by joshua brandt
correspondent
Former Knesset member Yael Dayan minced few words in excoriating the political policies of the current Israeli government at a talk Saturday night, Oct. 7.
The daughter of famed Israeli Gen. Moshe Dayan, who is considered one of Israel’s “founding fathers,” said that the Jewish state ought to quit wallowing in the miasma of perpetual victimization.
“The self-victimization of the Jewish people is famous — but we are victims no longer. The survival of the state of Israel is not in question,” she said.
Responding to an audience member who wondered how it was possible to negotiate with groups like Hamas who vow to “wipe Israel off the map,” Dayan couldn’t have been more sanguine or terse:
“I don’t care.”
Dayan paused for effect, and let the words sink in. As the visibly smitten audience at San Francisco’s Reform Congregation Sha’ar Zahav let out a few nervous titters, Dayan continued.
“The Palestinians will not have a Palestine unless we concede it to them, so I’m not impressed by the ‘fact’ that they want to destroy us. The Palestinians have eyes. They can see the border checkpoints, the universities, and the hospitals they go to when they need really good care. So we exist, and it’s a fact for us and for them.”
The impassioned deputy mayor of Tel Aviv-Yafo wasn’t done fanning the flames of controversy, however. In response to another question about Hamas, Dayan commented that the organization, to its credit, had women in positions of power — unlike Israel’s Orthodox Shas party.
She also noted the generally secular nature of the Palestinian people, intimating that it boded well for future negotiations.
“Neither the Koran nor the Old Testament or the New Testament will define the boundaries of our country,” Dayan said.
Dayan was no less reserved in her condemnation of the recent war with Lebanon.
“The Lebanon War was a war of choice … and it was the wrong choice. It was a disaster,” she said.
“This is not a war that ended in victory, and, indeed, Israel learned a very good lesson — a lesson in the limit of our power,” she added, noting that despite a considerable advantage in the strength of Israel’s military, it lacked the moral imperative that had guided previous wars.
The war sapped Israel’s motivation, Dayan said, adding that a record number of the country’s soldiers had openly protested their assignments. “You cannot win a war with soldiers for hire,” she said.
On the subject of Iran, Dayan said that the most salient issue is that Israel won’t carry the United States’ water in dealing with the rogue nation.
“This is not Israel’s problem — this is a world problem,” Dayan said. “We didn’t get involved with Iraq, even though they are much closer to us than the United States, and even when they were raining down Scud missiles on us. Iran is a threat to the entire world, not just Israel.”
Throughout her talk, Dayan also castigated Israel for ignoring the “other,” a group of marginalized people she felt included Palestinians, women and gays and lesbians.
“We say all the time that we have no partner for peace. But is it ever considered what kind of partner we are for peace? The same sentiments that produce homophobia and treat women as second-class citizens allow us to view non-Jews differently. We are normative and the ‘others’ are not.
“Occupation under no circumstances can be justified. You cannot be Jewish and be an occupier.”
Dayan also spoke at Oakland’s Temple Sinai, the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, the Peninsula Jewish Community Center, Congregation Rodef Sholom in San Rafael and 142 Throckmorton Theatre in Mill Valley.
Her talk was sponsored by the Israel Center of the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation and co-sponsored by the JCRC, JCC of San Francisco, Peninsula JCC, Congregations Emanu-El and Sha’ar Zahav in San Francisco, Congregation Rodef Sholom and Temple Sinai.
CopyrightJ, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California