Overdue tribute
Forty years ago, if people in the Jewish world, and in Israel in particular, used the Hebrew word “nativ,” the instant mental association was a cloak-and-dagger operation against the infamous KGB. “Nativ” was the code word for Lishkat Hakesher, which in English is known as the Liaison Bureau. Working under the umbrella of the Prime Minister’s Office, Nativ operators made clandestine contact with Russian Jews who were active in promoting the Zionist enterprise by secretly teaching Judaism and Hebrew, consistently applying to the Soviet authorities for permission to migrate to Israel, risking their lives to find escape routes, and more.
These brave Russian Jews, who after 1967 began to increasingly reclaim their Jewish identities, were – with some exceptions, such as Natan Sharansky, Vladimir Slepak, Eduard Kuznetsov, Alexander Lerner, Ida Nudel and Yuli Edelstein – largely anonymous figures. Their names were obviously known to Nativ as well as to activists in the various movements in the West that campaigned for the freedom of Soviet Jews.
Here and there, bits and pieces of information about Nativ activities found their way into the media, but in general Nativ operated in the shadows. Many of those courageous Russian Jews who dared to rise against an oppressive regime are no longer living. But former Prisoners of Zion and refuseniks who are still with us will be honored on Thursday, December 13, at a gala event at the Jerusalem Theater.
Netta Briskin Peleg, who currently heads Nativ, says that the struggle for Soviet Jewry was waged on both sides of the Iron Curtain, and while many of the heroes of that struggle have been honored in the past, there has never been a proper tribute to the heroes of the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe per se. She believes that the 70th anniversary year of the State of Israel is an appropriate time to make up for that lacuna.
The keynote address will be delivered by Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein, who was a Prisoner of Zion. Also among the speakers will be Jerusalem Affairs Minister Ze’ev Elkin and former defense minister Avigdor Liberman. Others who grew up in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe will also tell their stories.
■ IT’S BEEN one celebration after another for Indian restaurateur Reena Pushkarna and her husband, Vinod, who pioneered Indian cuisine in Israel. The couple, who over the years opened a chain of Tandoori restaurants and ran a processed food plant through which they made Indian food available to the masses, have this month hosted several events to celebrate the 35th anniversary of their Tandoori Restaurant on Tel Aviv’s Zamenhof Street.
It is one of the city’s longest-running restaurants under the one ownership, and certainly the most veteran Indian restaurant in Israel.
The Pushkarnas have hosted many celebrities, including diplomats, politicians, artists and entertainers, and Reena, who is a walking advertisement for Indian fashion, has become a celebrity in her own right, frequently appearing on television programs and being asked to help prepare official dinners for visiting Indian dignitaries. Last Thursday, she combined the 35th anniversary celebration with Hanukkah, and guests included Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai and Indian Ambassador Pavan Kapoor.
■ IT’S A small world. Michael Jankelowitz, a veteran expat from South Africa, and a former longtime spokesman for the Jewish Agency, likes to keep his finger on the pulse of his native country as well as on what’s happening in the Jewish world. On one afternoon last week, while seated on the tightly packed Jerusalem Light Rail, he heard the haredi man standing in front of him talking on his cellphone. What caught Jankelowitz’s attention was the man’s South African accent. Less than a minute later, the person sitting next to Jankelowitz stood up to alight at the next stop, and the haredi with the South African accent sat down alongside Jankelowitz, who introduced himself. The man told him that his surname is Bank and that he is a dentist and lecturer from East London in South Africa, has been living in Israel for 22 years, and had come here via the United States. Aware that US President Donald Trump had recently announced the appointment of Lana Banks, originally from East London, South Africa, as ambassador-designate to South Africa, Jankelowitz asked his new acquaintance whether she was a relative. To which the reply was: “Yes. She’s my sister.”
Lana Banks, 65, who left South Africa 40 years ago, is a designer of luxury handbags and moves in Trump’s social circles. She was actually born Lana Bank and happened to marry a British psychiatrist by the name of Neville Banks, so she did not have to make a major alteration to her signature. Her clients include royalty and Hollywood stars.
■ IT DIDN’T require too much intelligence to guess the identity of the honored speaker at Emunah’s Na’avah Tehilla annual luncheon. Although organizers had sworn one another to secrecy, the fact that the person’s name could not be divulged “for security reasons” coupled with images of American flags all over the invitation was an obvious solution to the mystery.
It was US Ambassador David Friedman, who said that having grown up in the “shtetl” of Woodmere, New York, Emunah was not unfamiliar to him, as many Emunah leaders had come from the Five Towns.
Keyboard virtuoso Gershon Wachtel, who has an astonishingly broad and varied repertoire, hailed Friedman’s entrance with a spirited “Hevenu Shalom Aleichem,” followed by a few bars of “Stars and Stripes.”
Na’avah Tehilla co-president Jacqueline Maltz said that it had been her husband’s idea to invite Friedman. Her immediate reaction had been: “Why would he come to an Emunah luncheon?” The answer is simple – because he was invited. It wasn’t quite that simple, but it worked out, though Maltz, who has been on numerous committees over the years, said that she had never dealt with security before, and wasn’t sure that she would want to do so again.
She gave Friedman a glowing introduction, to which he responded that his parents would have loved to have heard it, and that his father would be over the moon if he could see what Friedman has done over the last couple of years. Among other things, he’s been the first US ambassador to serve in Jerusalem and to appear at the Western Wall with the prime minister of Israel. Friedman related to the diversity of opinion on the move of the US Embassy to Jerusalem, but noted that after the embassy moved, the Palestinian disapproval rating of the US was 94%, and before the move it had been 90%.
Speaking of Hanukkah miracles, and the miracle of Israel as such, Friedman said that one of the miracles of Israel is that the country functions so well despite so many points of view. “We are an interesting people. We have more points of view than we have mouths to express them.”
■ AT SOCIAL gatherings these days, the most common questions are about the date of the next election and “Is there anyone who can replace Bibi?” The usual answer to that kind of question is that cemeteries are full of people who are irreplaceable, but in the case of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, even people who would not vote for his party acknowledge that there is no politician in Israel who can match him in terms of political and diplomatic achievements, bilingual oratory, intellect, charisma and stamina.
In terms of Netanyahu’s working day, the public knows only about such meetings and events that the Government Press Office reports. There are many more activities in any given day of which the public is totally unaware. At the present time Netanyahu is prime minister, defense minister, foreign minister, health minister and aliyah and integration minister 24/7, for a gross monthly salary of NIS 48,000.
■ IN HIS capacities as prime minister and foreign minister, Netanyahu last week took a group of ambassadors to Metulla to give them more than just a theoretical concept of what Hezbollah is trying to do by way of infiltrating the Galilee, and how those plans are being thwarted by the IDF.
Most ambassadors follow Netanyahu on Facebook and Twitter, and some of those who were not invited to Metulla, especially those whose governments are particularly well disposed to Israel, were cheesed off at not having been invited. They learned from social and traditional media, that the ambassadors who had been invited were: Emanuele Giaufret, head of the delegation of the European Union, Anatoly Viktorov of Russia, David Quarrey of the United Kingdom, Hélène Le Gal of France, Deborah Lyons of Canada, Martin Weiss of Austria, Chris Cannan of Australia, Gianluigi Benedetti of Italy, Tsegay Berhe Hadera of Ethiopia, Paulo Vasconcello of Brazil, Benko Levente of Hungary, Vhanga Patrice Koffi of the Ivory Coast, Pablo Macedo of Mexico, Peter Hulenyi of Slovakia and Marek Magierowski of Poland.
Perhaps, to soothe ruffled feathers, Netanyahu will periodically take other groups of ambassadors to sensitive areas, so that all receive equal consideration. Several of those who did go later tweeted messages about the importance of the visit.
■ MOST OF the participating ambassadors later joined in Hanukkah candlelighting ceremonies, as did Netanyahu, who lit the Hanukkah candles at the Western Wall together with US Ambassador Friedman, who had not been among the envoys who had traveled with him to Metulla. Later on, Netanyahu also attended an awards presentation for Mossad agents at the President’s Residence.
■ PROBABLY THE largest number of ambassadors attending Hanukkah events last Thursday gathered at the residence of Giaufret, not only for a Hanukkah candlelighting ceremony but as a prelude to Human Rights Day.
Approximately half of the ambassadors whose countries are EU member states were in attendance and heard from members of the Mengistu, al-Sayed, Shaul and Goldin families about their anxieties for their loved ones. The Goldin and Shaul families would like the remains of their fallen soldier sons and brothers, Hadar and Oron, to be returned to Israel for proper Jewish burial; and the Mengistu and al-Sayed families want their sons and brothers Avera and Hisham to be released from Hamas captivity.
Giaufret later tweeted: “Bodies of fallen & captives held in Gaza to be returned to their families. This is not a political issue, it’s a humanitarian one.”
■ HIS TIME in New York as Israel’s permanent representative to the United Nations is coming to an end for Danny Danon, who went from politics to diplomacy and by all accounts has done an admirable job. Now that his term is almost over, some of his Likud colleagues are wondering whether he intends to step back into the political arena. Danon served in the 18th, 19th and 20th Knessets, and is a former science and technology minister, and before that a deputy defense minister.
■ REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Minister Tzachi Hanegbi represented the government at Finland’s Independence Day reception, which was also a farewell for Ambassador Anu Saarela. Hanegbi told her that she had earned the highest praise for her contribution to the deepening of relations between Finland and Israel. “You will be leaving at the end of this month,” he said, “but the fruit of your labor over the past two years will continue to serve the relationship that has developed between our two countries.”
Both Saarela and Hanegbi found similarities between Israel and Finland.
Whereas she spoke of innovation and entrepreneurship, Hanegbi the politician spoke of two young democracies that fought for their independence against external threats. “We succeeded, each in our own way, to create for our citizens a strong and prosperous country in an environment replete with challenges,” said Hanegbi.
One of the recent features of independence day receptions hosted by various ambassadors is in the singing or playing of the national anthems. There have been opera singers, jazz musicians, string duos, trios and quartets, and groups playing the traditional instruments of their countries, but at the Finnish reception the whole of the senior embassy staff, including Saarela, sang “Hatikvah” accompanied by a violin and cello duo, before they sang their own anthem. Although Saarela is not the first head of a foreign mission to sing “Hatikvah,” having her staff join her in doing so was a novel and uplifting experience.
“I am leaving Israel, but Israel is not leaving me,” she said.
Relating to the innovation excellence which characterizes both Finland and Israel, Saarela spoke with pride of the Slush Conference in Helsinki in early December, which she said is the biggest start-up conference in Europe, with 20,000 participants from around the world, including many Israelis.
She also spoke of Finland’s education system, which enables every child to fulfill his or her potential.
Despite the fact that this is the darkest season of the year for Finland, Saarela said that her country is stable and prosperous, offering a good quality of life to its people, and that the UN had designated Finland as the happiest country in the world.
As one of her final duties in Israel, Saarela was pleased to announce that
Susanne Millner, the embassy’s special adviser for culture and public diplomacy, had been named a Knight of the Order of the Lion of Finland by President Sauli Niinisto, in recognition of Millner’s dedication and commitment to building bridges between Finland and Israel and her love for, and loyalty to, Finland. “You make us proud,” Saarela told Millner.
■ SAARELA IS not the only ambassador leaving Israel this month. Greek Ambassador Konstantinos Bikas is also leaving within the coming days, but new ambassadors have arrived and are arriving, and some of them will present their credentials to President Reuven Rivlin next week.
■ EVERY AMBASSADOR has his or her own style, but regardless of the individuality of all the ambassadors of Thailand, be they male or female, what unites them at Thailand’s National Day receptions is the sense of aesthetics. No other embassy emulates the delicate splendor of the multicolored display of Thai fruit and vegetable sculptures, in which the ingredients that we put in our soups, salads and desserts are sculpted into what looks like real flowers, but are in fact garden edibles. In addition, there are Thai musicians in national dress playing on traditional Thai instruments, and sometimes there are also Thai dancers.
Particularly eye-catching are the women of the Thai community in Israel, who come in their form-fitting traditional Thai costumes. Most Thai women are petite with perfectly proportioned physiques. This includes Ambassador Penprapa Vongkovit, who looked stunning in a lavender-hued dress that contrasted with the shades of yellow chosen by many of her staff.
The stage at the Sheraton Tel Aviv Hotel was decorated with huge identically arranged bouquets of flowers and dominated by portraits of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who died in October 2016 after a reign of more than 70 years, and the present monarch, King Maha Vajiralongkorn, who was his parents’ only son, and who in recent years took over some of his father’s duties. Although he has been king for a little over two years, his coronation has yet to be held, but will probably take place in 2019.
Vongkovit said that December 5, the Thai National Day, is one of great reverence for the Thai people, because it is the date of Bhumibol’s birth, and because he was a king who did so much for his people in so many different spheres. Thus the National Day is a period of unification in which the Thai people pay tribute to the achievements of the late king.
Maha Vajiralongkorn has pledged to follow in his father’s footsteps, she said.
Like so many other countries today, Thailand is focusing on technology and innovation. The ambassador was happy to report that this year has been one of political stability for Thailand, as well as enhanced cooperation with Israel in science, security, bilateral trade and tourism.
Economy Minister Eli Cohen, who represented the government, also represented himself. He and his family have vacationed in Thailand and had a great time, he enthused.
The volume of trade between Israel and Thailand is in the range of half a billion dollars, he said, and forecast that within the next three years it would reach the billion-dollar mark. He also mentioned the agreement signed between the Israel Innovation Authority and its Thai counterpart, and the fact that more than a thousand Thais in different fields of endeavor have been trained by Mashav, Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation.
As far as tourism is concerned, Cohen noted the popularity of Thailand as a holiday destination for Israeli tourists, 200,000 of whom visited there over the past year. This, he said, constituted 2% of Israel’s population. He would be very happy, he added, if 2% of Thailand’s population would come to Israel as tourists.
He congratulated Thailand on receiving the rotating ASEAN chairmanship for 2019.
After the formalities, guests were invited to a buffet dinner that largely consisted of Thai delicacies. The ambassador’s Thai chef had spent three days in the Sheraton kitchen working with the hotel’s chefs to prepare the feast.
■ A COMPILATION of the halachic writings of Sephardi Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, Yalkut Yosef, has been translated into Amharic for the benefit of the Ethiopian Jewish community.
The translation of the 40 volumes based on the Code of Jewish Law that were written by Yosef 47 years ago, is no easy task, and so far only the first has been translated, by Rabbi Israel Belcho, at the initiative of Rabbi Reuven Wabashat, the chief rabbi of Israel’s Ethiopian community, with the encouragement of the Religious Services Ministry. Yosef’s late father, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, considered to be one of the foremost experts on Halacha, while serving as Sephardi chief rabbi several years before the honor was conferred on his son, ruled that Ethiopians are Jews for all intents and purposes.
■ THE WOMEN’S International Zionist Organization was founded in London on July 7, 1920, by Vera Weizmann, Edith Eder, Romana Goodman and Henrietta Irwell to provide community and social services for residents of Mandate Palestine.
But WIZO UK has brought forward the organization’s centenary date, and is holding its 100th anniversary dinner at the Carlton Hotel in Tel Aviv on Thursday, December 13. On this occasion, WIZO UK will present Commitment Awards to people who have demonstrated commitment to changing lives and building better futures. Such awards are given to people of all faiths and backgrounds. The recipients include Avrahum Sanger, Khulan Davaajav and Dali Cohen, who won the Commitment to Multiculturalism on Campus Award by actively and successfully fighting against the boycott of Zionists and Israel activities on the campus of SOAS, one of the most hostile universities in the UK.
Awards will be given to Sarah Sultman for her commitment to education in establishing the Gesher School, which aims to produce an inclusive tailored education for children with special needs, with a particular focus on autism; and Hannah Style for her commitment to social enterprise by creating the social enterprise “Feast,” which serves food and a three-course dinner to the homeless by collecting surplus food from supermarkets.
WIZO runs 800 projects and programs in Israel to meet social welfare needs at every stage of life. These include daycare centers for children at risk, youth villages and schools, shelters for victims of abuse, care for the elderly and women’s empowerment.
Throughout its history, WIZO UK has donated around £100 million to projects in Israel, with £19 million over the last 10 years.
With the continued generous support of David Dangoor, the Commitments Awards have been able to grow substantially, this time extending to identify candidates in 15 diverse sectors integral to society.
■ THE NUMBER of lives saved due to the intervention of Rabbi
Elimelech Firrer, founding chairman of the Ezra Lemarpeh Association, is inestimable. Although he has no formal training in medicine, Firrer’s knowledge of medicine is encyclopedic, and his contacts with medical experts around the world are legend.
But nothing runs on goodwill alone, and in addition to saving lives, Firrer has to raise funds. Toward this aim, he hosted some 120 business executives at a Hanukkah candlelighting ceremony plus a fund-raising dinner at the InterContinental David Tel Aviv hotel, with all the proceeds dedicated to the Ezra Lemarpeh rehabilitation center in Sderot.
Guests included former chief rabbi of Israel and Tel Aviv Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, Yoram Cohen, the former head of the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), who gave an after dinner address about the challenges of homeland security, Yigal Ahouvi, Galia and Yehoshua Maor, Yossi Bachar, Barak Rosen, Yair Landau, Ido Neuberger, Boaz and
Varda Dotan, Avraham Rinot, Eli Kamil, Nir Lampert, former IDF chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi and media consultant Zvi Vilder.
Master of ceremonies at the event was Kalman Schreiber, who is Firrer’s personal assistant.
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