UPDATE FROM JERUSALEM

The latest update from Arnon Mantver, Director of JDC-Israel

Shalom all,

Remaining Relevant

In Israel, it is not sufficient for JDC to be innovative and effective on behalf of Israel's most vulnerable citizens. It is not enough to do "nice things" for needy people. In Israel, it is imperative to be relevant. Being relevant means that the people who ultimately create social policy and the "systems" which carry out that policy believe that your organization has knowledge, ideas and models for the most pressing social issues of the day.

A number of JDC-Israel senior staff and I were asked to present to PM Netanyahu's team which is forming the agenda for his first 100 days in office, which will begin immediately upon establishment of the governing coalition. The Prime Minister is well aware that in these trying economic times, social services cannot be ignored and he has designated programs for the elderly and unemployed as top priorities on his social agenda. In addition he intends to work closely with major Israeli NGOs.

The Prime Minister has a deep appreciation for efficient social programs which provide critically needed services in the community, while reducing the need for more expensive institutional services or welfare payments. During his tenure as Finance Minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, visited JDC-Israel's Supportive Community for the Elderly in the Gilo neighborhood of Jerusalem, praised the program for doing just that, and told JDC that he seeks to support similar models in all areas of social services. He also put his money where his mouth was, helping us expand the service to over 200 communities reaching more than 37,000 elderly.

JDC-Israel has been asked to provide the PM's team with position papers on innovative and cost-efficient services for elderly and unemployed.

Protecting Israel's Children

This month the second Beit Lynn Protection Center opened in Tel-Aviv, joining the ground-breaking Center which already exists in Jerusalem. The Centers are based on a model developed in the U.S. which assesses and investigates victims of child abuse, bringing together health, social, police and justice workers under one roof to interview the children with the utmost sensitivity and expose them to the minimum amount of discomfort. The Center in Tel Aviv is the first to be housed in a hospital, taking advantage of the proximity of specially trained health professionals. Both Centers have been enabled by the vision, professional partnership and generous financial support of our own Lynn Schusterman. Each year, the Centers will serve a total of 1,200 children aged 3-18 who have been physically, sexually or psychological abused by family members, grown-ups or other children.

JDC-Israel Leadership

Myra Kraft, Chair of the Israel Committee, spent a week in Israel with us. She and I met again with Zvika Livnat, a top Israeli businessman who is a friend of Myra's, to concretize the steps we will be taking to promote enhanced philanthropy in Israel. We also met with Nir Barkat, who just began a five-year tenure as Mayor of Jerusalem, Israel's largest, poorest, and most diverse city. Finally, we were able to celebrate Purim together, witnessing the varied and unique ways in which Jerusalemites commemorate the victory of the Jews over those who wished to destroy us.

Regards from Jerusalem,

Arnon

Briefing from Steve Schwager, Executive Vice President and CEO, JDC

Throughout our history, Jews have often lived as desert nomads, immigrants, refugees—always searching for a place to call home. But the creation of the modern State of Israel finally provided the perennial Jewish wanderer with a permanent home. At the same time, Israel’s 60 years of experience in integrating and absorbing immigrants offers important lessons to other countries in the fields of immigrant integration and migration. Irv and I want to inform you about the unique ways in which JDC-Israel is sharing decades of Israeli experience and know-how with governments and organizations across the globe dealing with the myriad challenges in assisting migrant groups.

The Center for International Migration and Integration (CIMI)
In 1999, JDC established CIMI as a program that draws on JDC-Israel’s professional experience in developing innovative programs in areas that assist a wide range of vulnerable populations. CIMI also works with partners in Israel and internationally, including MASHAV (the Government of Israel’s foreign aid branch through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

CIMI is dedicated to the development and application of effective policies and practices around the world in three areas of migration: 1) Immigrant Integration; 2) Homeland-Diaspora Partnerships; and 3) Temporary and Forced Migration. These goals are achieved through training and consultations for policymakers and practitioners, while also supporting project development.

Israel’s experience is both unique and universal. As one participant in the CIMI/Mashav Professional Exchange for Latino Leaders (March 2008) stated:

"It was affirming and challenging to witness the universality of the migration story. It was wonderful to see the many dedicated individuals who assist people coming to a new country through their struggle to learn the language, find a job, and adapt. And, unfortunately, the underlying tensions that emerge when new immigrants arrive, in this case between ‘veteran’ Israelis and new immigrants, appear to be universal as well.”

So while Israel shares its expertise in migration issues with the rest of the world, CIMI also brings international experience back to Israel to help address the country’s own new migration challenges.

Leveraging the Expertise of JDC-Israel and CIMI
While Israel’s raison d’être is to assist its own Jewish immigrants, its geographic position and growing status as a developed country have made it a destination country for many other migrant groups as well. The Government of Israel, therefore, has turned to JDC-Israel and CIMI for assistance in addressing the complex contemporary challenges these migration flows bring; we, in turn, have responded by providing policy consultation and innovative programs for these most vulnerable of migrants. The challenges, of course, are numerous: how to assist the Sudanese, Eritrean, and other asylum seekers crossing the border from Egypt; what to do for the children of foreign workers; or how to assist women who are victims of trafficking to obtain dignified employment alternatives when they return to their countries of origin.

This project represents the first comprehensive migration management capacity building program ever implemented in Israel, combining the relative strengths of CIMI in Israel, international expertise of the UNHCR and IOM, and local partners in Israel, which include government ministries—the Ministry of the Interior (with the newly established Immigration Authority), the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs—as well as local non-government organizations.

As one of the European Union's (EU) efforts in its struggles with migration challenges, it recently provided funding to CIMI to hold a film festival in Israel focusing on the issues facing both Israel and Europe. The festival, entitled "People on the Move: Migration Cinema in Israel and the European Union,” was held on September 9-10, 2008. Over 2,000 participants viewed films and listened to panel discussions that explored issues related to immigrant experiences and multi-cultural societies as they are presented on film. Partnering with JDC and CIMI on this initiative were the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption and the Gesher Multicultural Film Fund. The event brought together immigrants from the FSU, Ethiopia, Latin America, professionals from the migration field, and filmmakers. Sharing experiences both visually and verbally created a new understanding of immigrant experiences in Israel and the countries within the European Union; participation of guests from England and Ireland set the stage for future collaboration. As a follow-up to this cultural exchange, CIMI will organize a study-visit to Israel later this year for Integration officials from all the 27 European Union Member States.

CIMI experts also had a serious impact at the international policy level at the International Conference on Serbian Diaspora and Homeland Development held in Belgrade in November 2008. The Conference was part of a comprehensive Diaspora Program, and CIMI was contracted by the United Nations Development Program to provide technical assistance to the relatively new Serbian Ministry for Diaspora. The Conference led to the adoption of concrete recommendations that emulated Israeli programs; it encouraged the return of qualified migrants and the development of direct philanthropic relations between Serbian Diaspora communities in the US and local institutions such as Serbian universities. Noting that the Serbian Diaspora has tremendous potential to contribute to the country’s development, the Serbian Minister for Diaspora, Srđan Srećković, said that the recommendations adopted at the Conference will feed into the creation of Diaspora Legislation and a National Diaspora Strategy. He added that Israel’s knowledge and practice in this domain are of crucial importance to his country.

These examples of CIMI’s effectiveness demonstrate another venue in which Israel is shining as a “light onto the nations.” And these fruitful exchanges remind us that when countries work side by side, the potential to improve and transform the lives of all vulnerable immigrants is exponentially increased.

Interview with Dr. Dan Ben-David

In this article from the Jerusalem Post, Ruth Eglash interviews Dr. Dan Ben-David, Executive Director of JDC's Taub Center for Social Policy Studies in Israel. Dr. Ben-David is a featured speaker at the upcoming JDC Ambassadors Circle Global Symposium on May 19 in New York City.

Recession could have an upside, Ben-David says
By Ruth Eglash
Jerusalem Post – March 17, 2009
Jpost.com

There could be a 'silver lining' to the dark cloud of the current economic recession, according to Dr. Dan Ben-David, executive director of the Taub Center for Social Policy Research and an economics professor at Tel Aviv University's Department of Public Policy.

Ben-David, who published the Taub Center's annual Social Services Report on Tuesday, told The Jerusalem Post that despite the fact that the economy is likely to "worsen before it gets better, there is also a silver lining to the dark cloud, because we now have the opportunity make major reforms in government policy" that will put Israel in a much better position in the future.

"Israel's socioeconomic landscape was following long-term trends that were not sustainable," said Ben-David, who took over as executive director of the center five months ago.

"The country's standard of living per capita was growing at a slow rate and we were beginning to fall far behind other countries; the levels of poverty were deepening and the income inequality between certain populations has been getting wider and wider since the 1970s," he said.

"When there is macro-economic growth, as in Israel over the past few years, it is impossible to muster the "political power and public support to make sweeping reforms to the socioeconomic path," he said.

"When we are cruising on a certain path and things are not so bad, then no one wants to make changes," he said. "Now, because of the recession, there are no misconceptions, we can see clearly that things are not good. In that sense, it's a very good time to get people's attention and show them the things that need fixing."

Raising attention to the deepening economic crisis and its social affects is one of the main goals of the Taub Center's annual report, which is to be distributed to policy-makers, including Prime Minister-designate Binyamin Netanyahu, in the coming weeks.

Examining economics, employment, education, health and social welfare, the report highlighted that despite the economic growth in 2007/8 - before the recession began in the fourth quarter of last year - unemployment continued to expand steadily and the socioeconomic gaps between the haves and have-nots increased.

Although the unemployment rate was relatively low, the number of chronically unemployed people - unable to break back into the workforce for many months or even years - was steadily worsening. Among those being left behind by the job market were the highly educated and Arab-Israelis, who could not find employment due to the increasing influx of foreign workers, the report found.

The Taub Center document urges the government to focus on the implementation of a constructive policy that will help needy families, reduce the socioeconomic gaps and better develop social welfare services.

On Monday, Netanyahu met with representatives of 30 NGOs to hear about their challenges in aiding the country's weakest populations. While he did not make any concrete promises, he did say the recession was a good time to make structural changes and that he would explore ways to further incorporate NGOs into the public social welfare sector.

"It was definitely a good sign," Ben-David said. "A lot more needs to be spent by the government on the social safety net, but it needs to be distributed wisely, not only focusing on the physical infrastructure but also on the people. We live in an amazing country and if certain key changes are made it can only get better here."

Source:
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1237114854040

Registration Has Begun...

Registration has begun for the 2009

JDC Ambassadors Circle Global Symposium

CRISIS AND HOPE IN THE JEWISH WORLD

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

New York City

Join us for a full day of exclusive briefings on the status of Jewish communities and JDC's work around the world. This is a unique opportunity to meet and hear from JDC's top professional staff working to make a difference.

Featured Highlights:

Israel's Threat from Within: Major challenges Israel faces today and how JDC is working to address them tomorrow

JDC at War: How JDC operates during war situations - rescue operations, relief distribution and more

Lunch with JDC Country Representatives: An opportunity to learn more in-depth about JDC's work around the world

Briefing from a CNN (and JDC) Hero: Dr. Rick Hodes will join us to speak about his work in Ethiopia

Couvert: $100 per person

Reservations are required to attend. To RSVP or for more information, contact ambassadors@jdc.org or (212) 885-0876.

Briefing from Steve Schwager, Executive Vice President and CEO, JDC

I wrote this column in Istanbul, Turkey—a city of 14 million people where JDC began nearly 95 years ago. I traveled at the request of our Country Director, Ami Bergman, and the local Jewish community leadership. Much has changed in the world and in Istanbul since our founding. The Ottoman Empire no longer exists. The building that housed the American Embassy where Henry Morgenthau, Sr. sent the famous 1914 cable has been closed and replaced with a bombproof, fortress-like American consulate.

Large numbers of Jews have lived in Turkey for over 500 years, ever since we were expelled from Spain in 1492. The community numbered over 100,000 people at its peak; now about 25,000 Jews share the country with 70 million Muslims.

I was amazed to find that some things have not changed since my last visit 10 years ago: The Jewish community continues to be well-organized and operates the full range of Jewish institutions and services from preschool activities to old age homes, with the extremely active involvement of its lay leadership.

The political trends in this country are of great concern to the Jews. The recent war in Gaza has caused a rapid rise of anti-Semitism that is supported by the national government. The following piece was published by a local leader named Leyla Navaro; her words capture the concerns of the Jews of Turkey far better than any column I could write:

Looking back at my life as a Turkish citizen, I recall only two disturbing events reflecting racism, discrimination and anti-Semitism in Turkey. The first one is the Wealth Tax, a tax imposed only on non-Muslim Turkish citizens during World War II. I was six years old and my grandfather’s textile shop in Yesildirek was seized because he could not pay the sum imposed on him. I remember the tax officials in our house, searching for anything they could seize. There was a deep sense of worry among family members and my grandfather fell ill and took to his bed.

The second event was the 6-7 September disaster (Riots in 1955 which left mostly Greek businesses, as well as many establishments owned by minorities, pillaged). My family did not suffer physically since we did not own a shop, but I remember being very sad and frightened.

During the 1950s, when the “Citizen! Speak Turkish” slogans became widespread, I remember that my elder sister and I quoted this slogan and scolded people who spoke Ladino and minority languages. We must have been 11 or 12 years old. Today I recall this with shame, although I know that this is “identifying with the aggressor” behavior in psychology. A person who is threatened begins to identify with his/her aggressor and turns into an aggressor as well. Perhaps such behavior can be forgiven coming from an 11-year-old, but absolutely not from an adult, let alone from a country….

I was born in Turkey more than half a century ago and I live in this country. My mother, father, and my ancestors are natives of Turkey. I studied in Turkey. I married a Turkish Jew. My children attended Turkish schools. We speak Turkish at home. I have written books in Turkish and likewise conducted lectures and seminars in Turkish. I have proudly represented Turkey in international workshops and board meetings abroad. In fact I go by the pseudonym of “the Turkish woman.”

I have been a self-appointed ambassador while teaching Europeans, Americans and Asians, who know little about Turkey, and therefore are biased. In my thirty years of professional life, 90 percent of my patients have been Muslims; among them were numerous women who traditionally cover their heads, including those donning the Islamic turban. I teach at a state university and actively contribute to projects undertaken by public and private institutions, civil society establishments, and similar bodies. Following the earthquake of 1999, I volunteered for months doing post-traumatic work. I am a regular taxpayer, and I am concerned and actively involved in the financial and ethical interests of Turkey.

This being said, could you tell me why, in what seems like just one day, I have been transformed into an enemy of the state simply because I am Jewish? How did I become a potential target, an implicitly appointed party in the current Middle East war? Friends and family know my feelings, as well as my stand on this war; they are aware of my sensitivities for those who are killed in times of war.

I am shocked that I am being held responsible for the war in the Middle East just because I am a Jew. It is difficult to understand the point underlying the statement: “We are the grandchildren of the Ottomans who saved you from Spain.” Am I to be forever indebted just because the Ottoman Empire accepted my ancestors 500 years ago? Am I still a guest in this country where I was born and raised, where I fulfill my citizenship duties, and to whose development I actively contribute? Am I expected to walk with my head down? Have I become a target to existential threats and should I endure it?

Loyalty ranks as one of the prime characteristics of Turkish Jews. Turkish Jews living in other countries continue to speak Turkish, get together to watch Turkish movies, and savor Turkish cuisine. They enjoy singing Turkish songs. Although they no longer live in Turkey, they are still loyal to their roots and attached to the culture of their origin. Jews within Turkey also share this strong sentiment; they love their country and defend it steadfastly against the prejudices encountered abroad. I am no exception; I will never allow people to undermine the image of Turkey and strongly believe in the recognition of local values.

Today, however, my faith is shattered.… My country of birth, to which I pledge allegiance, no longer considers me an equal citizen, but views me as a member of the enemy camp just because of my religion. Boosted by a popular but seemingly non-mainstream media, governmental authorities who should protect their citizens do not refrain from using offensive and threatening rhetoric, thus inciting hostility in the masses. They cannot or do not want to say “no” to the racist tidal wave which is about to invade the country.

Does that mean that we were wrong to believe that we shared a common destiny and a sense of belonging, regardless of ethnicity, religion, and faith, with the rest of the Turkish citizens? Have we been living 500 years in dark ignorance?

It seems that the very popular expression of “mosaic of cultures” is nothing but a slogan for tourists—an illusion and a delusion. Perhaps the real goal is to reduce the “mosaic” into a single hue. And if that is true, then there are citizens who see me today as a potential enemy—and will seek to hurt or eliminate me…. Today, I am sad, worried, and somewhat frightened for myself; but I am equally saddened, worried, and frightened for Turkey’s future, which appears to be sliding towards an abyss of racism. I am frightened for a Turkey which will commit itself to a great solitude, unless a conscious effort is exerted to put a stop to this situation. A dark solitude…

On behalf of JDC, Irv and I have expressed our support to the Turkish Jewish community and have assured them that we will stand by their side whatever the future brings. Our responsibility is to continue to serve as the community’s bridge to the American Jewish community and the greater Jewish world. There is a Hebrew song that talks about the whole world being a narrow bridge and that the most important thing is to never be afraid. I have tried to assure the Jewish community in Turkey that JDC is the 911 bridge of the Jewish world—and that they should not fear; we will be here for them.

Education Initiative is Leveling the Playing Field for Disadvantaged Children in Israel

Naomi was just two years old when her family emigrated from Ethiopia to Israel, eventually settling in Bat Yam, a coastal town close to Tel Aviv. In many ways she and her family have faced experiences common among Ethiopian-Israeli immigrants: the family is economically disadvantaged, Naomi’s parents struggle with speaking Hebrew, and she had a hard time relating to other kids.

When Naomi first joined JDC’s Weitzman-Albert Education Initiative, she was afraid to speak and spent much of her time alone. Emotional problems hampered her studies; she would define every animal, no matter what color or kind, as a rabbit.

The Initiative, pioneered by JDC together with Jane and Stuart Weitzman and Ruth Albert, provides a highly enriched and supportive school environment to help at-risk children overcome their disadvantage, including socioeconomic, language, and other barriers to success. The Initiative is currently being piloted among 175 first through third grade students at Bat Yam’s Harel School.

As a result of small class sizes; a variety of academic, social, cultural, and developmental enrichment activities such as science instruction, music, and tennis lessons; and the availability of therapies to meet specific needs, today children like Naomi are thriving.

Thanks to an extended school day of 2.5 hours of extracurricular instruction and activities five days a week, these children—many of whom live with single parents who are not home to receive or feed them after school, or are immigrants whose parents do not have the Hebrew skills to help them with their school work—benefit from a nurturing environment that encourages their growth and development. They also get extra literacy support, such as vocabulary building, and individual attention from additional teaching staff that work with small groups of students, often through drama and theater.

In Naomi’s case, the Initiative’s speech therapist helped her increase her vocabulary and learn how to better express herself. But it was only when Naomi began to participate in the Initiative’s Tennis Excellence Program—spearheaded by the manager at the Bat Yam Tennis Center—that she really began to progress developmentally.

Since beginning the tennis program in early 2008, Naomi’s confidence has skyrocketed. Her peers refer to her as “one of the fastest runners ever.” This support and encouragement, combined with being one of 10 students selected to participate in the Tennis Excellence Program twice a week, gave Naomi the acknowledgment she needed to feel comfortable expressing herself for the first time in her young life. Naomi even started speaking about her passion for tennis with her classmates and parents using the vocabulary she learned in her speech therapy sessions.

Through the dedicated resources and efforts of JDC’s Weitzman-Albert Education Initiative, achievements that once seemed unattainable for Naomi have become a reality. She has learned to identify most animals by their names and express her thoughts in class; she smiles constantly.

Thrilled with her daughter’s progress, Naomi’s mom said, “I am willing to do anything in order to ensure Naomi’s success!” So is the Education Initiative, which received a boost of encouragement when the Harel School was recently awarded a Ministry of Education Prize for Educational Excellence.

Property Reclamation: How JDC is Guiding European Jewish Communities through the Restitution Process

Four years ago, Serbia, like most countries in the former Yugoslavian states, had no law governing the restitution of Jewish communal property—former synagogues, schools, community buildings—confiscated by the Nazis and later nationalized under Communist governments. Today, with JDC assistance, the first such property has been returned to the Serbian Jewish community and is on its way to providing income to help sustain local Jewish life.

One of the cornerstones of JDC’s mission has long been to develop communities that are self-sustaining. The return and successful management of Jewish communal property in the former Soviet Union and Central and Eastern Europe is an important component of JDC’s strategy. Since the mid-1990s, JDC has been involved in this process, on its own and also via the World Jewish Restitution Organization, in order to both achieve a small measure of justice and to enable communities to have the resources they need to flourish.

In February of 2005, JDC held a property reclamation seminar in Belgrade, Serbia—the first of its kind for countries of the former Yugoslavia, which, due to the Balkan wars a few years earlier, were lagging behind other formerly Communist countries such as Poland, Hungary, and Romania in the return of nationalized property. Though no laws existed in this arena, with an eye on the eventuality of a restitution law being established, JDC provided Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, and Macedonia with grants, loans, and the expertise to begin researching and making an inventory of properties that belonged to the Jewish community before World War II.

“The process we encouraged in Serbia is a model for how JDC helps communities along the continuum of property reclamation, from the pre-law stage until well after a property is returned,” explained Herbert Block, JDC Assistant Executive Vice President for Property Reclamation. “We provide not only funding but also the professional guidance to empower these communities on a road to self-sustainability,” he added.

When JDC held a follow-up seminar in June of 2006, the Serbian government had just, a few weeks earlier, enacted a new law regarding the restitution of church and religious property. And so the work began, with JDC funding and technical assistance from a property management coordinator, to translate all of the research that had been conducted into filing legal claims in accordance with the government’s deadline. By September 2008, the Jewish community of Serbia had filed 513 claims to former synagogues, schools, and community institutions. Two months later, in November 2008, the Jewish community got back its first property.

Built in 1928, the pre-war headquarters of the Sephardic community in Belgrade had been nationalized, though even during the nearly five decades of Communism the community was allowed to maintain its offices there. While only parts of the building have been returned to date—including a hall on the first floor and a floor of offices recently vacated by the local volunteer fire brigade—the process is already underway to turn these properties into profitable assets.

JDC’s help does not end when the government returns a property; the organization then offers the community assistance with real estate management so that a vacant old site can become an asset rather than a liability.

Today this community is applying to borrow money from the JDC-sponsored Strategic European Loan Fund (SELF), which provides interest-free loans that enable Jewish communities to develop or renovate properties that can yield income for the community. The proceeds generated from this and other real estate will be used to defend and process the community’s other property restitution claims, to improve or renovate future returned properties, and to fund Jewish programs that engage members of the country’s 10 Jewish communities.

“Serbia’s Jewish community has not had its own resources,” says Robert Djerassi, JDC Program Director for the former Yugoslavia. “Through the reclamation process, we will now begin to have the means to support viable Jewish life for the country’s 3,200 Jews today and in the future.”