, has helped to decolonize and whose
lessened, and because of the opening up of this condition he helped normalize.
Arab world which hitherto refused to. recoqnize
Israel's existence; whilst on the other hand, Until the Rais' visit to Jerusalem, being a
~~fears" that this sociery, Ben Gurion, Dayan Jew frAm the Arab countries was a malediction,
and Beqin all wanted and still want a European the sign of Cain. It was also the mark of a
bastion of the western world in the Middle conditior~ of. inferiority reserved for Jews
East, which in the context of the peace process, from Isiamic rountries by the Ashkenazis
_ degenerates into a Levantine $ociety in the who proclaimed themselves Europeans and
perjorative sense. westerners, and who absolutely rejected any
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reference to the east, or to the Arab world. Oriental Jews, who were also fierce
In an interview given to Eric Rouleau in nationalists, tried to forqet their oriqins in order
"Le Monde" af March 9, 1966, David Ben- to be accepted. They did their best to justify
Gurion - the fint Prime Minister of Israel.. themselves, declaring "We are more Jewish and
during the ~fteen most important years of her more Zionist than you can be".
history - declared: "We do not want Israelis Since Sadat's visit to Jerusalem, those same
to become Arabs. It is our duty to fiqht aqainst Jews now want to free themselves of quilt.
that Levantine state of mind which corrupts admittinq for the first time "We are Jews from
men and sxieties; we must preserve the Arab counfries; we are Arabic Jevus". A well-
authentic Jewish values as they were formed in known example is that of Shalom Imbari,
the Diaspora". an Israeli radio journalist at the Israeli
It is exactly in this state of mind that a deep deleqation to the 1977 Cairo conference.
contempt for the Arab world, for the east and We were 12 journalists on a boat trip up the
its culture and for Oriental Jews as Arab Nile. Inspired by the beautiful weather and
citizens have been taught in Israel. Initially, the unique moment, Shalom Imbari, of Iraqi
the Orienta! Jews did their best - either con- oriqin, suddenly exclaimed "In fact my name
sciously or otherwise - to distance themselves is Salim, not Shalom. And I am an Arabic
from their past in Islamic countries. They were Jew",
helped in this by the and�Arab attitude of the The writer, Haim Gouri, a poet of the Indepe-
doninatinq Ashkenazis or European society ndence generation and a Davar correspondent
with which they wanted to identify - or more at the time, a true product of this Ashkenazi-
exactly - with which they had been dominated culture, reacted first: "Such words
canditioned to identify. Thus, when they had are worse than the destruction of an armored
to make a decision regarding the conflict division", and he asked Imbari to retract what
with the Arab worid, those from the east are he had said. Imperturbable Imbari, however,
in the main more conservative, more continued: "In fact, there is no Jewish nation
nationalist, more chauvinist and rnore anti- - there is an Arabic Jewish people". Shalom-
Arab than other Israelis; and so too they are Salim Imbari will not deny himself when
more sensitive to calls from the right. invited to explain on Israeli TV.
In fact, their behevior has been determined Imbari is no exception. To be convinced, one
by the psycholoqical conditioninq of the only need ask the inhabitants of an~Oriental
Middle East conflict, by a rather unhappy district. Another siqnificant example ~is the
past in :he Arab countries and, mainly, by Israeli Morxcan community's welcome to
the attitude manifest towards them by "the Mohamed Maradji, the only Moroccan
others" - those of European oriqin. journalist who followed Sadat's visit to
In his speech of November 20, 1977, to the Jerusalem. In his bdok "Salaam, Shalom" he
Knesset, President Sadat pointed out that relates his welcome and the way in which every-
the crux of the Israeli�Arab conflict is 70% one, including officials and ministers of
a psycholoqical problem. Whth reqard to the Moroccan oriqin, qreeted him like a lonq�lost
Oriental Jews, Sadat put up a double barrier: brother. "Aharon Abuhatseira, Religious
one separatinq Israelis from the Arab world, ~fairs Minister, and David Levy, Minister of
and the other being the Ashkenazi society Absorption, embraced me in their arms and said
which stands between the Arab world and ~at if I didn't have dinner in their homes,
Oriental Judaism. they would be offended".
Observecs who related the enthusiastic ~ter returning from Ismalia with Beqin,
welcome to Sadat remarked that the people Nessim Gaon of Lhe World Sephardi Federation
who were crowded in the streets were mostly came back convinced of the necessity to
of Oriental oriqin. For example, one patriarch include Sephardis in the peace negotiations.
from Yemen who among the cheerfulness '~e Sephardis feel that perhaps the Israeli
- exclaimed:"Like our ancestor Abraham, this ~Qaders and diplomats - who are prisoners of
man is the messenger of God. Gr another their misunderstandings with regard to the
. man and sometimes poet who composed a Arabs - are ruining the peace they have found.
peace song to the glory of the Rais. Sephardi representation in the peace process
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was only symbolic, as was Sephardi presence p,~a~ Yosef, the Sephardi Chief Rabbi of
at the signinq of the peace treacy in Wash�ngton Israel, is well la~own for his reliqious erudition
and during Prime Minister Beqin's official and for his fferce reticence to taks a stand on
visit to Cairo. Since then, no Sephardis, eith~r political issues. Thus when in September
from the Diaspora or from Israel, have parti- 1979 he publicly declared himself 'in "favor of
cipated in the peace process. restoring the xcupied territories and of
David Sitton of the Sephardi Community ~~~e ~he P.L.O., he provoked great
Council in Jerusalem and Chief Editor of the emotion throughout the country. He had
only Sephardi monthly -"Bamaharaha" Gontributed to the destruction of a double
("Fighting") - comments: "Peace was my~; the so-called unconditional alignment of
concluded without us because wre are not Israeli reliqious circles to the extreme thesis
entided to qive our opinion at the level of of "Gush Emunim" and the "Greater Israel"
decision-making". Furthermore, he could not ma~ement; and the alleqed hostility of Oriental
resist pointinq out: "That's why neqotiations Jews to peace, compromise and rapprochement
have taken nearly two years and the incentive the Arab world in general
and the confidence seen at the start are ~e ~phardi people brouqht Begin to power
gradually disappearing . because of the socio-economical situation,
The Black Panther Movement in 1971 v~ras but after two years of a Likud adminisuation
the first manifestation of an Oriental left- ~e situation was a disaster, for Israelis in
- wing. Initially it was created to denounce the general and for the Orientals especiallY� The
~ Sephardis' conditions in Israel, but it went most underprivileged amonq them, who were
- on to adopt a stand on the Palestinian question. ~~ys promised better housing conditions,
The Movement claimed that: "It is unthinkable are staqnating in their slums without any hope
that one nation realize its narional aspirations for change. According to the latest data the
at the cost of another's. A common language s~~ ~~ce between the Ashkenazis and the
with the Palestinians must be found ~p~r~s _ Which all the political parues,
immediately". Unti then only the Israeli eS~~y geqin's, had promised to bridqe -
extreme left had made such a statement. ~s become an established in"stitution, and is
The Black Panthers did not receive satisfyin9 9ettinq worse. With utterly unjustified self-
support from their people durinq the General con~idence, the political leaders are declaring
Elections. The Sephardis were then not ready that they have the Sephardis in their pockets
to hear such language. However, in 1975 and will support us in spite of eve .rything.
Elie Eliachar - a well-known Sephardi leader Most remarkable in this context is the
and one-time assistant to Professor Magnes, ~creasing tendency amonq the Sephardis to
- denounce the settlement policy of the qovern-
Chairman of Brit Shalom - defended the idea �
of a Palestinian state co-existing in peace ment, which qives billions of pounds to
beside Israel in his book "Livinq With settlements in the territories whilst declarinq
Palestinians : In the same year he was ~t it has not even one tenth of the amount
appointed rChairman of the Israel Palestine needed to resolve our own housinq and social
Peace Committee whose first duty was to problems. One must remember that the
commence dialogue with the P.L.O. in Paris. majority of Sephardis do not care for the
One of their most important events was the colonization of occupied territories, and in
14th Conference on the History of Morxcan fact they are only a very small ~minority in the
Judaism ~which .was attended by the settlements and Gush Emunim .
In November 1979 the Black Panther leaders
Ambassadors of Israel and Morocco, ~arlie Biton and Saadia Marciano led a demon-
intellectuals and politicians, Jews and Moslems, stration and occupied the Dazar Moshav, on
Moroccans and Israelis of Moroccan oriqin. ~e gethlehem-Hebron road, for a few hours.
The issue on the creation of a Palestinian state ,~s a remarkable event quite removed
received a favorable response amonq Israelis from those organized by the "Shalom Akhshav"
of Moroccan oriqin, but was not submitted (peace Now) Movement. However, the Israeli
for general debate. Some of them accepted the press could find nothing to say about it except
idea of a discussion with the P.L.O. if they to denounce it.
were to recoqnize Israel.
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In March 1980 the Executive Committee There is already some speculetion in certain
of the World Sephardi Federation severely Sephardi circles about creatinq an alternative
cridcized the social policy of Beqin's power, Perhaps a"Sephardi coalition". It
government, ;is well as the official policy in the was explained that for the majority Beqin has
occupied territories. Nessim Gaon declared to lost his aura; some of those who believed in
the Israeli press that: "Jewish settlements in him will perhaps remain loyal throuqh the
Arab neighborhoods have no useful funcuon. suength of habit and sociological qravity.
They provoke revolt amonq the Arabs and But there is a new generation of youngsters
_ weaken Israel's position - even among her ~ who are excited, who don't have the same
friends - around the ~.vorld. Observers pointed respect and patience their elders have. They will
out that such declarations from a man not wait another 30 years for chanqe. And the
considered a close friend of the Prime Minister, sheer weiqht of numbers is in their favar;
were extremely important. Nessim Gaon went voting together, they could decide tomorrow
on to criticize the government's economic who will take charqe. Deceived by Begin, and
policy, which, he said, "bears unjustly upon full of resentment for the Labor party, Oriental
= wage-earners and the undeprivileged, and favors Jews are now politically and psycholoqically
the well-provided". ready for what was unthinkable yesterday.
Attitudes Toward Begin
Tel Aviv NEW OUTLOOK in English Jul-Aug 81 pp 51-53
~Interview with David Sitton, President of the Sephardi Council in Jerusalem, by
F.lena Danan: "Begin or the Great Failure"~
~Text~
Question: You have been one of the creators ment and their dissati�faction with Labor
of the Irgun, and then a member of Lehi after ~~blishment, turning their hope towards
the scission. What do you think of Menahem ~e opposition. And the opposition was the
Begin, your former comrade-in�arms? Herut Party. On its sid'e, Ociental Jewish youth
~ Answer: I left the organization as soon a~ W~n't especially led by any Socialist Youth
Beqin took over. I was always opposed to his Movement and, in fact, the youth had admired
ideas, his methods, his acdons and his leader- geq~ a patriot for a lonq time. The Labor
ship. He lacks concact with reality, and he p~y p~hed these communities towards
= has never understood the Oriental masses Herut. The system of "Proteksia" , and total
with whom he has no real contact. In his dependence upon ramified insritutions
eyes, their only merit is to constitute a fount controlled by this party reduced them to a
of votes at election time; he holds power thanks state of permanent obedience until Election
to them. Day. At every General Elections, the Oriental
Question: How do you explain this? Jews transferred more and more of their votes
Answer: Oriental Jewish communities, to Herut.
materially unprovided for and subjected to
horrible conditions of integration, I have nuestion: Do you think they still support
known the nightmare of Maabaroth before ~t~
living in :he very small flats in Chicounim P?nswer: Once elected, Beqin created a
which were assigned to younq couples without committee in charge of a reform limitinq the
children, and which turned quickly into over� number of ministries for botki economical and
crowded slums. Salaries of family heads were efficiency reasons. This was a. masquerade;
those of caretakers, workers and employees. for there was no reform at all In fact, he
Rootless, rejected from society and broken, followed the example of the Labor party
those men looked for an oudet for their resent� whose incapacity and corruption he denounced
before taldnq power. He increased the number
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of ministries using up public resources and ~o~ ~at he really belongs to the Establish-
creadnq inflation. This should have shown us ~nt. Althouqh worlcinq to defend the interests
Beqin's carelessness for his own promises. of underprivileged people, David Levy rPmains
David Levy is the only minister in Herut ~e target of critics formulated aqainst the
who is representative of the Oriental Jews. policy of his qovernment. For example, his
But in fact, Beqin has no consideration for attempt to re-establish some of the basic food
him. For example, David Levy was offered sub~dies withdrawn by Begin's government
a gigantic project for the rehabilitation of failed. It was not his fault - he has no real
shanty towns by Nessim Gaon. The forecasted power to implement his qood ibtentions.
budqet had to increase to 1,200 minion dollars, ~estion: Do you think that the Sephardi
~ half of it to be provided by the Diaspora situation is still locked?
, who kept its promises and raised 600 million qnswer: Since Ben Gurion, the successiv~ ~
dollars, but the government did nat honor Israeli governments considered Eretz Israel
its own. So this ambitious project failed and ~~e qshkenazis' own property. But some
today the Ohalim movement has to organize people will say that Begin supported the
wild and symbolic settlements in several Israeli election of a Sephardi to the Presidency.
towns to protest against the government's ~ a~tter of fact, President Navon has no
incapacity.
0?iental Jews are disappointed and they do Power; his main function is to welcome
show it. Henceforth their slogan is "Beqin, officials. He dces care about social problems,
we brought you to power, we shall brinq you nevertheless he can only deplore them. Thirty
years passed without seeing any positive chanqe
Question: Oriental masses are attracted by in the Oriental Jews' condition in Israel.
Herut nationalism despite their way of life As~'?kena2i "reiqn" continues. However,
in Arabic countries. Don't you think this con- ~P~rdis have proved their worth and talent,
tradiction might be explained by their religious they did in Iraq where they occupied the ~
approach to 2ionism? hi9hest administrative and financial positions,
Answer: Not at all. I am convinced that and in Morocco, Algeria, or in France where a
Oriental Jews came to Israel because of their 4~t number of intellectuals and businessmen
Zionist ideals, rather than because of mysticism. belong to our SephaFdi community. We thought
that Begin would be the Een Gurion of the
Jews from Arabic countries have often been ~ght. Nowadays I don't expect anythinq from
persecuted and humiliated in their native lands. g'~n, From Peres, no more. I place all my
Just remember that in Yemen, for example, hopes in my brothers. I feel sympathy towards
a Jew was not allowed to hold up his head Black Panthers in the Knesset and I am
when passing an Arab in the street. In qreatful to them for havinq shaken up and,
Morocco, in Algeria or in Tunisia, their lot more or less, revolutionized the Establishment.
improved with the azrival of the French. Until Question: What is your attitude towards
then they had to suffer many humiliations and Arabs?
were constandy the victims of all kinds of pnswer: I was 30 when 1 led the Arab depart-
- swindling by the govemors.. Herut has widely ment of Irgun and Lehi. Thanks to this
exploited those bad memories. Before its function I had a system of information
ascent to power, all that this party had to offer throughout the country. I also went on
them was one or two seats in the Knesset. �~ons in the neiqhboring countries of
Oriental Jews could not know what Herut Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, where I met the
would assiqn them once in the majority. Now leaders of Druse, Kurd, Maronite and Shute
they know ! There has never been a big love ~orities, our natural allies aqainst panarabism.
affair between the Oriental communities and 'Phe State of Israel was just born.
Beqin, it was rather, an 'episode'. Today we are facing new realities. The
Question: Is David Levy able to stir up fi~e cominq of President Sadat to Jerusalm broke
at the right time? down fences that seemed to be unshakable.
Answer: In fact, he succeeded in becominq His historical visit is diametrically opposed
the spokesman for workers in Herut. He to all that we could have imaqined or expected
delivered populist speeches to the Oriental of him. The fact that his political positions
masses from whom he comes. But everyone are divergent from ours dces not detract from'
his merit.
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Question: Wasn't it important to start a Question: ~ The negotiations o~ autonomy
dialogue with Israel a~d to lay a basis of under- are in deadlock. How do you see the solution
standin to the Palestinian problem? . �
Answer: We should not forget that the main Answer: President Sadat does not care about
result of this event is the recoqnition of the autonomy, becuase he knows that he cannot
State of Israel and its concretization. The bring the "pourparlers" to a successful .
exchange of ambassadors and the orders to aqreement without the aqreemeat of the
establish econ~~mical relations are positive, Palestinians. What he wants is to qain time, so
although the noanalization process is not that he simply exchange the slogans. It is not�
proceeding as quickly as we hoped. Sadat's worth it, because he knows that even the most
couraqe exalted the Israeli masses. For my part moderate Palestinians reject them. The Rais is
I cannot forqet the warm welcome of the not able to qive them what they want, the
people of Cairo in 1979. '['hey could not stop destruction of Israel. The only solution I can
embracing friends of the Sephardi Federation see is a progressive one, like the process started
and myself as soon as they knew that we were by Egypt. It is out of the question to face the
Israelis in the Muslem center of El Azhar and creation of a Palestinian State in the West
of Khan Khalili. And they all wanted to guide Bank separated from Jordan. At any rate, such
us around the old Jewish district of the capital. a state could not be possible either on a politi-
It was a great moment. President Sadat did not cal or economical level. It is obvious that
only break the ice with Israel, he also succeeded Israeli forces must stand alonq the Jordan
in triggering the enthusiasm of his own people. river. One should not forqet that if we still
Question: Do you especially think about exist, it is thanks to our defensive power.
Oriental Jews whe~ you remember the emotion Even if we reached a peace agreement, nothing
of Israelis? would change. Such an aqreement may not by
Answer: No, I don't think that the Ashkenasis itself constitute a quarantee. For exactly the
were any less excited. Sadat fired the whole same reason France and West Germany still
Israeli population with, enthusiasm. On the maintain the relationskiip that we know. Why .
other hand, I think the Sepha~dis' participation should we take more risks?
in the peace process should have been equal However, it is absolutely necessary that as a
to that of the Ashkenazis. It is astonishinq and country in the Middle East, Israel works for
very dissapointing that the Israeli government its inteqration to the family of nations in this
did not think to include Sephardi advisers in reqion. I am convinced that once we set up
the different delegations. It v-~s absurd to a federation including Israel and a Jordanian
nominate Ben IIissar as the Israeli Ambassador Palesrinian State, we can put an end to the
to Cairo. Only his friendship with Beqin seems mutual fear. The Palestinians' hate towards
to have awarded him this hiqh�level responsi- Arab leaders like Kinq Hussein of Jordan or
biliry. Neither his education nor his culture, President Assad lies hidden from the surface,
or the world to which he belongs intended him so at least they will agree to such a sdlution
for such a mission. and will promote a Middla Eaat vorxion ~f the
Swiss situation.
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Ashkenazi Cultural Hegemony
Tel Aviv NEW OUTLOOK in English ,Tul-Aug 81 pp 17-21
rArticle by Sammy Smouha: "Ashkenazi Hegemony"~
~Text~
Sammy Smouha is a Professor The dominant 'community tends to impose
of Sociology at the Haifa its own culture upon the others either through
University. He graduated education, mass�media, jurisdiction, symbols
from U.C.L.A, and taught of their national patrimony or other normative
at Washington Unive~sity domains. Generally, this tendency rests upon
in Seattle. He is a specialist comtempt for the values of the weaker commu-
in inter-ethnical, inter- nity, which is minimized, oppressed and made
racial relatio~s and in the conspicuous in an effort to ensure that it does
problems of minorities in not gain nadonal superiority. Thus, we speak
Israel and other countries. of a"cultural hegemony" in a situation where
One of the most troubling one community rules the others.
aspects of the Knesset This cultural issue cuts across the question of
elections was the signs of ~ social stradfication; that is to say, the members
ethnic antagonism and of one community are not equal in terms of
division between Sephardi education, professional occupation, standard
and Ashkenazi Jews. The of livinq, prestige or participation in decision-
following article which maldnq. The inequality is not limited to the
appeared in the New Outlook distribution of resources; it is also expressed in
publicatton, Les Sepharades an inequality of opportunities. Such inequali-
et la Paix, contributes to an ties qive us licence to discuss social stratifi-
understanding of some of cation: a social cleavaqe accompanies com-
- the background to this munity rifts whereby members of one com-
tension. munity conqregate in a certain social class,
and~ members of other communities in another.
Cultural heqemony and social stratification
can cause existinq disparities to disappear, as
cultural differences blend and equality qrows;
or, on the contrary, a process of stabiliution,
or even intensification of these disparides
In israel, as elsewhere, che cultural basis of the occurs.
_ community rift consists in contradictions
between cultures, values and characteristics In the latter case, one can speak of "institution-
of individuals from different communities. alization". Social stratification or cultural
These cultural differences often cause attitudes hegemony institutionalize themselves when
of condescendence and superiority on one they crystallize into familiar models and are
side, and a feeling of inferiority and alienation transformed into permanent phenomena, endu-
on the other. ring from one qeneration to the next, and
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~inally becoming accepted as the norm. They poverty, are almost exclusively Oriental.
are perceived as being inevitable and, to some The working class is, in che majority, also
extent, even desirable. Oriental. The intermediary class of technicians.
_ employees, teachers and tradesmen is hetero�
Community Stratification geneous. The upper middle class - the ruling
elite of academics, hiqh officials, manaqement,
_ There are many instances illustrating advanced industrialists and diamond merchants is
_ institutionalizaaon of community stratification a~;most exclusively Ashkenazi.
in Israel. Here rre will demonstrate a fevw of By implication the clearly ethnical separation
these: between the elite and the underprivileqed ~
i. Substantial community stratification classes is even more grave. Larqe numbers of
The distribution of socio-economic resources Orientals amonq the latter classes leads to a
among the Jewish population is today about negative worldwide classification of Orientals -
- 1 to 2, or even more. The average income of, maldnq it seem as if the majority belonq there,
and concentration of "superior" jobs among when in fact they scarcely form one-third of
Elshkenazis is twice that of the Orientals. these classes. In the abseace of a poor class
The percentage of Ashkenazis owning spacious of Ashkenazis, all Orientals are perceived as
apartments is also more than ~louble the needy. 'I'he Ashkenazi majority among the
number of Orientals. Among post-secos?dary, upper classes, on the other hand, leads to a
non�university eucated persons, the qap is positive classification of Ashkenazis, which
1 to S, and 1 to 10 in the case of higher edu- credits them as being particularly gifted and as
cation. constituting the kinetic enerqy of the country.
The disparity in the distribution of positions of This situation impedes possibilities for chanqe
influence is much greater. Parricipation by since the upper classes~ retain the power of
Orientals in national decision�maldnq is negli- decision regardinq distribution of resources ,
qible: in tl~e govemment only :i out of 17 and cultural and political activity. The
ministers are non-Ashkenazi; in the Jewish Ashkenazi elite has no interest in introducinq
Aqency Executive, orily 'L members out of 23, radical chanqes which might question the
and on the Central Committee of the Histadrut, privileges of the dominant community from
9 out of 23. Their representation at management which it comes.
level is even weaker: 2 out of 17 in the In the past Ashkenazis were the i~ene~ciaries
ministries and 1 out of 18 in the Jewish Agency. of better startinq conditions - they had lonqer
All 17 members of the manaqement of _the standinq in the country, were better educated,
industrial union are Ashkenazi. In the upper they knew better Hebrew and had purchased
echelons of the political parties~ Orientals more land. They were also more prepared as
constitute between 15% and 20% of the estab- a pressure group. Furthermore, having less
lishment: 15% in Mapam, 17% in the Liberal children, they coddled them more - both in
party, 20% in the Labor party, 26% in Herut the past and today. Besides the reqular class
and 29% i~ the N.R.P. But it is natural that machinery, there is in Israel institutionalized
Orientals are apprepriately represented among discrimination which, apparendy, has no
local authorides and workers' councils. Indeed, influence on the community problem, but
we have a Supreme Judge who is Sephardi; which in fact injures the Orientals a,1d leads
the I.D.F. has two Sephardi generals, and even to institutionali2ed community stratification.
our President is Sephardi. The Orientals stand One example of such institutionalized dis-
at the crossroads of pawer and therefore crimination is the system of subsidies in Israel
have no decisive power themselves. The very since the twenties; during that period the
size of the social classes in Israel clearly reflects Yishuv received its ~rst .qifts. An analysis of
the double socio-ethnical rift. Lower class these subsidies reveals that the most part were
families, living on or beneath the border of absorbed by the capital, rather than beinq
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channelled into subsidizing basic products, consider themselves Westerners, though most
or into the underprivileged classes: Thus, of them come from Eastem European ~ount-
Israel subsidizes the essentially Ashkenazi ries - whose culture is very different from
upper classes. that of the West. Orientals are defined as
originatinq in Near Eastern, under-developed
~2. Communiry Stratification - A Permanent countries, though they underwent an inten-
Phenomenon sive prxess of weternization in their oriqinal
If the condition of the Orientals is constantly countries.
being improved, that of the Ashkenazis has The patemalisdc approach of Ashkenazis
not remained static. In a society like this, towards Orientals has deep historical roots.
with an accelerated rate of development, all It finds its identification in the new Ashkenazi
classes benefit. The disparities did not dis- Yishuv, with the condescending attitude of
appear - they were stabilized. The community Europeans towards non-Europeans reflected
split in the averaqe income p~r person has in their rejection of the Palestinian Arabs and
remained the same since the thirties. We hope the old Yishuv itself which was imbued with
that the education system will work towards Oriental culture. This ideoloqy conveys the idea
equality between, the communities. The dis- that Orientals are retarded, that their capacities
parity in education among the population are limited and, consequendy, that th~y cannot
of students indicates that education, parado- become equal partners in the national project.
xically, is being used as an instrument of They are subjects for support and rehabili-
institutionalization of community stratification, Wtion, and since they cannot prove their
instead of closing the social gap. capacity it is impossible to give them positions
of leadership. The elders represent a"desert
3. Community Stratification - an Informal generation" for whom there is no remedy.
Leqitimization But their children have similar problems too:
If a belief in community equality and inteqration the essential problem is reflected in the words
e~dsu, a belief in the underdevelopment of of former Chief~of-Staff Mordechai Gur who
Orientals exists too. In accordance with the spoke of a"retarded mentality deeply, rooted
"liberal" ideoloqy existing among the popula- ~~der-developed modes of thought, from
tion, the Orientals would fail either because W~ch even the acac~emic Orientals cannot
~ they "don't make any effort", or because free themselves sufficiendy."
they are not "capable". The loqic of this paternalistic ideoloqy not only destroys
ideoloqy demands that Orientals change their ~1 hope for positive chanqe in the condition
mentality - a process that would take more of Orientsls, it -also totally denies equality.
- than one generation. It implies that the social Most significant are leade~s' proclamations
disparities are inevitable, that they charac- which crystallize the stereotypes and sway
terize all societies and that we have to learn to public opinion. In 1969, the Minister of Edu-
live with them. The public is tired of vain cation and Culture , wrote "One of our�
speeches about poverty and so yields to this stronqer apprehensions when approachinq the
reality. Thus, community stratificadon profits cultural question is how the increase in new
from a latent legitimization and institutiona- immiqrants obliqes Israel to re-align its cultural
lizes itself ' into a permanent phenonemon, level with that of its neiqhbors. We are far
considered inevitable. from considering our Oriental immigrants
, as a bridge to our inteqration in an Arabic-
Pater~alistic Ideology speaking world. Our objective is to imbue
. them with a western mentality and to pre-
~hkenazi cultural heqemony in Israel relies vent ourselves from beinq led into an unna-
upon the solid belief that Ashkenazis are tural Orientality." (Abba Eban, Voice of
superior, and Orientals inferior. The former Israel, 1969).
21
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In 1962 the first Israeli Prime Minister de- in the seventies and was published in 1972 in
clared We do not vuant Israelis to become Haderech, the orqan of the Liberal party; the
Arabs. It is our duty to struggle with the editorial staff added the following Written a
_ Levantine spirit which corrupts people and few years aqo, this article is still relevant even
societies. We have to ~reserve the authentic today. It testifies to the liberal 'spirit which
Jewish values crystalli~ed during our exile." animated one of the leaders of our movement
(David Ben Gurion, ~n an interview with of national renaissance." '
"Le Monde"). Another of Ben Gurion's This cateqorial rejection of the Orient and
proclamations in 1965 throws more light culture of Oriental Jews did not fail to ex-
onto the underlyinq meaning of this judqe- press itself in the politics of the Yishuv and the
ment of Oriental Jews The Jews from State of Israel. Such politics leqitimize as well
Morroco are not educated. Their customs ~ the community stratification, justifying the
are Arabic. They love their wives but they concentration of Oriental Jews amonq the
beat them... Perhaps in the third genera- lower classes of Israeli society throuqh their
tion somethinq different will emerge from adherence to an under-developed oriqinal
the Oriental Jews. But I do not see it hap- environment; furthermore, we are assured
peninq yet. The Moroccan Jew has assimila- that their mentality is primitive and that their
ted.... I don't want to see the Moroccan cul- under-developed conditions prevail - despite
ture here". (David Ben Gurion in an in- efforts deployed by the Israeli government.
terview with Moskin, 1965).
One of the fathers of Zionism, from The Dominant Culture
another side of the movement, wrote in 1926:
" We, the Jews, have nothing in common pshkenazi culture is presented as the national
with the Orient. As long as t1:e untutored masses culture of Israel whilst expression of the
of our people remain close to the relics of Oriental culture is rejected. We have reached
their Oriental past, we must force them away a point whereby today the Sephardi accent
from it; this we pursue in every honest school, is ridiculed. Even on a religious level'- the ~
to this life itself aspires in arduous ways. We only domain wherein Ashkenazis and Sephardis
came to Eretz Israel, firstly, for our national ~e, for historical reasons, equal - the norms
well-being, and secondly, according to Max are Ashkenazi. For example, the unified version
Nordau's formulation, to extend the borders of prayers in the army a:id in the proqrams of
of Europe to the Euphrates. In other words, religious public schools or Yeshivot. School
� we must, today and tomorrow, extirpate from books, principal themes in literature and art,
the Jervs of Eretz Israel all traces of the and the names of streets all testify to the
Oriental soul." (Zeev Jabotinsky, " The Orient" articulation of an Ashkenazi heritage. The
Haderech, Vol 7, p. 18, 1972). Ociental culture is firmly enclosed within a
The author emphasizes the cultural and tech� communal framework, visible in evenings of
noloqical superiority of the West and the Oriental songs and folk dancing. Contemporary
backwardness of the Orient. He adds, " If studies speak of the Oriental Jews as if they
the Occident and the Orient really represent were outside of history itself. The Orientals are
two kinds of fundamental mentalities, we ~~st absent from the history book by
can categorically af~rm that we Jews belong Ettinger and from the book that Lacqueur .
to the west, and that we have nothing in dedicated to the history of Zionism; the only
common with the Orient." community it evokes is that of the Ashkenazis.
The author of these lines, Zeev Jabotinsky, �
published this article in the Russian-language The Cultural Elite
weekly paper of the Revisionist movement. To �
prevent us believing that it may have lost its Ashkenazi heqomony does not only express
relevance, the article was translated in Hebrew itself in the rejectinn of Oriental culture, but
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also in the composition - homogeneous.com- in a struggle against community straufication
munally speaking - of the cultural Israeli elite and culturai heqemot,y. There is an increase
as a trademark that the latter awards itself. in the standard of livinq, education, socializa-
Oriental Jews contitiite a negliqible percentage tion, and political sophistication. We must
of the teachinq profession, of researchers, also take into account the two historical events
wnters and pcets. Similary, in the manaqe- of 1y77, the assumption of power by the
ment oG the media : among speakers, producers Likud and the beqinninq of the peace process,
directors, journalists, in the uppzr echelon ~of which affected this situation.
the Ministry of Education � etcetera. This Disappointed with the Labor establishment,
mono-communal composition by the cultural the Orientals put the Likud into power in the
elite constitues the best quarantee of hope that a radical evaluation of their con-
institudonalizing cultural hegemony. dition would occur. But the new establishment
did not improve their situation, for the same
Culturai Alienatio~ reasons that the former qovernment had not
bent itself ,to these problems. In fact, the
It is arqued that the thesis of cultural heqe- Orientals' situation worsened during the first
mony is untrue, that the Oriental masses do not two years of the Likud government.
suffer from cultural repression. We are assured Now, for the first time, the support of the
, that Oriental people abandoned their culture Orientals will not be granted to either establish-
- of their own accord, and that they idsntified ment a priori. Perhaps the Orientals will find a '
vrith the national culture because they under- common cause with movements favorable
stood that in a technologically advanced society, to community equality. The success of this
aspiring to create a culture which serves natio- will depend upon the credibility of their
na! unity, there is no place for commual cultural leaders, upon their qift for organization and
- pluralism. Thus the Orientals moved away their capacity for endurance.
from all former cultural identification. The peace process, initiated by President
This argument is partially correct. Indeed, Sadat, has also increased the fiqhting poten-
cultural hegemony decreases with the assimila- tial of the Oriental public in Israel. The process
tion of Ociental Jews. The argument of the of normalization leqitimizes the organiution
free cultural integration of Orientals is, on the of discriminate' qroups within Israeli society,
other hand, absolutely wrong. The sheer weight especially among Orientals. Now, for the first
of cultural hegemony crushed the Oriental time, they can struqgle without being accused
heritaqe and restructured it upon the Ashkenazi of endangering the State. The hour has ~ome
model. When a necessary condition for entry when they can turn to those internal conflicts
into Israeli society is the negation of one's for which they have waited so patiently; now
former culture, it is impossble to hope that they can ask, categorically, for equality and
many will be prepared to pay the price. And participation de facto. In a society, released
Oriental Jews were confronted with a from 'martial law', these claims will be legiti-
priori rejection of their culture, whereby mate, credible and acceptable.
the rules of concurrence were fixed at their Oriental Jews do not aspire to a different
expense. That is the reason why a cultural culture or identity. They no longer have the
chanqe became a question of survival for them. intention of becoming a separate cultural
They were not in a position to choose whether reserve. They demand participation, on an
or not to safeguard their patrimony. Ashkena- equal footinq, in the creation of Israeli culture.
zis decided for them, and imposed this choice They simply want to be masters of their own
upon them, believinq that they acted in the lives, not dependent upon the ~lshkenazis.
best interests of all concerned. They want to build a society wherein the
The situation pushes forward, and the Oriental dimension can develop entirely and
Orientals have bequn to orqanize themselves with diqnity.
COPYRICHI': 1981 by New Outlook
' CSO: 4300/103
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MOROCCO
LIBYA'S SUPPOR7' OF PULISARIO CONTINUED
PM091422 London 'iHE GUAItDCAN in English 9 Sep 81 p 7
[Report by Ian Black: "l.ihya 'Still Supplies Arms' to Polisario"]
('I'exr.~ Libya is sti11 supplying arms to the Polisario guerrillas fighting Morocco
for the Western Sah~~ra desert, despite a recent thaw in relations between Colonel
al-(2adhdhafi and King Hassan.
This was revealed yestPrday by the Moroccan foreign minister, Mr M'hamed Boucetta,
on z;n ofFicial visit to London, when he met Mrs Thatcher and Lord Carrington.
Libya :inci hturocco patched up their quarrel on the eve of the Nairobi summit
conference of the Organization of African Unity in June. Colonel al-Qadhdhafi,
who had recently increased his support for Polisario, donned the mantle of peace-
maker in the Sahara, while in return Tripoli mana.ged to avoid condemnation of its
intervention in neighbouring Chad. ~
The turnabout was all the more remarkable for the fact that it came immediately
after an intense Moroccan diplomatic campaign to convince the world that Libya
was the source of all unrest and instability in northwest Africa.
Ptr Boucetta said that he knew that Tripoli "is still helping Polisario. We have
- .zsked them to stop this military assistance and we are awaiting new developments."
On thc Western Sahara issue in general, the foreign minister said he was "optimistic"
~ about the prospects for a ceasefire and a referendum whose details are being worked
out by a seven-country OAU "implementation committee."
He expressed the hope that a referendum would be held in the disputed former
Spanish territory "as soon as possible" but reiterated his government's insistence
on using the last Spanish census--74,000 residents--as a basis for the poll.
Pollsario and its chief backer, Algeria, insist on a figure 10 times larger than
this and say that the Saharans should be given self-determination.
Mr Boucetta said that MoroccQ would respect the cease-fire call and insisted that
_ his country "does not attack anyone."
The Western Sahara war began in 1976 when Spain withdrew and the territory was
partitioned between Morocco and Mauritania, to the south. Mauritania withdrew
and made pr.ace with Polisario in 1979 and since then Rabat has fought the war alone.
COYI'RIGH'I': Guardian Newspapers Limited, [9 Sep 81]
CSU: 4500/42 END
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