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Last update - 09:43 24/10/2007 Democracy or hypocrisy By Haaretz Editorial Tags: Yitzhak Rabin, Palestinians  Every year on the anniversary of Yitzhak Rabin's assassination the religious camp feels persecuted and shunned, and in its feeling of collective guilt it turns on the left, the secular community, the media and the Rabin family - as if they have all come together to perpetuate the shame. The other camp, whose boundaries also shift and sharpen on the assassination's anniversary, sees the multiplicity of statements by the religious camp as a sign that the feeling of collective guilt has been internalized. The desire to distinguish itself from the assassin Yigal Amir and what he represents is encouraging. Since the murder, the settler leadership has also become divided between the more and less extreme, with the latter prepared to agree to withdrawal in exchange for peace and the Oslo borders, the same borders that sent the right to demonstrate at Zion Square before Rabin's assassination. It should be remembered, and people should be reminded, that Amir is not insane and that only 15 years ago even the current prime minister, not to mention the previous one, shared Amir's positions on Oslo, although not his actions. Each year the religious camp comes up with initiatives to commemorate the Rabin assassination. Most propose a national reconciliation and to change the day to "democracy day" to give it a less divisive message. These proposals are part of Israeli society's natural misgivings after the assassination, but there is no reason to accept them. The difference between the two worldviews must be honed, not dulled. If until the assassination Israel mistakenly seemed like a villa in the jungle, a modern and liberal society, on November 4, 1995, it became apparent that the dark clouds of religious-nationalist fundamentalism had not passed us over. Amir was the suicide terrorist of the struggle for the greater Land of Israel, who by chance remained alive. Advertisement A large majority of the Israeli public continues to support leaving the occupied territories in return for a peace agreement. From this point of view, Amir failed resoundingly. The minority that believes the territories must not be left under any circumstances has not grown, but it has become more extreme. It has spread over the hills of Samaria, in the yeshivas, in the preparatory programs and in Orthodox girls' high schools within the Green Line. More people of the religious right live outside the boundaries of the Israeli democracy, physically and psychologically, ardent in their faith that no agreement with the Palestinians will ever come to pass. The demand to create a Jewish consensus before any decision on withdrawal has become a code for refusing to accept any concession, even if it is supported by a large democratic majority. The police did well to release the tape of Amir's interrogation, and its full text should be studied in civics classes. Amir decided to murder Rabin the moment the Oslo Accords were signed. He was not deterred, but rather imbued with faith in the justness of his cause. Generations of young people must be educated against this faith and cause. Even before he carried out the assassination Amir belonged to the camp that preferred the greater, occupying Land of Israel to the democratic Israel, although he understood that these are two conflicting entities. Many still believe as he does. Education for democracy must encompass debate about Israel's control over the lives of Palestinians deprived of civil rights; it must relate to the fact that Israeli democracy suffers from an essential flaw. Without discussing these issues on the commemoration day of the assassination, the initiative will not be educational, but hypocritical. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Slam the Qassam The U.S. wants the UN Security Council to denounce Qassam rockets for the first time. Remembrance day German Chancellor Merkel hails the return of Jewish life to Germany after the Holocaust.   1.   civil rights and hypocrisy 10:05  |  joe 24/10/07   2.   Sheer Hypocisy 10:18  |  Choni Davidowitz 24/10/07   3.   israeli democracy 10:23  |  jonathan 24/10/07   4.   What did the left learn? 10:30  |  Paul Henzen 24/10/07   5.   Teach that Israeli democracy is flawed &then compare to neighbors 10:38  |  Genuine Tosefta 24/10/07   6.   What democracy isn`t flawed? 10:39  |  Richard 24/10/07   7.   The flaw 10:42  |  Rowan Berkeley 24/10/07   8.   EVERY DEMOCRACY HAS FLAWS BUT ISRAEL CAN BE PROUD 10:53  |  D.Baite 24/10/07   9.   Palestinians give a damn about civil rights 11:09  |  Jonathan S 24/10/07   10.   Modest goals 11:27  |  Natallie Durson 24/10/07   11.   Confused.... 11:35  |  Esther 24/10/07   12.   Israel`s democracy is pure 11:46  |  peter 24/10/07   13.   Choni also has no shame~1 11:57  |  Shania 24/10/07   14.   The Radical Left Standard Approach 12:09  |  iKeltin 24/10/07   15.   Re Shania #13. 12:15  |  Esther 24/10/07   16.   Why not commemorating Rabin`s widow denying on her deathbed Arafa 12:22  |  Absolute Sweden 24/10/07   17.   Sticking-it-to-the-Religous-day!!!!!!!! 12:24  |  Ofer 24/10/07   18.   Genuine tosefta, democracy or demagogy! 12:28  |  northern neighbor 24/10/07   19.   More confusion re democracy...... 12:35  |  Esther 24/10/07   20.   Richard of Tel Aviv 12:58  |  akiva (zionist) 24/10/07   21.   Of course GDR democrats agree with this 13:31  |  Ilan 24/10/07   22.   Collective Guilt 13:54  |  Joe 24/10/07   23.   Collective BLAME by the left, not collective GUILT by the right 14:41  |  M 24/10/07   24.   Haaretz interpretation of democracy is flawed 14:45  |  Gene 24/10/07   25.   Haaretz DELEGITIMIZES Right, which largely OPPOSES VIOLENCE 14:50  |  Yaakov 24/10/07   26.   Impossible 15:02  |  Nani Bueller 24/10/07   27.   Killing and murder are part of democracy 15:04  |  Jonathan S 24/10/07   28.   altalena - rabin 15:40  |  aryeh shomroni 24/10/07   29.   Free Barghouti Now! 15:46  |  Zvi 24/10/07   30.   A Large Majority of the Israeli Public 15:59  |  Johnny Weintraub 24/10/07   31.   Altalena 15:59  |  Esther 24/10/07   32.   To #27 Jonathan S in Germany 16:05  |  B`Galil 24/10/07   33.   Re Ya`akov #25. By no means "one man"..... 16:20  |  Esther 24/10/07   34.   Reply to Esther (Post No. 31) 16:28  |  Johnny Weintraub 24/10/07   35.   For B Galil 16:29  |  Jonathan S 24/10/07   36.   What to teach in Israeli schools 16:35  |  Jonathan S 24/10/07   37.   Amir actually killed non-democratic leader 16:36  |  Gene 24/10/07   38.   #8 D.Baite 16:48  |  Boycott 24/10/07   39.   What about dictatorship? 17:42  |  B 24/10/07   40.   Haaretz, With all due respect why do you call 18:23  |  Max Zinger,P.Chimist 24/10/07   41.   Iran President`s decocracy idea 18:26  |  David 24/10/07   42.   Typical Jewish Lefty Pap and Hypocrisy 18:55  |  Tod Zuckerman 24/10/07   43.   For B #39 19:08  |  Esther 24/10/07   44.   Mistake!! 19:32  |  Esther 24/10/07   45.   Reply to not such a good neighbor in the north #18 19:41  |  Genuine Tosefta 24/10/07   46.   Too many words, little substance 20:23  |  Michael N 24/10/07   47.   # 18 Northern neighbour - Lebanese `democracy` 21:10  |  Paul Henzen 24/10/07   48.   John F. Kennedy: "Ours is not the perfect democracy, but..." 21:25  |  Dr. L. Brnd 24/10/07   49.   #43/44 Esther 22:17  |  B 24/10/07   50.   Can Israel Call Itself a Belligerent Occupying Democracy? 23:07  |  Mr. Knowitall 24/10/07   51.   The truth is that issues are being mixed 23:21  |  Leo 24/10/07   52.   #13 Shania:"what makes Jewish blood more valuable"? 23:41  |  Alicia 24/10/07   53.   Democracy 23:50  |  Shlomo 24/10/07   54.   Re B #49 00:07  |  Esther 25/10/07   55.   Israel, The U.S. & Other Democracies MUST Correct Things/IMPROVE! 00:19  |  Proud Pal Defender 25/10/07   56.   "B",#49,try google at Ravitz Train in Poland,it describes Esther 00:51  |  Absolute Sweden 25/10/07   57.   genuine tesefta 5 02:24  |  realism 25/10/07   58.   Mr. Knowitall, Israel a tiny democratic country trying to survive 02:30  |  Genuine Tosefta 25/10/07   59.   Mr. Knowitall - very superficial analysis 04:14  |  Moises 25/10/07   60.   Boycott #38 - Yes, the Komodo "Lizard" is amazing 04:28  |  Moises 25/10/07   61.   what our students need to be taught about 05:32  |  Baruch 25/10/07   62.   Hypocracy and Flawed Democrocy 05:50  |  ralphsrant1 25/10/07   63.   # 1 Joe 07:47  |  Nick Ferriman 25/10/07   64.   Amir was wrong but so was Rabin 08:19  |  Mark Hamil 25/10/07   65.   Yigal Amir a "suicide terrorist"? 08:37  |  Mark Hamil 25/10/07   66.   What Amir did was totally wrong, but... 09:31  |  George 25/10/07   67.   The Atlaena Blemish on the Collective Left 09:36  |  Mark Hamil 25/10/07   68.   So is Israel`s history - it needs revision 09:50  |  Steve the Pals. 25/10/07   69.   Herr Doktor L. Brnd # 48 reality check for you 03:03  |  American in NY 26/10/07   70.   Israel is NOT a Democracy 21:31  |  Sion Mehdi 26/01/08

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