More radical that his voters: Bishara
Photo: Hagai Aharon
Point of no return: October, 2000 riots
Photo: Reuters
Arab revolution?
There are many signs Israeli Arabs are less radical than their leaders
Two recent studies suggest radical change could be in the air for the complicated relations between the State of Israel and its Arab voters.
Arab pols under the gun
Azmi Bishara attacks what he refers to as ‘attempts by Zionist parties to steal votes from Arab sector,’ criticizes those willing to accept mere discussion on voting for Zionist parties. Arab MK also criticized Jewish MKs for ‘handing out grades’ to Arab counterpart; ‘this constitutes internal colonialism of the worst kind,’ he says
The first was conducted by Haifa University researcher Prof. Sami Samocha, suggesting there is a large gap between the moderate positions of most Israeli Arabs, as opposed to those of their elected leaders.
The study, based on a representative sample of Israeli Arabs (700 face-to-face interviews) and on interviews with 85 Arab public personalities found that the leadership is much more radical than its voters.
For example, 60.2 percent of Arab voters recognize Israel as a Jewish democracy, as opposed to just 18.2 of the elected leadership. And only 32 percent of the Arab public define themselves as anti-Zionist, as opposed to 85.7 percent of the leadership.
A decisive majority – 82.1 percent believe that solving the Palestinian problem will bring about an end to the conflict, as opposed to 44.9 percent of the leadership.
Radical leadership, moderate public
These numbers confirm the claim we have been making for years; namely, that the Arab leadership is a radicalizing factor amongst its public, even if the public is in no hurry to follow.
The second study was conducted by Dr. Eli Reches of Tel Aviv Unversity. Its findings are no less surprising: in the coming elections, 48 percent of Arab voters say they will vote for general-Israeli parties, including Kadima, Labor, Shinui, Meretz, and Likud.
This means the existing, radical Arab parties could disintegrate.
Israeli stability
There could be many reasons for this phenomenon: The October, 2000 riots brought many Arabs to understand that Jewish-Arab relations in Israel had reached a breaking point, and it was not in the interest of Israel's Arab community to slip over the cliff.
Many watch the anarchy in the Palestinian Authority and understand just how good, and stable, their lives in Israel are.
Many also strongly reject the aggressiveness of their current representatives, who often worry more about representing Syrian or PA interests than those of their constituents. The most obvious recent example was the late-December conference in Nazareth in which Israeli Arab politicians expressed total support for the Syrian regime, at the expense of the "little spider," Israel.
Revolution coming?
This approach of the Arab community signals a revolution. Indeed, during the 1970s the Arab community was radicalized while its leaders remained moderate. During the 80s and 90s the leadership followed the lead and took a radical, inciteful turn, and now we see the pendulum has swung back as the Arab community is expressing moderate stances once again.
This is a golden opportunity, perhaps the last one, to change the standing of the Arab community in the State of Israel and to make it a full partner in the political game.
This is a call for Israel's political parties to extend a hand to the Arab community in the coming election campaign, amidst signs the community would be receptive to such moves, and to offer real participation into the political establishment.
This is also a chance for the Arab community, for the first time in history, to join Israel's political fray in a real way. Voting for Arab parties failed to gain the community a true share of the national pie, and they remained isolated and neglected.
Only by joining general Israeli, becoming members of those party's central committees and choosing representatives – can make Israeli Arabs part of the national power, for the first time in history.
This is a rare opportunity that both sides would be wise not to squander.
