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Published on 03/01/1999 All articles from this issue

Israel correspondent looks at future of Middle East at Morning Forum

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By Laura Brown

Special to the Town Crier

Linda Gradstein, National Public Radio's Israel correspondent, began her speech to the Morning Forum of Los Altos Feb. 16 by quoting the Chinese curse, "May you live in interesting times," and noted that times are always "interesting" in the Middle East.

Gradstein sees Israel at a crossroads as to what its society will reflect in coming years. Gradstein said that while the Middle East peace process continues, however slowly, there is growing fractionalization and tension within Israeli society.

Gradstein noted that there is growing resentment toward the restrictions imposed on society by Orthodox Jews. For instance, Gradstein said, although the population of Tel Aviv is 99 percent non-Orthodox, there is no bus service on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath. Because there is no separation of church and state in Israel, Gradstein said, it is impossible to marry, divorce, or be buried without going through the Orthodox Rabbi Rabbinate. Two issues which are particularly divisive are military service and taxes. Orthodox religious are exempt from both, while non-Orthodox Israelis are obligated to serve three years in the Army reserve and pay half their income in taxes, Gradstein said.

Because the country's two major political parties, Labor and Likud, have roughly equal support, Gradstein said, the religious minority represents a powerful swing vote, and has inordinate political power relative to its numbers. A new centrist party, "One Israel," led by former chief of staff Yitzhak Mordecai, may be able to beat both the Labor and Likud parties and change that balance of power in the upcoming May elections, Gradstein said.

Another source of unrest is the large influx of Russian Jewish immigrants who are having difficulty adjusting to Israeli life, Gradstein said. Additionally, she said, the number of Palestinian workers in Israel has decreased drastically since the Gulf War and Israeli employers are hiring a growing number of workers from places like Rumania and Thailand, who are beginning to present an illegal immigration problem.

Reflecting some of the changes in Israeli society, Gradstein noted that Israel has more high-tech start ups than any other country. While the threat of war is always present, Gradstein said that most Israelis want peace and to "go back to their software start-ups."

Asked if the kibbutz movement is dying out, Gradstein said that there is a move away from Socialist ideology toward capitalist economy and that the agricultural kibbutz is being replaced by kibbutz-run shopping malls.

On the prospects for lasting peace in the region, Gradstein said that both Israelis and Arabs must stop demonizing each other before real progress can be made.

The Morning Forum is a members-only lecture series held at the United Methodist Church of Los Altos. Membership is closed for this year. To get on a waiting list for membership, write to: Morning Forum, P.O. Box 274, Los Altos 94023-0274.