Democracy

The political foundations from the Federal Republic of Germany in Israel express concern about a series of legislative initiatives that would fundamentally change civil society involvement overall.

Exactly 11 years ago, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1325 (October 31, 2000). This groundbreaking resolution sent a significant message to many countries,including Israel. The principles of the decision, which emphasize representation of women in peace negotiations and increased protection of women and children against violence in conflict situations, were found to be very relevant to the Israeli society that has been dealing with a long-term conflict situation over the years. Adv. Anat Thon Ashkenazi of the NGO Itach-Maaki Women Lawyers for Social Justice - a partner of the Israel office of the Heinrich Boell Foundation, describes the efforts of the implementation of UNSCR 1325 in Israel to date.

For the first few weeks of the social protests in Israel the press happily dismissed everything else – Palestinians, Iran, September, democracy barely reached back pages of the papers. The question at stake is, will the movement ultimately be forced by its own goals to confront and possibly re-interpret critical issues such in light of the newfound empowerment and social consciousness?

The post-war novel by Hans Fallada Alone in Berlin (Jeder stirbt fuer sich allein, published in 1947 in East Berlin) became a major success in Israel during the past year. Yossi Yonah, professor of philosophy at the Jerusalem-based Van Leer Institute, is looking into the Israeli perception of the novel. He comes up with two surprising aspects: that the Israelis are geared to have a more nuanced picture of Nazi Germany and that they are drawing conclusions for the democratic future of their own country. Originally written for the Heinrich Boell Foundation in Israel, the article was published in the German weekly “Der Freitag” with the assistance of the Tel Aviv Office. Read the text by Yossi Yonah»

Dr. Yousef Jabareen, General Director of Dirasat: Arab Center for Law and Policy provides a review of the poor level of functioing of Arab local councils and relates to the historical context and long-standing national policy failures to assess the current situation. He outlines the main factors contributing to the distress in Arab municipalities as well as the impacts including socio-economic indicators. Finally, he describes the recent initiatives of civil society, including Dirasat, to provide models of best practices and empower decision makers to improve management and thereby improve the services and overall civic culture for all.

For the first few weeks of the housing-cum-social protests in Israel, nothing else seems to matter. For at least a week or two after the “J14” protests began (on July 14, in Tel Aviv), the press happily let it muscle out everything else – Palestinians, Iran, September, democracy barely reached back pages of the papers. Everything seemed drowned out by a chorus of wonder and amazement at the growing numbers of protesters flooding the streets weekly, including tens of thousands who have demonstrated or set up camps in at least 13 other cities or towns around the country. Only the crashing global markets seem to have penetrated the euphoria.

On October 31, 2000 the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 1325 on “Women, Peace and Security.” This resolution provides that women be adequately represented on all levels in peace building processes and in the making of security policies.Ten years after the adoption of UN Resolution 1325, the Gunda Werner Institute (GWI) of the Heinrich Böll Foundation in cooperation with the German Women’s Security Council and Peace Women Across the Globe, hosted an international conference in Berlin to examine the implementation of the resolution.Anat Saragusti, a board member of Itach-Maaki - Women Lawyers for social Justice, supported in its 1325 implementation efforts by the Heinrich Boell Stiftung Israel office, was invited to the conference to present the Israel case study at the conference in Berlin on October 28th, 2010. Click to read the presentation given by Anat Saragusti»

How is the Israeli public reacting to the flotilla incident? What is the reaction of the Israeli peace groups? What kind of protest took place or is planned? What kind of repercussions of the events towards the proximity talks do you see? Dan Jacobson, Tel-Aviv University professor, Peace Now activist and Meretz Party official answers these questions and more.Read the interview»