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J-Post Mariaschin Op-Ed: No To A UN-Imposed Settlement

3/30/2015

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PictureDaniel S. Mariaschin
The United Nations is hardly a neutral arbiter when it comes to Israel. In fact, the UN’s anti-Israel views routinely border on hysteria.

In agency after agency at the United Nations, Israel is a pariah, held to an impossible standard; it is judged as no other nation is judged.

At the United Nations, the U.S. has for many years prevented one-sided measures from being imposed on Israel.

In the last few days, the White House has publicly stated it is reevaluating its long-held policy positions on the Israeli-Palestinian issue and might consider having the UN Security Council take center stage in seeking an outcome to the situation.

That would be a significant policy change and a cause for concern.

Internationalizing the conflict through the UN is an inherently misguided idea that seems to be gaining traction.

An editorial on March 24 in The New York Times argues, “A clear Security Council statement in favor of a two-state solution would be an important benchmark.

If the United States and other major powers quickly show commitment to that approach, they might be able to keep Palestinians from pressing a complaint against Israel in the International Criminal Court. The Palestinians, who will join the court on April 1, have long argued for an investigation of Israeli ‘war crimes.’ Israel vehemently opposes action by the court, which would poison relations even more and alienate many Americans.”

You can’t point to very much that’s positive the UN has done – over decades – to advance the cause of peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Indeed, it has often exacerbated the Arab-Israeli conflict, rather than promoting reconciliation by the parties.

From the infamous Zionism equals racism resolution adopted in 1975 (and only repealed 17 years later), to the creation of the special UN in-house committees promoting the Palestinian narrative, to the constant browbeating by the UN Human Rights Council – which also perpetuates the Palestinian narrative – and to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which has also perpetuated the narrative of Palestinian victimization, the list is long.

The UN is inhospitable territory for Israel, and attempts to impose any kind of arrangement will find few willing partners in Israel – even beyond the new government.

Knowing a UN Security Council resolution might not require it to make real concessions, would the Palestinian Authority demand a “right of return” of Palestinians to Israel? Attempt to wriggle out of endof- conflict assurances? Agree to be demilitarized? Stop incitement and terrorism? If a framework is imposed through the UN, it will send a message to the European Union and the rest of the world that Israel can be coerced through third parties, and the EU, as well as Israel’s enemies in the Islamic and Arab world will see this as an opportunity to pile on.

Ultimately, a UN-imposed settlement would place Israel in a three-sided vise, facing the prospects of rockets and other terrorist attacks from north (Hezbollah), south (Hamas) and east (Iran and its proxies).

Ben-Gurion Airport was shut down for a day during Operation Protective Edge last year because of Hamas rocket fire; extremists in a West Bank Palestinian state could strike inbound and outbound flights with not much more than a slingshot, given its proximity to the airport.

We justifiably worry about foreign fighters going to Syria, now in its fifth year of a destructive civil war. An arrangement imposed by the UN could be an invitation to the same people to enter territory within shouting distance of Tel Aviv.

Based on some of the recent comments coming out of the White House, the administration appears to be considering what would be a dramatic departure from the hard work done by the US’s UN ambassador Arthur Goldberg and the US delegation when they negotiated the language of Security Council resolutions 242 and 338. The two-state solution was never supposed to be predicated on the pre-June 5, 1967 armistice lines. The language of Resolution 242 clearly calls for Arab states to make peace with Israel, which all but Egypt and Jordan have yet to do, while Israeli withdrawal from territories was supposed to mean some, but not all, territories in dispute.

The administration now risks edging closer to more maximalist positions, which suggests an Israeli return to the 1967 frontier. To do so would be to reward Palestinian unilateralism; it could revise decades of US policy toward an ally and two painstakingly negotiated security council resolutions that have been on the books that entire time.

Late last year, the Security Council came close to adopting a draft resolution that would have fully imposed Palestinian demands on Israel. The US and Australia led the effort to actively oppose the measure. Would the policy “reevaluation” by the White House mean a similar measure could now pass with US support? Or even be adopted with a US abstention? 

During a vigorous defense of Israel at the Human Rights Council earlier this month in Geneva, US Secretary of State John Kerry said, “The United States will oppose arbitrary efforts to delegitimize Israel… Not just in the UN Human Rights Council, but wherever it occurs.” National Security Adviser Susan Rice told the AIPAC conference in early March of the Israel-US relationship: “The bottom line is simple: We have Israel’s back, come hell or high water…” Samantha Power, the US Permanent Representative to the UN, told that same gathering: “At the Security Council, we have also guarded vigilantly against any resolution that threatens Israel’s security or undermines the pursuit of peace. That is why in December we opposed efforts to pass a deeply imbalanced Security Council resolution on Palestinian statehood and successfully rallied other countries to do the same.”

How does the Kerry, Rice, Power defense of Israel square with the newly stated intention to reevaluate policy on the peace process? An imposed solution would not result in genuine, lasting peace. In fact, it would undermine the cause of peace, because, absent Israeli inclusion in developing them, key issues would remain unaddressed; Israel’s security, and thus regional security, could be compromised.

Negotiations – tough ones involving give and take – are the only path to effectuate an end to the conflict. That can only happen if there is a sincere will on the part of the PA to enter negotiations, if it recognizes Israel as a Jewish state (language the UN has itself used) and if it disconnects itself from the Hamas terrorists in Gaza. These are absolute necessities, especially given the chaotic state of the conflicts raging beyond Israel’s borders.


Daniel S. Mariaschin is the Executive Vice President at B'nai B'rith International, and has spent nearly all of his professional life working on behalf of Jewish organizations. As the organization’s top executive officer, he directs and supervises B’nai B’rith programs, activities and staff in the more than 50 countries where B’nai B’rith is organized. He also serves as director of B'nai B'rith's Center for Human Rights and Public Policy (CHRPP). In that capacity, he presents B’nai B’rith’s perspective to a variety of audiences, including Congress and the media, and coordinates the center’s programs and policies on issues of concern to the Jewish community. To view some of his additional content, Click Here.
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The United States Affordable Housing Policy…What Happened?

3/26/2015

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PictureMark D. Olshan
Since its founding in 1843, B’nai B’rith International has sought to fulfill the Mitzvah of Tikkum Olam (building a better world).

For us, this mandate has long meant work to ensure that older persons are able to age in place with dignity, regardless of their economic status. This, of course, supports the notion that these individuals, in the “golden” years of their lives, are entitled to live in safe, supportive and affordable housing that is appropriate for their particular needs. 

Without affordable housing options, many older adults have historically found themselves having to go to nursing homes, well before they may actually need that level of care. 

Since 1971, B’nai B’rith has worked in partnership with the federal government, through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to sponsor this type of housing, utilizing the programs established under the Federal Housing Act of 1959, as amended, which set out to articulate our federal housing policy to address this growing concern.

The Need...

The “graying” of America has been well documented. The percentage of persons aged 65 and older is making a larger and larger percentage of the total population, growing from 35 million (12.5 percent) in 2000 to 71.5 million (19.4 percent) by 2030. 

Additionally, and compounding the issue, is the growth of the “oldest” old, those individuals who are aged 85 and older, who are becoming a larger share of the elderly population due to our increased longevity. 
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In general, this raises serious concerns about the availability of appropriate “support” services in addition to affordable rental housing units.

Think abut it…How many people do you know who are in their upper 80's or even past 90 years of age? 
The Problem...

While the sustained growth of the senior population is well documented, it is not supported by a corresponding growth in affordable housing units to provide for this increasing demand. Currently, there are at least 10 people on a waiting list for every available subsidized elderly housing unit and, even a number of HUD studies recommend building 10,000 new units of elderly senior housing every year until 2020 to even begin to meet the increased demand.

That’s only five years away! 

From a personal perspective, I’ll be 74 years old then, and I’m only the first year of the “baby boomer” generation. The tsunami of older persons to follow is staggering, and I believe, will overwhelm every affordable housing and supportive services program currently available. 

Adding to this crisis is the fact that the recent recession robbed many older adults of their primary wealth—the value of their home—while also taking a bite out of retirement savings. For us boomers, and for future generations, the older adult population will have as much, if not more need for affordable options than the elderly of the past.
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The Solution…

Established in 1959, the Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly program (known as Section 202) is the only HUD program that currently provides housing exclusively for elderly persons who have very low incomes. When enacted, this program was part of a “comprehensive” federal housing policy coordinated by the federal government. 

It was developed as a “partnership” between the government and community based non-profit organizations (like B’nai B’rith) to supply safe, quality, affordable residential housing to older persons of limited incomes. The government would supply the financial resources to build the property, and the non-profit groups would supply the “sweat equity” to oversee the development and operations of the property. It was the perfect combination of federal and community resources joining forces to meet a burgeoning human need.
So…What happened??

Generally, there have been a few distinct phases of the program from its inception to the present. In the 1960s and 1970s the eligibility criteria were refined. In the late 70's and 80's the focus began to shift to reducing the actual costs of construction. 

During the mid 1990s the program began to recognize and incorporate the physical needs of the residents above and beyond the bricks and mortar and the use of “service coordinators” became more prevalent which helped individuals to access the support and services they might need to make aging in place more possible. 

HUD finally understood that providing some level of service support within the housing facility often precluded a premature move to a more institutional setting for a resident, at a tremendous cost savings to society in general. Think about it. If people can remain in their homes—whether owned or rented—with assistance and services to help them with a few basic needs, isn't that better than moving to a nursing home before you need to?

The Section 202 Program for the Elderly, while suffering somewhat less total units being funded, was finally getting the recognition and understanding it so richly deserved.

Unfortunately, Congressional priorities began to change and brought with it significant changes in federal funding allocations for most discretionary programs. Number one on the list was HUD, and its budgets became more and more squeezed. Obviously, this significantly impacted the continued development and operation of the affordable senior housing programs 
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So...Where are we now?

From a high of almost 30,000 units of housing built between 1985 and 1988, we have seen a steady decline to just about 25,000 units constructed between 2000 and 2006. As for current and future spending, we have dropped to a ridiculously low 595 apartments funded for the entire country in 2011, and we are currently seeing zero dollars being appropriated for the construction of new affordable units for the elderly of limited income each fiscal year since 2012!

That means for each of the last three years of federal funding, there are zero dollars being appropriated for the construction of new apartment units for seniors of limited income. 

Obviously, building and maintaining housing is expensive compared to providing rental assistance to persons to rent housing on their own (when they can). This has been the challenge for the Section 202 program to overcome. It is not easy to persuade legislators that housing seniors together in rental communities allows us to serve them, and society in general better, and at a lesser overall cost.

I can only think of the problems that those of us who are becoming ready to retire to our “golden” years will find in our way. 

I wonder if it’s too late to consider having more children that can assist us with the help we will most probably need in the years to come…

In essence, the United States no longer has a federal housing policy when it comes to providing quality, safe, affordable housing for seniors of limited income. 

Perhaps it’s time to re-think our Congressional priorities as our country continues to become even more gray!! 


Mark D. Olshan, Ph.D. began his career with B’nai B’rith in 1983 when he was hired as its Director of Senior Housing.  He currently serves as Director of the Center for Senior Services and Associate Executive Vice President of B’nai B’rith International.  He was awarded the Julius Bisno Professional Excellence Award in 2000. To view some of his additional content, Click Here.

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Consistent Action From World Bodies Is Key To Stifling Terrorism

3/19/2015

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PictureDavid J. Michaels
I write this upon return from Geneva, where B’nai B’rith has engaged in urgent advocacy to international representatives at the United Nations Human Rights Council. 

In just four days, our leadership delegation met with the ambassadors and other senior diplomats of some 40 countries on nearly every continent. This count is in addition to the many officials who participated in B’nai B’rith’s diplomatic reception at the Palais des Nations, the world body’s European hub. 

At that event, the chief of staff of the Office of the Director-General of the U.N. in Geneva took the occasion to publicly “salute” B’nai B’rith for being a “leader… in this capital of human rights,” a role for which, he believes, “the council is better.” The American ambassador to the council, who also addressed the assemblage, told B’nai B’rith, “the United States stands with you.”

This message, truly important, might nonetheless somewhat accentuate anxieties concerning the body, coming in advance of the termination of American membership on the council at the end of this year. The U.S., having now served two terms as a council member, is ineligible to vie for the immediate renewal of its membership; while it will be able to continue speaking and engaging actively at the council, Washington will not enjoy the right to cast a vote within it. 

This said, even with full U.S. participation in the work of the council, the body’s performance, at least with regard to treatment of the Middle East’s only democracy, has hardly shifted. The U.S. has often cast a lone vote against wildly unjust council resolutions on Israel.

Of the U.N.’s 193 member states, it is only the small, beleaguered Jewish democracy, Israel, that remains subjected to scrutiny under a dedicated, permanent agenda item standing apart from the one under which all other countries are considered. 

At the council, both routine motions and “emergency” special sessions inordinately focus on assailing Israel alone. And a so-called special rapporteur is devoted to “investigating” and publicizing only alleged Israeli misdeeds against Palestinians – not any of the incessant violence perpetrated by Palestinians and others against Israelis, Jewish and otherwise.

True, the council has recently afforded some limited attention to other, acute human rights crises, such as the endless bloodletting in Syria and domestic repression in Iran. And Israel, which newly engaged with the council after its singular marginalization was eased with long-overdue inclusion in the Western regional working group, has encountered somewhat improved circumstances with the departure of a U.N. human rights commissioner and, especially, a special rapporteur distinguished by antipathy to the Jewish state. 

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But Israel remains the target of an unparalleled parade of ritualistic condemnatory resolutions and reports – rubber-stamped by a body on which bloc voting and hypocritical politics abound – which are to overtake the council agenda on March 23. 

Moreover, it was only after the resignation of the probe’s partisan chair, upon revelation of his past paid consultancy for the Palestine Liberation Organization, that the anticipated report of the council’s “commission of inquiry” on last year’s Gaza hostilities has been deferred. 

The circumstances prompting the deferral of this latest inquest’s conclusions – conclusions that were somehow to be deemed credible despite the fact that the very resolution launching the probe had excoriated Israel in advance, with no mention of Hamas at all – were not acknowledged in the commission’s postponement notice.

Some discerning observers’ focus on Lake Geneva may now shift, appropriately, to the international negotiations with Iran – intended to reach at least a tentative outcome by the end of this month – over Tehran’s illicit nuclear program, which has roiled Arabs and Israelis alike in an already unstable region. 

However, perhaps feeling unencumbered following Israel’s parliamentary elections, Palestinian Authority officials seem geared to escalate an explicit strategy of “internationalizing” their conflict with Israel, an approach that has not brought progress toward peace between the parties but has exacerbated and exported divisions while distracting from the region’s foremost challenges. 

Beyond Palestinians’ unilateral pursuit of upgraded status in intergovernmental bodies, and agitation against Israel within them, this approach could soon culminate in steps to practically hinder Israeli counterterrorism efforts by threatening the prosecution of civilian leaders and military personnel at the International Criminal Court for any difficult operational decisions. 

Palestinians, who have obtained premature recognition as the “State of Palestine” by the U.N. General Assembly but not the essential endorsement of the Security Council, expect to be considered a “state” party of the court beginning in April.

Tragically, if judicial authorities in The Hague do acquiesce to Palestinian politicization of the ICC, the result will be not merely a deterioration of Palestinian-Israeli relations both on the ground and in multilateral institutions. Rather, an important strategic victory would also be handed to the proliferating array of fanatic Islamist non-state actors. 

Those forces are, on the whole, still shielded from the accountability demanded of (some) governments within a global system that has failed to effectively tackle the chief contemporary threat to international stability, security and human rights. 

What the world most needs at this stage in its history is collaborative, consistent action to undercut terrorism – not measures that permit it to fester unchallenged.

David J. Michaels is Director of United Nations and Intercommunal Affairs at B'nai B'rith International, where he began working in 2004 as Special Assistant to the Executive Vice President. A Wexner Fellow/Davidson Scholar, and past winner of the Young Professional Award of the Jewish Communal Service Association of North America, he holds degrees from Yale and Yeshiva University.To view some of his additional content, Click Here.
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AMIA: Those Seeking Justice Find Disappointment (English & Español)

3/13/2015

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Versión Español:

PictureEduardo Kohn
El domingo 1 de Marzo, la Presidenta de Argentina Cristina Fernández, en su discurso de apertura de las sesiones legislativas 2015, cuestionó que Israel no se preocupa por el atentado terrorista que destruyó su Embajada en Buenos Aires en 1992 y reprochó la omisión del Poder Judicial al respecto.

El Presidente de la Corte Suprema de Argentina Dr. Ricardo Lorenzetti, en un discurso 24 horas después, respondió a la Presidenta informando que en 1999 hubo una sentencia por el atentado a la Embajada de Israel en la que “se encontró culpable a Hezbollah.” 

Lorenzetti agregó: “Nosotros no podemos como tribunal tratar lo que ya es cosa juzgada … La sentencia de 1999 fue muy anterior a la conformación de la corte actual. Esa sentencia determinó la materialidad y la imputabilidad del hecho. Esa sentencia está publicada y consentida por las partes”

El 3 de Marzo, el gobierno de Israel a través de su Embajada en Argentina, contestó a la Presidenta Cristina Fernández:

“Como queda referenciado en los acuerdos internacionales sobre la materia, la responsabilidad acerca del cuidado de toda delegación diplomática se encuentra en manos del país receptor de la misma. Es competencia y responsabilidad del Estado argentino investigar el atentado perpetrado contra la Embajada de Israel en Buenos Aires … El 17 de Marzo de 1992 el terrorismo impactó contra la Argentina … Ambos, el pueblo argentino e israelí comparten un mismo dolor, porque ambos fueron víctimas de un terrible flagelo … Señalamos nuestra preocupación por el bienestar de las comunidades judías, en especial a raíz de las innumerables manifestaciones antisemitas que suceden en el mundo.

“Por consiguiente, Israel seguirá expresando la importancia de continuar con la investigación acerca del atentado ocurrido contra la sede de la AMIA.” 

También el 3 de Marzo, el Primer Ministro de Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, pronunció un discurso en el Congreso de Estados Unidos, ante el cual fustigó el acuerdo sobre un programa nuclear entre potencias occidentales e Irán.

Y dentro de su alocución, no olvidó los atentados terroristas en Argentina, haciendo una acusación contundente: “El régimen Iraní es una grave amenaza para el mundo … Irán voló un centro comunitario judío y nuestra embajada en Buenos Aires.”


El 17 de Marzo se cumplirán 23 años de la barbarie contra la Embajada de Israel que estaba en Arroyo y Suipacha, en el corazón de la capital argentina. Veintenueve muertos, algunos que no pudieron ser reconocidos, y más de 200 heridos fue el saldo de esta masacre. Dos años después, volaba la AMIA.

En estas dos últimas décadas, se han producido muchos atentados terroristas: en los Estados Unidos, Francia, Inglaterra, España, Medio Oriente, Africa. La lista es espeluznante.

Dentro de esa densa cantidad de abominables agresiones: ¿Cuáles son las que se destacan por no haberse podido apresar a los culpables o al menos algunos de ellos? ¿Cuáles se destacan por saberse quienes fueron los perpetradores, pero los perpetradores son hoy hombres con cargos públicos en una dictadura que tiene asiento en la ONU? ¿Cuáles son los atentados dónde “no se sabe” quien fue el apoyo local?

Solamente, y mal que pueda pesar, molestar, irritar, y provocar discursos desorbitados, los que tuvieron lugar en Argentina.

Este año llegamos a una nueva fecha de recordación del atentado del 17 de Marzo, con más elementos negativos, desmoralizadores, demostrativos que si buscamos justicia, miremos para otros lados.

El 27 de Enero de 2014, (Irónicamente, en Día Internacional de Recordación del Holocausto) el Ministro de RREE de Argentina Héctor Timerman y su par iraní acuerdan firmar un “Memorando de Entendimiento,” que se informó Irán ni siquiera lo leyó mientras Argentina lo votaba muy apurado. Fracasó antes de nacer y finalmente fue declarado inconstitucional, pero abrió severas heridas.

Casi un año después, conscientes (la sociedad Argentina, el mundo entero) de que ese “memorando” era una lápida sobre cualquier intento de encontrar alguna lucecita al final del camino, se produce, otro 18, esta vez de Enero y de 2015, la muerte del Fiscal Alberto Nisman, quien en un tema sin jurisprudencia ni doctrina donde respaldarse, se entregó a la faena con el denuedo que merecía uno de los atentados  más infames de la historia de nuestra América Latina.

En una esclarecedora columna en el diario Argentino La Nación, el Ex Presidente de Uruguay Dr. Julio Sanguinetti ha escrito hace pocos días: “Naturalmente, ahora queda el crimen y todo lo que nos ha traído: la revelación de unos servicios secretos oscuros, que penetran las entretelas del Gobierno; la duda horrorosa de que haya gente dispuesta a matar a un fiscal para que no pueda cumplir su función; la evidencia clara de personeros del Gobierno codo con codo con agentes de un gobierno iraní que sigue proclamando la desaparición del Estado judío; la sospecha de que en Montevideo algo ha ocurrido en ese oscuro conspirar internacional; el temor de que todo quede como está y que el expediente acumule miles de fojas que terminan aplastando la verdad ... una verdad que, cualquiera que sea, siempre quedará como un enigma.”

Ese es el contexto en que recordamos el atentado del 17 de Marzo de 1992, bárbaro antecedente del segundo atentado dos años después contra AMIA.

Contexto de impunidad, de aplastamiento de cualquier verdad, aún sea a costa de que haya más víctimas (como Nisman), de creer que se pueden hacer acuerdos con Estados que patrocinan, proclaman, financian y apoyan el terrorismo en todo el mundo.

Los resultados están a la vista. Y el futuro nos muestra una ventana, pequeña aún, de esperanza, de que los pueblos no tienen tolerancia infinita para sufrir vejaciones ilimitadas.

Adapted English Version:

On Sunday March 1, the president of Argentina, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, in her opening speech of the 2015 legislative session, questioned whether Israel was worried about the terrorist attack that destroyed its Buenos Aires embassy in 1992 and criticized the failure of the judiciary for its alleged lack of concern.

The president of the Supreme Court of Argentina, Ricardo Lorenzetti, in a speech 24 hours later, responded to President Fernández stating that there was a ruling in 1999 on the Israeli embassy attack that “found Hezbollah guilty.” Lorenzetti added: "We cannot as a court deal with a matter that is already judged … The 1999 ruling was long before the formation of the current court. That judgment determined the materiality and accountability of the facts. That ruling is published and consented to by the parties involved.”

On March 3, the Israeli government replied to President Fernández through its embassy in Argentina:

"As is referenced in international agreements on the subject, the responsibility for care of all diplomatic delegations is in the hands of the recipient's own country. It is the duty and responsibility of the Argentine State to investigate the attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires … The March 17, 1992, terror attack struck against Argentina … Both the Argentine and Israeli people share the same pain, because both were victims of a terrible scourge … We note our concern for the welfare of the Jewish communities, especially because of the many anti-Semitic manifestations happening in the world.

"Therefore, Israel will continue to express the importance of continuing the investigation on the attack occurred against AMIA.”

Also on March 3, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech in the United States Congress, in which he criticized the agreement on a nuclear program between Western powers and Iran.

In his speech, Netanyahu did not forget the terrorist attacks in Argentina, making a forceful indictment: "Iran's regime poses a grave threat, not only to Israel, but also to the peace of the entire world … [Iran] blew up the Jewish community center and the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires."

March 17 will mark the 23rd anniversary of the barbaric attack against the Israeli embassy, in the heart of Argentina's capital. Twenty-nine dead—some whose bodies were beyond recognition—and more than 200 wounded was the casualty count of the massacre. Two years later, they blew up AMIA.

Were any of the culprits apprehended in these attacks? No. Despite overwhelming evidence pointing to Iran, no one has been brought to justice.

Only in Argentina.

We have now arrived at another anniversary of the March 17 attack, this year with more negative, demoralizing elements, and the demonstration that if we seek justice, we should look elsewhere.

On Jan. 27, 2014, (which ironically was International Holocaust Remembrance Day), Argentina Minister of Foreign Affairs Héctor Timerman and his Iranian counterpart agreed to sign a "Memorandum of Understanding," which some have reported that the Iranian side did not even read, while Argentina rapidly ratified in Congress. The “memorandum” failed before it was born and was eventually declared unconstitutional, but it opened severe wounds.

More than a year later, the Argentine society and the whole world are well aware that this "memorandum" was a tombstone on any attempt to find some little light at the end of the road. And now, more than a year later, we now have another date to remember in this saga: Jan. 18, 2015. That day marks the death of Argentine Special Prosecutor Alberto Nisman who was investigating the AMIA case when he was killed. Despite lacking jurisprudence and governmental support for his work, Nisman devoted himself to this great endeavor with the single-mindedness that one of the most infamous terror attacks in the history of Latin America deserved.

In a illuminating recent column in the Argentine daily The Nation, former President of Uruguay Julio Sanguinetti wrote on the subject: “Of course, now we are left with the crime and everything it has brought: the revelation of dark secret services, which penetrate the cockles of government; the horrid doubt that there are people willing to kill a prosecutor so he cannot fulfill his job; clear evidence of government ombudsmen elbow to elbow with agents of an Iranian government that continues to proclaim the demise of the Jewish state; the suspicion that something has happened in Montevideo in that dark international conspiracy; the fear that everything is as it is and that the record accumulate miles of pages that end up crushing the truth ... a truth that, whatever it is, will always remain an enigma.”

That is the context in which we remember the attack on March 17, 1992, the barbaric antecedent to that AMIA attack two years later.

We remember it in the context of impunity, the crushing of any truth even at the cost of more victims (as with Nisman), to believe that you can make agreements with state sponsors who advertise, finance and support terrorism worldwide.

The results are obvious. And the future shows us a window, small still, of hope that the people don’t have an infinite tolerance to suffer endless indignities.


Eduardo Kohn, Ph.D has been the B’nai B’rith executive vice president in Uruguay since 1981 and the B’nai B’rith International director of Latin American affairs since 1984. Before joining B'nai B'rith, he worked for the Israeli embassy in Uruguay, the Israel-Uruguay Chamber of Commerce and Hebrew College in Montevideo. He is a published author of “Zionism, 100 years of Theodor Herzl,” and writes op-eds for publications throughout Latin America. He graduated from the State University of Uruguay with a doctorate in diplomacy and international affairs. To view some of his additional content,Click Here.
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Project H.O.P.E.: 'Let All Who Are Hungry Come And Eat'

3/11/2015

Comments

 
PictureRhonda Love
As Passover approaches, families across the world are thinking about their family Seder—what dishes they will prepare and how they will set the table. If they happen to be the guest this year, they consider what wine they should select for their host. 

Recipe books are consulted, shopping lists are compiled, cleaning commences and the hunt is on for the food purchases needed for the many meals that require special ingredients for the week, choosing from supermarket aisles filled with the latest replacement for chametz from several kosher companies.

But, if you are poor and elderly, this is the time to think about your family that may have passed on—or have moved too far away to visit. You may be too far and sick to visit anyone as a guest. You may be living in a neighborhood that has changed and there is no supermarket filled with kosher specialty items for Passover nearby. Perhaps, you are living on a fixed income so the extra cost for the kosher-for-Passover product is just too much to add to your food budget. 

B’nai B’rith leaders saw this happening in the late 1960s and created a program called Project H.O.P.E. (Help Our People Everywhere) as a means to respond to this need. 

The program evolved over time, but continues to include the essentials of food for the holiday such as matzah, eggs, grape juice, canned goods, jam, cookies, oil, gefilte fish and horseradish for their Passover table. In some communities, there is fresh or cooked chicken included. 

This year, Project H.O.P.E. will deliver Passover food to close to 2,600 households in several communities in six states, such as: Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Virginia and Michigan. 

Due to the dedication of the chairs of Project H.O.P.E., shopping bags of kosher–for-Passover food are delivered to the door of a senior citizen or community center that serves the surrounding area. 

Recipients are chosen in consultation with social service agencies that work with senior populations in need. The visit by a volunteer delivering food is as important as the food itself. 

But, before that bag goes out the door to its recipient, preparations for that year’s delivery must be made. Funds must be raised, food ordered, packing locations reserved and maps of delivery routes are created.

These volunteers are often comprised of the same families. They come back year after year and bring their own children to learn firsthand what it means to help others. Schools and youth groups benefit from the opportunity to use this program to learn about volunteerism. 

These volunteer chairs and all of the volunteers who participate each year have full time jobs and lives but make their work with Project H.O.P.E. a full time labor of love. Each year, they put the direction of the Passover Hagadah into practice . 

“Let all who are hungry come and eat. Let all who are in need come and celebrate Passover.” 

Happy Passover to you and your family. 

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Rhonda Love is the Vice President of Programming for B'nai B'rith International. She is Director of the Center of Community Action and Center of Jewish Identity. She served as the Program Director of the former District One of B'nai B'rith. In 2002 she received recognition by B'nai brith with the Julius Bisno Professional Excellence Award. This June will mark her 38th anniversary at B'nai B'rith. To view some of her additional content, Click Here.
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