Poll Position
From the Jerusalem Post
In the countdown to Tuesday's elections, Hilary Leila Krieger asked Jerusalem candidates where their party stands on the following issues: 1) Do you believe that Jerusalem can or should be divided? 2) What are the major issues confronting Jerusalem? 3) How will your party address the needs of the Anglo community?
NATIONAL UNION-YISRAEL BEITEINU
Uri Bank
No. 10 on NU-YB list
Gilo
1. No. Absolutely and unequivocally not. Jerusalem must remain Israel's
sovereign undivided capital forever. The Jewish people have returned to our one
homeland, to our one capital: Jerusalem. No other nation has the historical or
moral right to sovereignty in this holy city. Jerusalem is holy to many. But
the fact is the Jews have prayed towards Jerusalem for thousands of years,
while the Arabs turn their backs to the Temple Mount and face Mecca. The Bible
reiterates the Jewish people's constant devotion to our capital, while the
Koran does not mention Jerusalem even once. And while Christianity holds
Jerusalem as holy, it does not claim sovereignty. It is absurd that only the
Jews do not have religious freedom in our city. The Temple Mount is off limits
to non-Muslims - Jews and Christians alike - in a grave breach of religious
freedom, a very basic tenet of any democracy.
2. Currently, the Arab population seems justified in its demand to make east Jerusalem the capital of a Palestinian state: on the ground, there is Arab continuity in this part of our capital city. Typically, our politicians talk of Jerusalem as our undivided capital, but no leader - not Rabin, not Peres, not Barak, and not even Netanyahu or Sharon - has taken serious steps to change this reality. The only party that has done so is National Union-Yisrael Beiteinu ... Moledet leader Benny Elon, No. 2 on the National Union list, has spearheaded these efforts for many years. Thanks to him, the originally Jewish neighborhoods of Nahlaot Shimon (Umm-Aharon), Har Hazeitim (Ras el-Amud), Nissan Beck (Musrara), and Beit Orot have been revived and are living testimony to Jerusalem's continued Jewishness. Children play in the paths where Jews dared not walk for the past 50 years. I consider my part in the redemption of the Shimon Hatzadik Synagogue, and the return of Jewish families to live in this neighborhood, as the height of my political career thus far ... It is also important to strengthen the residents of the city through special economic incentives that will help attract people to live in our capital.
3. The National Union has already played a big part in securing the amendments to the tax reform ... I intend to be the Anglo community's "congressman" in the next Knesset. I am bringing with me the Western political culture of accountability, and I will directly represent this constituency. My first item on the agenda is to completely abolish the parts of the tax reform proposal that hurt olim, because the rules of the game cannot be changed in the middle. If Israel wants to put an emphasis on aliya, which is high on our party's list of priorities, it must protect the rights of those who come here. I will also address the issues of unemployment within the Anglo-Saxon community and the non-recognition of previous professional job experience from abroad in many fields. According to the current polls, I am the Anglo with the best chance of getting into the next Knesset, and I will be your voice there.
YISRAEL B'ALIYA
Eli Kazhdan
No. 5 on the YBA list
German Colony
1. Definitely not. Jerusalem is not merely the capital of our country, but also
the bedrock of our existence - the nexus of Jewish national and religious life.
For one thousand years of life in the land of Israel, it was here that our
priests prayed, our prophets preached, and our kings ruled. For the 2,000 years
of our exile, it was the source of our hopes and aspirations, symbolizing our dream
to return to Zion, gather in our people, and rebuild our nation. We are told by
those who support Jerusalem's division that it is only a "symbol."
But if there were ever a people of symbols, it is the Jews. We fill our days,
months, and years with a multitude of symbols of faith, tradition, and heritage
that give meaning to our lives and purpose to our history. Jerusalem, perhaps
more than any other, has proven the most potent symbol of all. This is why when
former Prime Minister Ehud Barak suggested we divide Jerusalem, Yisrael B'Aliya
was the first coalition partner to resign from his government. And Natan
Sharansky (No. 1 on YBA's list) was the one who organized the 400,000-person
Jerusalem Rally at the walls of the Old City in January 2001.
2. One of the major difficulties in Jerusalem is expensive, and often unaffordable, housing. The high prices prevent young couples from moving into our nation's capital. Last year, the Ministry of Housing, headed by Natan Sharansky, initiated what became known as "Tochnit Sharansky" - the Sharansky Program - which offered up to NIS 150,000 in grants and low-interest loans to those who bought apartments in Jerusalem. This program increased the sales of new apartments two-fold during the five-month period that the program was in effect. We plan to initiate additional programs of this sort in the future.
3. We will continue to serve as this community's voice and be accountable to it. We spearheaded the battle against the taxation of pensions and passive incomes of the Anglo community - despite staunch resistance by the Likud and Labor parties. In the same way we prevented the cuts on child subsidies of those olim who served only a few months in the army (Shlav Bet), we will continue to be the community's voice in the corridors of power in the Israeli system.
LABOR
Yuli Tamir
No. 9 on the Labor list
Nahlaot
1. I believe that the borders of Jerusalem should be redefined in a way that
all the Jewish neighborhoods will be part of a strong Jewish capital, and that
the Arab neighborhoods will be part of an Arab city. Jerusalem was never a
united city, never in the history of the Jews or in modern times. This is an
artificial [result] of annexation. There's nothing natural in the present
boundaries of Jerusalem.
2. The major problem of Jerusalem is that it's becoming less of a Jewish city. It's weak. It's poor. It's got no tourism, no recognition, no status. Jerusalem is seeing the worst times it's seen in many years. Our plan is to strengthen the city, to unify the Jewish areas, after which [the international community] will recognize Jerusalem, move their embassies, and thereby make it attractive to businesses and tourists ... We believe we should create incentives for businesses to move to Jerusalem and for young people to move to Jerusalem, but that can only be done in the more general context of the Israeli-Arab conflict.
3. We believe immigration to Israel, especially people from the West, is dependent on our ability to make Israel an attractive place for everybody to live ... to make it a community that is marked by solidarity, social responsibility, and social justice. We believe in making it part of the modern world, being in touch with the international community, being in touch with the 21st century.
MERETZ
MK Naomi Chazan
No. 8 on the Meretz list
Katamon Tet
1. Jerusalem, the capital of Israel and hometown since my birth, is in effect
divided today. Israelis rarely go to the Palestinian neighborhoods, and the
Palestinians avoid coming into West Jerusalem. Meretz favors the establishment
of two capitals for two states in Jerusalem, but strongly opposes any physical
separation of the city. The Palestinian neighborhoods should be under
Palestinian rule (as they are, in reality, today) and the Israeli neighborhoods
under Israeli sovereignty. There are over 650,000 residents in Jerusalem; fully
one-third are Palestinians. Coexistence in this majestic city demands
recognition of the rights of all its residents.
2. Jerusalem is a magnificent mixture of the past, the present, and the future. On the municipal level, basic infrastructure and services are sorely lacking, education is lagging, and economic prospects dim. All these challenges have intensified in the past two years. Security in the city is at a low. Meretz has addressed these issues both on the municipal and national levels, and will continue to do so - even more vigorously in the future.
3. Meretz has addressed the needs of the Anglo community in a variety of spheres, including opposition to double taxation proposals and the cuts in national insurance alongside constant contact with English-speaking citizens. Meretz is the only party truly committed to religious pluralism in Israel.
NATIONAL RELIGIOUS PARTY
MK Zevulun Orlev
No. 2 on the NRP list
Givat Mordechai
1. As a young soldier I fought for Jerusalem and was wounded. Jerusalem belongs
to the Jewish people and will remain the eternal undivided capital of Israel.
2. We must place east Jerusalem under Jewish sovereignty. We must immediately stop the destruction of antiquities at the Temple Mount and open it once again to visitors (since Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's visit to the Temple Mount, it has been closed to them).
We must find many more places of employment for residents of Jerusalem in order to lift it from being one of the poorest cities in the country.
3. Through our affiliated organizations we are heavily involved in aliya and klita. This process begins while the potential oleh/olah is still living in the Diaspora. We assist in job searches, accommodations, social and other needs of the oleh. NRP has a large educational network that caters to every level. Our women's organizations that are operated by Anglos run a very large school network, as well as many social welfare institutions including dealing with orphans and children from broken homes. We arrange educational seminars, shabbatonim and trips to allow Anglos to show their love of Eretz Yisrael and deepen their Torah knowledge. NRP will make every effort to ensure amendments to the Tax Reform Law in favor of Western olim are enacted.
SHINUI
Adir Benyamini
No. 18 on the Shinui list
Mount Scopus
1. We at Shinui believe that the issue of Jerusalem should be solved at the end
of the peace process that will start again when the Palestinians will put a cessation
to terror.
We will have to try to find a modus vivendi for Jerusalem without dividing the city with walls, and that enables both sides to coexist in peace, with respect for the holy sites of all three religions
2. One of the biggest issues confronting Jerusalem is the abandonment of the young and secular population, who leave Jerusalem for other cities.
The most concerning implication of that is that in the near future we are going to have a non-Zionist majority in our capital city.
We have to find ways to make the city more attractive to the young population that suffers today from religious coercion in Jerusalem.
3. Shinui supports the passing of a law on freedom of religion in order to establish equality between the different streams of Judaism.
A lot of the members of the Anglo community are non-Orthodox Jews and they have the right to equality, which we don't see today.
LIKUD
MK Reuven Rivlin
No. 37 on the Likud list
Beit Hakerem
1. The only reason that most of the Zionists made aliya was Zion, which is
Jerusalem.
The withdrawal from the belief that Jerusalem belongs to the Jewish people ... to say that Jerusalem could be divided once again means that we admit that we have no right of return and that probably the Palestinian people will win the battle in Jerusalem and probably Israel.
The Palestinians should understand that any compromise [must] contain the idea that Jerusalem will forever remain the united capital of the State of Israel.
2. The major issue of Jerusalem is the issue of Jews and Palestinians living together ... In Jerusalem we have 650,000 inhabitants, and out of them 250,000 are Palestinians.
The idea that we are doomed to this together should start in Jerusalem ... We cannot build walls in between the borders of Jerusalem.
We are living together fence by fence, house by house, and there is no possibility but to have everyone understand that we can cooperate.
And the ability to cooperate must first of all [convey] the idea that all the Palestinians will understand that there is no way to divide Jerusalem. Once they can be convinced that they have to give up, then we will begin to solve the problems of Jerusalem.
Actually since 1967 we have been living together in the best interests of all the inhabitants of Jerusalem ... Living together and the understanding that this way of living brings us to the best opportunity for everyone is the only formula for future cooperation for everyone ... The problem of the Temple Mount was solved after '67 when we decided as Israelis that although we insist upon the idea that Jerusalem not be redivided, the Muslims will get full autonomy in terms of running the life of and taking care of the Temple Mount.
3. The idea of Israel as the homeland for all Jews doesn't make any difference for [immigrants] who speak English, Russian, Amharic, Spanish, French, etc. We appreciate anyone who immigrates.
We cannot really prefer anyone
over the other ... but of course we cannot discriminate among anyone's rights
because they are English speakers.