October 11, 2011

The recent mosque burning in Tuba Zangaria and defacement of Muslim and Christian cemeteries in Jaffa bring shame to the hearts of Israelis of all political stripes and highlight the need for and importance of working toward a truly shared society. 

During the last year, SHATIL has put a major focus on our Shared Society project, which is about respecting the cultural space of the other as well as preventing the escalation of tensions. Shared Society is a model in which every citizen can feel at home while holding on to his or her unique culture.

“Our aim is for each citizen to see cultural and religious differences as a treasure and a gift rather than a threat,” said SHATIL Shared Society Project Coordinator, Shahira Shalabi.

These values were expressed in a solidarity visit led by the NIF-supported coalition Banish the Darkness organizations to Tuba Zangaria after the mosque burning. NIF Board and SHATIL Committee member, Sara Ozacky’s Lazar, delivered the following message, which was translated into Arabic: “We must work together more strenuously to erase this disgrace and to prevent its recurrence and to protect the image of God and man. Because we are all citizens of this land, which is so extremely dear to us, and because we all live together in this country and the same sunshine illuminates our way ahead and is the source of our lives. We will not let these people drive us apart and make hell of our lives.”)

In SHATIL’s new campaign toward a society in which all its population groups feel a sense of belonging and shared ownership, we are building and facilitating Arab-Jewish dialogue and joint action processes which tackle root causes of conflict, alleviate tensions and develops interim and long-term solutions.

Some recent successes:

Based on SHATIL’s Workplace Dialogue project at Tzfat Academic College, the president of the College issued a policy paper expressing paramount commitment to the principles of cultural diversity and the end to on-campus racism. The College now uses the shared workplace model in its promotional and marketing materials, and is demonstrating greater sensitivity for the religious and cultural needs of non-Jewish students.

SHATIL’s Haifa as a City of Joint Living has brought together Arab and Jewish residents of the city to learn about and enjoy one another’s history and culture (see the last issue of NIF News); and in general, works to promote more equitable municipal services and improved relations among the city’s residents.  It has developed practical steps to equalize budget allocations to different educational facilities and improve communities’ accessibility to cultural events. The staff recruits and trains activists and educates residents about issues at the core of the shared society framework, creating a community of more informed and aware citizenry who collaborate in advancing the values of shared living. The Haifa as a City for Joint Living team has shared its work with other mixed cities in the world – such as Beirut, Belfast, Derry/Londonderry, Kaduna (a new city in Nigeria), Kirkuk Iraq, Mitrovica, Kosovo, the borough of Mitte in Berlin,  Mostar, Bosnia, Nicosia, Jerusalem and Ramallah –  and learned from them as well. The Project hosted Serbian and Albanian volunteers from Kosovo – who are still struggling so hard with the tensions between them – to Haifa for 10 days in August, two of which were devoted to a workshop on conflict management.

The 20 Arab and Jewish members of the Acco Joint Living Task Force have been especially active in planning and hosting joint cultural events, including a yearly Old City celebration of the Jewish, Muslim and Christian holidays, with musical performances and cultural exhibitions.

In the Galilee, SHATIL spearheaded a three-year initiative which will  strengthen non profits that promote joint living; network between civil society and government; and establish a forum of donors to facilitate more effective, holistic and comprehensive investments in the promotion of shared living in the Galilee.

Together with our Israeli Arab partner, Future Vision Project (FVP), SHATIL last July convened the third week-long retreat of the Jewish-Palestinian Dialogue Initiative in Salonika, Greece, bringing together Jewish and Arab Israeli intellectual, social, religious, media, business and political leaders. This high profile Jewish-Palestinian network has defined as its core mission the conceptualization of a shared civil space and its promotion within Israeli society, both vis-à-vis the public at large and amongst decision makers.

SHATIL’s newest Shared Society initiative focuses on Upper Nazareth and Carmiel, where Arab residents pay municipal taxes but do not receive municipal services. The cities have no preschools, elementary schools, or high schools for Arab children and teenagers, no community center for the Arab population, no after-school or enrichment activities, no public theater – in short, none of the educational or cultural services available to the Jewish residents. SHATIL’s’ new effort will begin with fact-finding and mapping followed by outreach to Jewish and Arab leaders, the establishment of focus groups, raising public awareness, lobbying for change, and eventually securing local services.