Category: English

10 days ago, I’ve participated in a special protest, organized by Peace Now, against the Israeli government’s peace refusal policy. Yesterday, winds of change began blowing, when PM Olmert said that he was willing to treat the Saudi peace initiative seriously. This is a major shift from FM Livni’s statement made on the day of our protest.

The problem with declarations from our current prime minister is that the speaker is not reliable. Most Israelis, left wing and right wing alike don’t believe a word he says. A recent survey showed that only 3 percent preferred Olmert over other candidates. Support level is around 14% (if I’m not mistaken, I can’t find the link).

Such declarations were usually followed by praises from the left and criticism from the right. This time, the politicians were quiet. They just don’t take him seriously and ignore this statement.

In addition, prime minister Ehud Olmert met with the Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas (Abu Mazen). Even though meaningful decisions weren’t agreed upon, the existence of such a meeting is significant. Maybe the declarations about the Saudi initiative were published only for making the meeting more smooth.

The main headline that emerged from that meeting is the possible release of Gilad Shalit, who was kidnapped last June. Abbas declared his possible release before the erection of the new Palestinian government. His release was mentioned many times in the past. Hopefully, this time it’s for real.

Anyway, I doubt that our small protest made the shift in policy (if it’s real), but at least for one day, I can be satisfied.

Today is International Woman’s day – March 8th. Israel is a democratic country, that officially gives equal rights to anyone, without discrimination of any kind.

Officially, gender, race and religion do not play a part in an individual’s chances to succeed in our society. Unfortunately, women don’t have the same opportunities as men.

Feminists’ organizations in Israel usually protest against sexist commercials on television, forced prostitution (inc. trafficking) and against indecent acts by senior politicians. All these issues are important. In our modern capitalist society the most important issue is MONEY.

There is a huge gap between men and women’s incomes in Israel: The average man makes 20% more money than a woman (Hebrew link). When comparing people with an academic degree, the gap reaches 30%. Too often, men are paid more than women in the same position and in the same company. Women also have less opportunities for promotion and are in lower rated jobs.

I find this inequality in opportunity and and inequality in wages very frustrating. This issue demands serious protests. I know that it happens in other Western countries, but I live here and I don’t like it!

Luckily for me, I’m a man. Except solidarity with women and values of equality, I also care because this inequality has an impact also on men as well. Women are paid lower wages and work less in order to take care of their children. The men are expected to work many hours. It is not only a chauvinist issue, it’s also a matter of competitive capitalist society we live in.