Israeli Protests Demonstrate A Surprising Arab Influence
Source:jakarta globe
Tel Aviv. Israelis, living in an island of relative
freedom and comfort and surrounded by countries they generally view with
disdain, are not accustomed to taking their cues from Arabs.
So the idea that the eruption of a mass movement protesting Israel’s corrosive social inequality could have been influenced — even inspired — by the Mideast’s Arab Spring revolts, for many Israelis, just does not compute.
Traces of influence were there, though, as a quarter of a million Israelis took to the streets last weekend to protest a stratospheric cost of living, poor public services and one of the highest income gaps in the developed world.
Chants echoed those that rang out in the streets of Arab capitals, and tent protest camps on the style of those in Cairo’s Tahrir Square have arisen in the streets of Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities.
Much like Arabs had for decades seemed resigned to dictatorships, Israelis had taken economic divisions as a fact of life, until each decided they had finally had enough.
The Israelis aren’t calling for regime change, and their country already has democracy. But some Israelis embrace the connection and even find a pleasant surprise in the thought that, despite decades of hostility and distrust, the antagonists share similar hopes for a better life.
“It’s definitely not an accident,” said Iddo Felsenthal, a 27-year-old school teacher and protester. “I personally hope that it would lead to a better understanding between Arabs and Jews.”
To an outsider, it would hardly seem strange that Israelis would be affected, if even subconsciously, by what is going on in the Arab world. In fact, their country is deeply isolated from its neighbors, and not just by decades of enmity and violence.
A majority of Israelis are culturally closer to the West than the Middle East. That can translate at times into a disdain for Arab countries seen as backward. Israel’s military might and the strength of its economy compared to its neighbors have heightened a sense of superiority.
Until the recent convulsions, few tended to pay much attention to regional developments, even though Israel borders Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the Palestinian territories and Egypt.
Many bristle at the suggestion that the tremors in the Arab world could have given Israel a jostle.
“We are some nice, quiet people. We don’t want problems,” said Nissim Slama, a 28-year-old volunteer at another Jerusalem protest. “It’s not like Tahrir.”
For Slama, the idea that Jews came together decades ago to build their own state was enough inspiration.
“We know if people get together can do crazy, awesome things — like create a country.”
The wider public who dove into the moment in recent days may not feel inspired by the Arab Spring, but some of those who initially organized Israel’s protests acknowledge the influence, in some cases, also citing Spain — where young people have been protesting rampant joblessness for months, in some cases erecting tent camps and scuffling with police.
“People saw that other people managed to leave their houses and demand their rights. People here were quite desperate — but quiet and even numb,” protest leader Stav Shaffir said. “But in Spain... and the Arab countries — to demand their rights and cope with violence and challenges was of course a great inspiration.”
One sign in the Tel Aviv demonstration on Saturday scrawled the Arabic word and anti-Mubarak slogan, “Irhal” — “Leave.” Underneath, the protester wrote in Hebrew, “Egypt — it’s here.”
Israel’s social justice movement began with a tent encampment on an upscale boulevard in Tel Aviv last month, protesting high housing prices for purchase and rental. It quickly spread, attracting supporters from Israel’s squeezed and exhausted middle class: high prices, an eroding health system, expensive child care, high taxes, overcrowded schools and wages that often do not match increasingly ambitious expectations.
Conditions unique to Israel also fostered momentum. The country has been relatively free of Palestinian attacks for several years. That quiet has allowed Israelis to focus on social and economic problems instead of security matters.
To Ayala Levy, a 45-year-old mother of four, social desperation is part of the spark, but she also points to a Jewish tradition of communal solidarity and dismisses any influence from the Arab Spring. “You need more than inspiration to leave your own home and live in a tent,” she said.
So the idea that the eruption of a mass movement protesting Israel’s corrosive social inequality could have been influenced — even inspired — by the Mideast’s Arab Spring revolts, for many Israelis, just does not compute.
Traces of influence were there, though, as a quarter of a million Israelis took to the streets last weekend to protest a stratospheric cost of living, poor public services and one of the highest income gaps in the developed world.
Chants echoed those that rang out in the streets of Arab capitals, and tent protest camps on the style of those in Cairo’s Tahrir Square have arisen in the streets of Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities.
Much like Arabs had for decades seemed resigned to dictatorships, Israelis had taken economic divisions as a fact of life, until each decided they had finally had enough.
The Israelis aren’t calling for regime change, and their country already has democracy. But some Israelis embrace the connection and even find a pleasant surprise in the thought that, despite decades of hostility and distrust, the antagonists share similar hopes for a better life.
“It’s definitely not an accident,” said Iddo Felsenthal, a 27-year-old school teacher and protester. “I personally hope that it would lead to a better understanding between Arabs and Jews.”
To an outsider, it would hardly seem strange that Israelis would be affected, if even subconsciously, by what is going on in the Arab world. In fact, their country is deeply isolated from its neighbors, and not just by decades of enmity and violence.
A majority of Israelis are culturally closer to the West than the Middle East. That can translate at times into a disdain for Arab countries seen as backward. Israel’s military might and the strength of its economy compared to its neighbors have heightened a sense of superiority.
Until the recent convulsions, few tended to pay much attention to regional developments, even though Israel borders Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the Palestinian territories and Egypt.
Many bristle at the suggestion that the tremors in the Arab world could have given Israel a jostle.
“We are some nice, quiet people. We don’t want problems,” said Nissim Slama, a 28-year-old volunteer at another Jerusalem protest. “It’s not like Tahrir.”
For Slama, the idea that Jews came together decades ago to build their own state was enough inspiration.
“We know if people get together can do crazy, awesome things — like create a country.”
The wider public who dove into the moment in recent days may not feel inspired by the Arab Spring, but some of those who initially organized Israel’s protests acknowledge the influence, in some cases, also citing Spain — where young people have been protesting rampant joblessness for months, in some cases erecting tent camps and scuffling with police.
“People saw that other people managed to leave their houses and demand their rights. People here were quite desperate — but quiet and even numb,” protest leader Stav Shaffir said. “But in Spain... and the Arab countries — to demand their rights and cope with violence and challenges was of course a great inspiration.”
One sign in the Tel Aviv demonstration on Saturday scrawled the Arabic word and anti-Mubarak slogan, “Irhal” — “Leave.” Underneath, the protester wrote in Hebrew, “Egypt — it’s here.”
Israel’s social justice movement began with a tent encampment on an upscale boulevard in Tel Aviv last month, protesting high housing prices for purchase and rental. It quickly spread, attracting supporters from Israel’s squeezed and exhausted middle class: high prices, an eroding health system, expensive child care, high taxes, overcrowded schools and wages that often do not match increasingly ambitious expectations.
Conditions unique to Israel also fostered momentum. The country has been relatively free of Palestinian attacks for several years. That quiet has allowed Israelis to focus on social and economic problems instead of security matters.
To Ayala Levy, a 45-year-old mother of four, social desperation is part of the spark, but she also points to a Jewish tradition of communal solidarity and dismisses any influence from the Arab Spring. “You need more than inspiration to leave your own home and live in a tent,” she said.
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