A proposal for the Yesha Council

Settlers need to be the first community to wave the green flag of environmental protection

Chanoch Daum|Published: 06.24.07 , 12:16

Yesha Council of Judea and Samaria. Shalom. First of all let us get something straight: the plight of Jewish settlers has never been worse. And as one of them - super-lite settler though I may be - (I supported the disengagement, not the first mistake of my life mind you), I am so sorry truly. I don’t mean to yell at you or try to explain what is wrong with you and why nobody is interested in hearing what any of you have to say. I have a something constructive to suggest to you and I promise it’s a pretty decent proposal.

But first, give me another 30 seconds to explain your current situation: The settlement movement in Judea and Samaria no longer interests Israelis. We have fallen to the lowest rung of national priority and at this juncture it’s really not important who is responsible. It could be that the message is irrelevant (it’s irrelevant). It could be that the spokespeople for the movement were careless (they were careless). Maybe it was that Ariel Sharon swept the nation to another place (he sure did sweep the nation away). Whatever the reason the Yesha Council and the settlers are again an insignificant element of Israeli society. No one has the patience to hear what we are saying even though sometimes it is quite important and even riveting.

As I promised I do have an idea. One that at first will be disagreeable but one you can use as a way of returning your cause to the national agenda. It goes straight to the essence of Israeliness and will make you relevant again, both on the national scene and in your own interests. I admit that you have not tried this but, hey, all the usual ways – you know, demonstrations and all that – were not big successes were they?

I am not patronizing here. This is not one of those open letters written with great gusto and sympathy but full of malice and wisdom after the fact. I am not about to suggest something that I know will be rejected from the start like the logic of compromise or evacuating by choice in order to save the major settlement centers. I am assuming and am truly trying a different more modest approach with the aim of helping. I don’t know if among you there is someone who will take my idea seriously, but if they do I will be the first to be recruited, the first to join the revolution.

So here it is: The settlers need to be the first community to wave the green flag of environmental protection. The settlers need to adopt the environment and global warming issues as theirs and work with all their strength for these causes.

There is a lot of Jewish value in the struggle to save the globe from the ravages of mankind. There is a lot of truth in the struggle. If the settlers, as people with ideology, will learn for the first time in their history to lead a struggle that has nothing to do with settlement, they will be taken seriously and people will begin listening to other things they have to say.

Shlepping a caravan from place to place is fascinating, dear Yesha leaders, but you would be surprised how many green goals we can set for ourselves: According to my proposal, settlers will use their campaigning abilities, their knowledge, their determination and their faith to lead the charge to preserve the hills of Jerusalem from development, the coast of Haifa from a commercial marina, halt a residential community next to the Kibbutz Gaash beach, preserving the park in Herzliya from becoming a residential area, keep the coast line and beaches open, set up new nature reserves in places where rare flora and fauna can be found.

The settlers will get rid of the fish cages in Eilat, will make all beaches free of charge, save the Ga’aton River, get a law passed that protects the rivers, advance the Environment Ministry's "clean beach" initiative, advance recycling, expand the bottle-deposit law, turn agricultural waste into energy, advance the collecting of electrical appliances in Tel Aviv, lobby for a clean-air law, limit the noise levels at wedding halls, work to fence in unique nature reserves, convert to less polluting fuels, provide incentives for public transport as a way of reducing traffic jams on the main arteries, offer free entrance to parks, work to dismantle billboards along public roads, and this is all just in Israel. We haven’t even touched global warming yet.

Why do we even need an idea that will spark affection for us again? One of the most amazing things about the disengagement was that so many people believed that disengagement would not bring even a shred of quiet to the region, but they were nevertheless intrigued to see settlers being evicted. All of Gush Katif was like a pain in the butt to them and talking about the evacuation gave them a good time without taking into consideration the security and political aspects of it. It’s sad but it is the truth:

Some of the public have become so sick of us that the disengagement, which we know today was very flawed, was supported by a huge majority of the public just because it was anti-settlers.

Now, I don’t intend just to practice public relations skills here, that is not the point: The link to the Greens will open new horizons for us settlers. It will give us a cultural ecological challenge and show us that there are other vital and interesting things going on besides the Arab-Israel conflict.

Even the most remote outpost can take part in conveying the right ecological message. There are many good people who are living on hilltops, surrounded by nature, eating right and trying to adapt to the environment in which they are living. If that will be the message then, as the Yesha Council, you will be much more successful. People will believe in you, but even more importantly, you will believe in yourselves.

10.

Study up. Send council envoys to all the important conferences on the subject. Meet all the activists and find out how the settlement movement can get involved in the Green campaign which is way more than just a trend. It is about a new lifestyle being created here and it is a real chance for religious Zionism to redefine itself based on the challenge and the consensus. I have faith.