Israel's Arab Citizens and the State: Is the Relationship Changing?

Policy Developments During Olmert's Term and Prospects for the New Government

Regardless of how one views the legacy of former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert or his government, it is clear that significant developments in government policy vis-à-vis Israel's Palestinian-Arab citizens occurred in the course of his term. One can examine policy from two general perspectives. The first is a policy de jure perspective, comprised of statements, rhetoric, plans and programs; the second focuses on policy de facto, which is measured by real actions (and can therefore be measured only in retrospect). While examining Olmert's policy through the prism of both perspectives, we can see that his term between February 2006 and early 2009 can be described as positive. Here are a few examples to support this assessment.

One example is the appointment of Israel's first Arab government minister, Raleb Majadele as Minister of Science, Culture Sport.  While Majadele clearly did not represent the political majority of the Arab community, there is no doubt that his nomination was an important development, insofar as social inclusion can be manifested in politics. Cabinet ministers, for example, are exposed to a large quantity of highly classified information, and the appointment of Majadele represents a barrier crossing unprecedented in Israel's history.

A second example is the creation of a special governmental authority dedicated to the economic development of the Arab sector.  During the 2007 Herzliya Conference, The Abraham Fund presented, with the help of two leading economists, a policy paper describing the barriers to the integration of Arab citizens into the national economy, and the price paid by the entire Israeli society for maintaining "two separate economies." Following our presentation, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) launched a process that resulted in the creation of the above-mentioned authority, presently directed by an Arab economist.

An additional example relates to the Second Lebanon War, when the Director General of the PMO opened a dialog with the Arab Supreme Follow-up Committee in Israel.  This dialog was followed by a statement announcing that "the rehabilitation of the Galilee will be based on equal budget allocations for the benefit of all its communities, Jewish and Arab alike". Needless to say, this statement and the meeting with the Follow-Up Committee demonstrated an entirely new approach.

More policy de facto can also be seen through a successful initiative that included the Arab town of Shaghor (near Carmiel) as an equal partner in a regional industrial park (the Bar-Lev Park), which until then had exclusively benefited three nearby Jewish municipalities.

In May 2007, another "first" took place in addition to Majadele's appointment: the Prime Minister's Conference for the Arab Sector in Israel. Aside from the title itself, Israel's Prime Minister spent a full day listening to a variety of issues and challenges that are at the heart of majority-minority relations in Israel. At the second such conference held in June 2008, Prime Minister Olmert not only listened, but came forth with a strong statement against the systematic and historic discrimination against Israel's Arab citizens.

Nevertheless, policies are not made by the Prime Minister alone.  We can also recall positive developments that took shape in the various ministries.

In the field of education, the first development is the growing recognition of the importance of teaching Arabic language and culture. The fact that The Abraham Fund Initiatives has successfully cultivated its "Language as a Cultural Bridge" program to 100 primary schools, while proving that it generates positive change in attitudes towards Arab citizens, was recognized by the Ministry of Education, which in turn has increased its budgetary allocations to this issue.

An additional development is the willingness of the Ministry of Education to integrate Arab teachers in Jewish schools, based on another new educational model developed by a peer organization, Merchavim.

The most important development in the field of education however was the appointment of a Public Committee comprised of scholars, educators and experts, aiming to recommend a national policy on education for coexistence. Former Minister of Education Yuli Tamir agreed with The Abraham Fund about the need for a unified systematic policy and adopted the recommendations of the Committee just before the elections. Regrettably, the newly appointed Education Minister, Gideon Sa'ar, has already announced his intention to "revisit" the report.

Additional positive developments should also be mentioned:

• The serious effort of the Civil Service Commission to achieve fair representation of the Arab citizens in the public sector.
• Increased budget allocations for employment programs (mainly through the TEVET partnership with JDC).
• Tangible progress in the area of housing and urban planning, as evident for example in places like Umm El-Fahem where private houses are being built in new, well-planed quarters of the town.

Another important initiative of Olmert's administration, although controversial, was the creation of the Authority for Community Service, which aims to encourage Arab youth to volunteer in their communities. In this case, the Arab leadership expressed its concerns that this might be the first step on a slippery slope that could lead eventually to compulsory military service. But at the end of the day, integrating Arabs into community service programs will undoubtedly strengthen their connection with the greater Israeli society while allowing them to help in their local communities.

To conclude this overview of Prime Minister Olmert's policy towards the Arab sector, perhaps the most important development during his term was the voicing of a consistent, clear message from the very top that equality and integration of the Arab citizens are national priorities, and not only an aspect of security considerations.

To match this policy de jure rhetoric, Olmert's new approach was manifested structurally as the responsibility for the issue was transferred from the National Security Council to the newly established "Department for Policy Planning" in the Prime Minister's office, which deals with social affairs.  But, almost all these positive developments were carried out unilaterally, without meaningful dialogue with the Arab leadership that remained further marginalized.

Many Israelis refer to Yitzhak Rabin's second term (1992-1995) as "the Golden Age" for Israel's Arab citizens due to the respect and legitimacy that the Arab leaders received from Rabin, coupled with increased budgetary allocations, investments, and unofficial governmental inclusion.  Politically, Rabin relied on the Arab parties who agreed to serve as a "preventing block" or "safety net," and he therefore made them political allies without actually including them in a coalition. Olmert on the other hand, understood the imperative of integration and equality but did not recognize the role of the elected Arab leadership.  

If these aforementioned developments characterize the prior government vis-à-vis Arab-Jewish relations, what can be said about the new Netanyahu government? 

A number of factors are already known:

We know that during PM Netanyahu's first term, the issue of majority-minority relations was not prominent on his government's agenda and little attention was paid to the needs of the Arab sector.

We also know that in the new government's guidelines (which basically serve as a platform for action) it is stated that the government will "keep the Jewish character and heritage of the state and will respect the religions and heritages of the different followers, in the spirit of the Declaration of Independence."

The Declaration of Independence in fact says much more; it goes on to state that Israel "will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all, irrespective of religion, race or sex". The language of the new government guideline is very similar to that used during Netanyahu's first term, and fails to take into account both the broad promise of the Declaration of Independence as well as the changing discourse over the past ten years.

Some disturbing signs can be discerned in the coalition agreement with Avigdor Lieberman's "Israel Beitenu" party:

• The first is a paragraph that promises a variety of special privileges for army veterans.  In Israel, this is understood as code language for discrimination against Arab citizens who have not served in the military.
• Another section of concern states "the government will fight against the phenomena of disloyalty, including the disqualification of citizenship." This emphatically dangerous code language threatens to make citizenship, a fundamental right in a democracy, conditional upon loyalty to the state - ultimately a political ploy to alienate and further ostracize the Arab public.

The appointment of Professor Uzi Arad as Head of the National Security Council raises yet another question.  Arad, who was a Netanyahu advisor during his first term, has often described Israel's Arab minority as a security threat and a demographic problem. In recent years, Arad has openly stated that the center of the Palestinian State will be in Jordan and its border with Israel should be west of Wadi Ara.  (Such border realignment would strip some 200,000 Arab citizens of their Israeli citizenship, refiguring the map in such a way that their towns and homes would lie within the future Palestinian state.)  Arad is expected to be extremely dominant and influential, symbolized by the fact that his office is located next door to PM Netanyahu's.  What kind of message does this convey regarding future Jewish-Arab relations?      

Last but not least is "Netanyahu's first 100 days plan", which is completely silent on the issue of Jewish-Arab relations.

However, we can also point to a few encouraging signs.  The most significant is perhaps the visit of Knesset Speaker, Rubi Rivlin to the large Israeli Arab city of Umm El-Fahem, and his statement that Jews and Arabs are destined to live together. According to Rivlin, "Umm El-Fahem was, is and will be an Israeli city." It is almost certain that such a symbolic and important visit would have been coordinated with PM Netanyahu.

Another positive indication was Netanyahu's personal interest in the issue. During a meeting with leaders of the NGO sector shortly after the election, Mohammad Darawshe and I Co-Executive Directors of The Abraham Fund Initiatives), presented to Netanyahu a short policy paper that was prepared by The Abraham Fund Initiatives - He made it very clear that he wanted to hear more.

As to the nomination of Dr. Avishai Braverman as Minister without Portfolio for Minority Affairs, it is difficult to say.  On one hand, the role and the title are very anachronistic.  60 years and hundreds of "Advisors for Arab Affairs" have taught us that these appointees have generally not contributed to positive change.  On the other hand, Dr. Braverman is very sympathetic to the issue and his nomination can signify positive change - especially in the current political context.  Only the future will tell, and much depends on the content that he will put into his position.

There is a chance that the Netanyahu government will not act within the same framework as it did previously, but realistically we can expect that the Prime Minister will be occupied with a variety of other issues such as Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah; the new threat from Pakistan; the Saudi peace initiative; and how to manage the Obama relationship.

Needless to say, The Abraham Fund Initiatives will remain vigilant and active, and will do all that it can to encourage this government to make its own contributions to the improvement of relations between the State of Israel and its Arab citizens.