This Conference was sponsored by the The Friedrich Ebert Stiftung
Many of us at Ben-Gurion University felt that the demonstrations of Israel's Palestinian citizens during the end of September and the beginning of October, and the violent response of Israel's police force marked a critical watershed in the evolution of the relationship between Jews and Palestinians in Israel. It was against the background of these events that the idea of holding this conference was formed. We believed that the seriousness of the situation warranted an equally serious examination of the factors that had contributed to the development of this conflict. At the same time, we proposed to explore possibilities for future change.
The conference, held on November 23, 2000, indeed reflected this agenda. It focused on three themes: the first, discussed in the first panel, presented different interpretations of the evolution of Israeli government policy toward its Palestinian citizens. The panel members presented three different perspectives. MK Moshe Arens, former Minister of Defense and former Minister in Charge of Arab Affairs, has played a pivotal role in formulating political policy toward the Palestinian citizens of Israel. He is well known for his concern for Arab-Jewish relations and the status of the Palestinian citizens. Mr. Nachman Tal served as head of the Arab desk in the General Security Forces (Shabak) for many years, and thus was able to explain the way in which security policy has played an important role in forming policy towards this population. Finally, Prof. Oren Yiftachel, a geographer from Ben-Gurion University, spoke on the development of land policy in Israel and its detrimental impact on the local Palestinian community.
The second panel focused on changes in social and economic preference orderings among Palestinian citizens. Dr. Andre Mazaui, an
expert in education from Tel Aviv University, presented the results of ongoing research he has been conducting on the impact of changing educational levels among Palestinian youth on employment possibilities. Ms. Nebila Espanioly spoke of the situation of Israeli-Palestinian women, and finally Dr. Achmed Saadi, a political scientist from Ben-Gurion University, spoke on the impact of economic policy on Palestinian employment and general standards of living.
The final panel focused on possibilities for change. Camel Rayan, one of the leaders of the local Islamic movement, spoke of the movement's influence on the political development of the Palestinians. Prof. Arieh Arnon, an economist and Dr. Rebecca Cook, a political scientist, both from Ben-Gurion University, spoke of various alternatives for political and economic change in the construction of Israeli policy towards the Palestinians.
The conference, as a whole, was stimulating and very well attended. We are all hoping to be able to continue this endeavor, through workshops and seminars, so as to address what seems to us a primary political and social concern to Israeli society in the future.
Program of the conference
9:30-10:00 WELCOME
Prof. Jimmy Weinblatt, Dean Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Ben Gurion University
Prof. Rebecca Kook, Department of Politics and Government, Ben-Gurion University
SPEAKERS
Prof. Avishai Braverman, President of Ben-Gurion University
10:00-11:30 First Panel: Israeli Government Policy-making in the Past
Chair: Dror Ze'evi, Chaim Herzog Center, Ben-Gurion University
Prof. Moshe Arens, Cabinet Member
Mr. Nachman Tal, formerly Center of Strategic Studies
Dr. Ramzi Suleiman, Department of Psychology, Haifa University
11:30-12:00 COFFEE BREAK
12:00-1:30 Second Panel: Changes in Social and Economic Preference Orderings
Chair: Dr. Ahmad Saadi, Department of Politics and Government, Ben-Gurion University
Dr. Andre Mezav, School of Education, Tel-Aviv University
Ms. Nebila Espanoly, Manager of El-Tapulach Center
Prof. Oren Yiftachel, Department of Giography, Ben-Gurion University
1:30-3:00 LUNCH BREAK
3:00-4:30 Third Panel: Culture, Identity, Politics
Chair: Prof. Arieh Arnon, Department of Economics, Ben-Gurion University
Dr. Rebecca Cook, Department of Politics and Government, Ben-Gurion University
Carmel Ryan
4:30-6:00 COFFEE BREAK
6:00-7:30 Round Table with participation of all Panel Speakers
Chair: Prof. David Newman, Department of Politics and Government, Ben-Gurion University