Israel must integrate Ethiopians
When Operations Moses (1984-1985) and Solomon (1991) to rescue Ethiopian Jews and bring them to Israel were declassified, many veteran Israelis toasted "L'chaim!" and with tears in their eyes said that this was why the Jewish state had been founded. This was still true on Thursday evening when hundreds of young Ethiopians held a violent demonstration outside the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem. Over the years, the difficulties and the cultural friction have obscured the exaltation, but the real meaning has not changed. Ingathering of the exiles was and remains part of Israel's identity.
Since then, big changes have taken place. On one hand, the Ethiopian youth have climbed high in Israeli society. They have yet to reach the top of the ladder, but they are on their way up -- in the school system, in the military, and in the sciences.
On the other hand, traditional frameworks have been destroyed and the rule of the community's religious leaders has been whittled away. These changes bring fear, desperation and frustration, just as they do with the first generations of immigrants everywhere in the world, along with violence, drinking and drug use.
Israeli institutions have taken assiduous care of the Ethiopian sector, but with too few resources. We can see neglect and trigger-happy policing -- not the trigger of a gun, but the use of police nightsticks. The police can explain but not justify that sometimes Ethiopian Israelis are mistaken for illegal African migrants. But infiltrators should not be beaten either, unless it is necessary.
Images broadcast a few days ago on Channel 2 showed an Ethiopian soldier being beaten by police for no reason, which is what led to the violent protest in Jerusalem. The event began peacefully, and the police were lenient, but as tempers flared both sides lost control:
• The protesters wanted to get to the Prime Minister's Residence. They should have been allowed to do so, once conditions were set for their presence. The police should have reached a deal or called in Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, who was summoned later but managed to calm things down.
• Demonstrators in the democratic world need to understand that a police force that wants to remain able to function cannot tolerate attempts to break through police lines. If that happens, violence will be met with violence. The police who mistreated the Ethiopian soldier a few days ago could not have responded differently than they did last night.
With the volatility of relations with the Ethiopians is so high, and in such a critical need for goodwill (which exists, passively), a steering committee must be established to expedite the integration of children of Ethiopian immigrants into mainstream Israeli society.
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