לפרטים: יהודית קצובר 050-7161818 נדיה מטר 050-5500834
www.womeningreen.org
Hundreds from All Israel came to Hebron to the Conference for the Application of Sovereignty over Judea and Samaria
Hundreds of people from all over Israel gathered in Hebron on Thursday July 12th for the Conference calling for the application of Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria. The speakers included Science and Technology Minister Hershkowitz, MKs Ariel and Hotovely, and others. “We are tired of waging small struggles for one more community and me’ahaz (outpost settlement). We want to deal with the roots of the issue.”
There was an impressive show of force in Hebron. More than six hundred Erets Israel supporters gathered on Thursday, July 12, in the hall adjoining the Machpelah Cave to together call for the application of Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.
In this Conference, the second of its kind, that was organized by Women in Green, a number of people spoke, including the Chairman of Habayit Hayehudi (the New National Religious Party), the government minister, Rabbi Prof. Daniel Hershkowitz, who called for the application of sovereignty over the entire territory, and not only over the communities or over Area C. According to Minister Hershkowitz, the application of sovereignty over a part of the territory will be interpreted by the other side as the beginning of a surrender of the rest of the area; accordingly, things must be made crystal-clear, and action must be taken for the comprehensive application of sovereignty.
MK Uri Ariel also participated in the Conference, and set forth his political philosophy regarding the future of the area, as he presented a political program that also includes changing the structure of Knesset elections, so that even if the Arabs of Judea and Samaria were to receive citizenship, they could not bring about a dramatic change in the Israeli political map.
The speakers also included Adv. Yitzhak Bam of the Legal Forum for the Land of Israel, who analyzed the legal reality in Judea and Samaria, and stated that the issue of the application of sovereignty is not a legal question, but purely political, since there is no other sovereign authority that demands the return of the territory to it, and, in practice, there is a sort of “sovereignty vacuum” in Judea and Samaria.
Gershon Mesika, the head of the Samaria Council, called upon the Israeli public not to fear presenting its positions and demands for the application of sovereignty, and to set forth its resolute stance regarding the territory’s belonging to the people of Israel. Inter alia, Mesika told of his meetings with Arab personages in Israel and abroad who expressed great respect for this clear position.
Yoram Ettinger, former Israeli ambassador to Washington, presented statistical data that allay the fear of the presumed Arab demographic threat.
MK Tsipi Hotovely told of the parliamentary activity on the way to effect change in the attitude to Judea and Samaria, and the forceful stance that demands sovereignty over the entire area. As she put it, stuttering on this issue does not go together with the claim that the area belongs to us, and therefore this must be stated decisively and clearly.
Adv. Dafna Netanyahu, editor of the internet Marea weekly, linked Herzl’s vision with the application of Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, and stated that today we are closer to sovereignty than ever, but those who determine the public discourse are the true obstacle to the realization of our national liberation.
Eran Bar-Tal, the economic editor of the Mekor Rishon newspaper, stated that there is no basis for the fear presented by the left of the economic repercussions of the application of sovereignty. He also set forth an orderly philosophy that shows that such a move will strengthen the Israeli economy, and not the opposite.
Bar-Tal further stated that the application of sovereignty is not only a right, it is a moral obligation to the Arab population in Judea and Samaria, that does not enjoy proper living and economic conditions as a result of the lack of sovereignty and the anarchy that has come into being in the area.
Immanuel Shilo, editor-in-chief of B’Sheva, spoke as well, and explained why he believes that the first step toward the application of sovereignty must be specifically over the Jordan Valley, and not over the settlement blocs that are in the consensus, and are obviously not meant for negotiations with the Arabs.
At the Conference Caroline Glick, a senior editor at the Jerusalem Post, set forth-on video- the advantages of the application of Israeli sovereignty over the entire territory, and not only over Area C. “The cost will be the same cost, so it would be a shame to pay it for half the job….”
The Conference opened with greetings by video by coalition chairman MK Zeev Elkin, who called for changing the discourse from the question of giving to the Palestinians to that of the application of sovereignty over the area. MK Miri Regev, chairperson of the lobby for the application of Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, also offered greetings, and mentioned that the Likud constitution requires the application of sovereignty over the settlements in Judea and Samaria. Israel Prize laureate Geulah Cohen also offered greetings, and told of her parliamentary struggle for the application of sovereignty over east Jerusalem, a struggle that she regards as inspiration for the current struggle.
Rabbi Uzi Sharbaf from Hevron spoke about the right of the Jewish to the Land of Israel from an ideological and religious point of view.
Attn Howard Grief spoke in English about the legal rights of the Jewish People to its homeland from a historical view.
The Conference was summed up with satisfaction by the organizers, Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar, who said that they were “greatly moved at the sight of hundreds of people who came to Hebron from throughout Israel to say that the Land of Israel belongs to the people of Israel, and to hear another plan, one that is a breath of fresh air in our political reality.”
Katsover and Matar relate that they intend to continue to act together with the Knesset Land of Israel lobby to advance the law for sovereignty over Judea and Samaria. In the near future they will bring more public figures and citizens who will call upon the members of Knesset to act in this direction. “Enough with the games of contending with the danger to some me’ahaz or some other community, we must deal with the roots of the issue. It outrages us to make concessions, when it is clear to us that this area is ours.”
In the next few days the lectures will be put up on youtube. Details will be sent to you by email.
To see the Hebrew short video on Arutz 7 and more pictures by Shlomi Shalmoni:
http://www.inn.co.il/News/News.aspx/241019
shabbat shalom,
for details:
Yehudit Katsover – 050-7161818, Nadia Matar – 050-5500834
www.womeningreen.org
impressive show of force in hevron pictures