'If we see to it that the Israelis, Palestinians and Jordanians have jobs, we will actually be secur
Photo: Hagai Aharon
Wertheimer: Unemployment breeds fundamentalism
Israeli Industrialist tells Ynet ‘Galilee and Negev areas have always been overlooked. Government is not keeping its promises.’ Adds: Fundamentalism stems from unemployment. Man without job is desperate; he doesn’t want to live anyway. Add to this strong religious conviction, and he reaches self-destructive state of mind and is willing to kill himself. Give him work – and he’ll think differently
Industrialist Stef Wertheimer, 80, told Ynet in a special interview that “the real problem of north Israel is not the recent war in Lebanon but the fact that Israeli governments, present and past, have abandoned the residents and invested funds elsewhere.”
The Wertheimer family recently sold 80 percent of its ownership in Iscar to American business mogul Warren Buffet, and Mr. Wertheimer is currently focusing on voluntary educational projects and the industrial parks he established in northern Israel, at Kerem Shalom near the Israel-Gaza border and in Turkey.
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Wertheimer’s Lehavim technological plant in Nahariya suffered a direct his by a Hizbullah rocket, but this did not deter him from visiting the north daily all throughout the war “to feel a part of the Galilee.”
Weren’t you scared?
Scared?! When I saw the IDF reservists leaving Lebanon, I felt sorry that I could not march with them.
Was the economic damage done to Iscar and other plants in your industrial areas severe?
Nothing happened. We went down to the shelter a lot, and we were considerate toward all those who had to stay home and protect their children, but the rest continued to work, and the plants continued to produce as usual.
What about the small businesses that didn’t sell for an entire month?
So they didn’t work for a month, okay. It’s as if they went on vacation. This is not what will break them.
So the situation in the north is fine?
Certainly not. Look, some areas in the north, our area for instance, are in very good shape. But the war exposed the fact that other areas are in dire straits. And the reason for this is simple: The Galilee and the Negev areas have always been overlooked. The government is not keeping its promises. They promised to distribute lands to Galilee residents but did not; they promised that Highway 6 would reach the Galilee but it doesn’t; they promises a train to Carmiel, but it barely reaches Nahariya; they promises education, but there are still no universities north of Haifa; all of Israel’s governments promised to care for the Galilee but instead invested in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and the territories (settlements).
What is your opinion on the Defense Ministry’s demand for a budget increase?
Only more jobs will bring true security. For us to become a nation everyone, including Arabs, Druze, ultra-Orthodox and new immigrants must feel that they belong. Their success is extremely important to us. If they succeed they will come to understand the advantages of democracy and freedom. But otherwise they will not want to live here and there will be no security.
Jobs will come from industry. At our industrial park in Tefen we employ hundreds of Arabs and new immigrants. They are interested in how much the factory will sell; they don’t have the time to quarrel.
Industry will also bring peace to the region. If we see to it that the Israelis, Palestinians and Jordanians have jobs, we will actually be securing our own future. This has already been implemented in other parts of the world. The war between France and Germany ended because they began to manufacture steel together. For dozens of years the Balkan nations killed each other, and today they all want to enter the European Union; why? Because the EU provides workplaces. When people have nothing to lose, they kill each other, when there is work, the ‘topic of discussion’ changes. The common enemy becomes the global market, and there is no time for wars.
Is this also true for Lebanon, where the economy was thriving until Hizbullah kidnapped the IDF troops. If industries are established in Lebanon, will Hizbullah disappear?
Northern Lebanon flourished. There was no work in the south, so they let Hizbullah in because it provides them with Iranian oil money. The problem with our region is that there are areas with oil and too much money, and then there are places such as south Lebanon and the Palestinian territories, where there is no work and instead of developing industry they become dependent on oil money – this results in extremism.
In 1982 we should have helped Lebanon succeed, and then there would be no Hizbullah. Today we cannot help Lebanon, but the West – the Americans, Europeans and Turks –can, and I have a feeling that is in their interest to do so.
The Middle East fundamentalists are willing to die for their religious beliefs. Do you really believe they would become less extreme if they had more workplaces?
I truly believe that fundamentalism stems from unemployment. I man without a job is desperate; he doesn’t want to live anyway. Add to this strong religious conviction, and he reaches a self-destructive state of mind and is willing to kill himself. Give him work – and he’ll think differently.
To this end, we must invest as much as possible in education; this education must be relevant and create workplaces. This is not the type of education prevalent in Israel today.
Instead of promoting professional education, it is being repressed. Until the system is changed, we are trying to train people ourselves and send hundreds of Galilee residents to professional training courses each year. We also train Arabs and Jews to set up their own businesses.
