Before leaving to participate in the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week, President Isaac Herzog unveiled the inaugural 150-member Voice of the People Council.
Given the fact that the 120-member Knesset is based numerically on the 120-member Great Assembly that convened in Jerusalem during the Second Temple period to finalize Jewish law in all its dimensions, 150 members for the VOP Council seems somewhat excessive.
The idea of a parliament of the Jewish People was proposed by former president Moshe Katsav some 18 years ago and, though initially well received, failed to gain support.
This may be because it didn’t differ greatly from the World Zionist Organization. That’s hardly surprising as this new venture is a joint project of the President’s Office, the WZO, and the Jewish Agency for Israel, in cooperation with philanthropic foundations, including the Azrieli Foundation, the Patrick and Lina Drahi Foundation, and the Wilf Family Foundation.
It should be remembered that immediately before taking up his presidential role, Herzog was chairman of the Jewish Agency, and the WZO is one of three constituent organizations that make up half of the Jewish Agency’s Executive and Board of Governors.
The funding of the new enterprise could have been used for better purposes.
Katsav’s concept, which has now been revived, is top-heavy with Americans and Israelis. Latin America is well represented with members from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. There are also representatives of Mexico and Spain. Europe is fairly well represented, including Russia, Ukraine, and neighboring Belarus. Noticeably absent, though, are Georgia and Poland.
Quite a number of members are dual and triple nationals, the most interesting of whom is Khaled Hassan, a national security and foreign policy researcher and social media activist who grew up Muslim in Egypt and recently converted to Judaism. He is listed as representing the UK, Israel, and Egypt.
Most council members already lead or sit on the executive boards of national organizations in their home countries, meaning their voices are frequently heard.
Unfortunately, the Jewish people have a group fixation, which probably stems from Biblical times when they left Egypt together, stood at Mount Sinai together, wandered in the wilderness together for 40 years, and continues to this day in the assembly in quorums of at least ten men for prayer meetings.
Los Angeles fires
■ WHEN ANYTHING of a threatening nature appears on the horizon, it should be taken seriously, even if it seems far away. Among the many people in Los Angeles who lost their homes and precious possessions was E. Randol Schoenberg, whose family lost four homes.
Writing in the Forward, Schoenberg, who is the grandson of Arnold Schoenberg, “the groundbreaking 20th-century modernist composer and artist who escaped Nazi persecution and settled among his fellow artistic Jewish émigrés in Los Angeles,” admitted that when he saw the plume of smoke, he didn’t worry much because it looked so far away. Instead, he went out to lunch.
When he returned, he checked his phone before going to sleep. There was a message from a neighbor with a photo of a ball of flame on the Malibu site where Schoenberg’s beach house had stood.
Altogether, his family lost four homes. His uncle, brother, and cousin in Pacific Palisades lost absolutely everything they owned, including a priceless musical legacy of thousands of one-of-a-kind documents that had belonged to his grandfather.
Fortunately, Arnold Schoenberg’s music manuscripts and his acclaimed paintings were all transferred to Vienna in 1998, but before that, they had been stored at the home of his son and daughter-in-law, together with the documents that had been destroyed in the fire.
One can only imagine what other priceless Jewish treasures were lost. So many Jewish intellectuals who fled from Nazi Europe settled in Los Angeles, where they were able to exercise their talents and find fame.
This tragedy, which has affected so many people of different faiths and national and ethnic backgrounds, underscores the need to find ways to preserve documents that may seem unimportant today but which will be of major importance to future historians.
Women’s International Zionist Organization
■ AS PART of the Women’s International Zionist Organization’s MOR (Meeting of Representatives) Week, WIZO women from abroad and Israel toured the country last week to update themselves on a variety of WIZO programs and institutions.
This international week-long conference of representatives of WIZO federations from around the globe included leaders from North and South America (Canada, the US, Mexico, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil), Europe (Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK), South Africa, and Australia.
MOR is the organization’s most significant annual gathering, during which 100 representatives of WIZO federations abroad approve the budget principles and work plans for 2025, as well as other statutory items on the organization’s agenda.
In addition, it is an opportunity for these female Zionist leaders to visit Israel, connect with their counterparts from other countries, view WIZO programs firsthand, and meet with President Herzog in Jerusalem.
Their week in Israel was particularly poignant as MOR was held via Zoom last January due to the war, and after experiencing such an emotional year, the women were eager to be in Israel in person.
In addition to meeting Herzog and his wife, they met with mayors, council leaders, partners, and other activists. In their travels across the country, they also experienced a range of WIZO activities as they visited WIZO institutions, participated in workshops for the benefit of women and children, inspected day care centers, shelters for victims of domestic violence, educational institutions, youth villages, and more.
Their itinerary included important landmarks such as the site of the Nova festival, Hostages Square, and the Western Wall. Leading the events were Anita Friedman, chairperson of WIZO, and Anat Vidor, president of WIZO.
The gala launch of MOR 2025 was held at the WIZO Hadassim Children and Youth Village in Even Yehuda. During the event, a tribute ceremony was held for Esther Mor, the former president of WIZO, who served from 2016 to 2024.
“WIZO Hadassim Youth Village is a place that shapes the future of Israel; [it is] a melting pot for young people from around the world who, shoulder to shoulder with Israeli-born youth, discover themselves and their abilities, becoming a driving force in Israeli society,” said Anat Vidor
“MOR is a tremendous demonstration of our organization’s strength, with the participation of our international federations. It is a unique opportunity to forge close and meaningful working relationships among the leadership and management of our federation,” said Anita Friedman. “This week’s journey, which begins at WIZO Hadassim Youth Village and continues through WIZO institutions across the country, traces a path – in the shape of a Star of David, if you will.
“One triangle represents love of Judaism, love of the land, and love of humanity. But it is only together with the second triangle that it forms the Star of David: vision, planning, and action. These values, combined with the ability to realize them, are our Zionism.”
Annual National Food Sec and Tech
■ IT WAS only natural that the second annual National Food Sec and Tech conference be held at Sapir Academic College in the northwest Negev near Sderot.
Negev farmers suffered enormous damage to their crops, not only due to rockets fired from Gaza but also from a lack of human resources. Most of the Thai workers, who are so essential, returned home in the wake of the Hamas massacre and have only recently begun to trickle back.
True, a lot of Israelis went south as volunteers to help plant, pick, sort, and pack fruit and vegetables, but most were inexperienced and, with all the goodwill in the world, were, in some cases, doing more harm than good.
Certain crops, if not harvested at a specific time, will not be suitable for market – particularly those designated for export.
Now that technology has made so many inroads into farming, and food security has become increasingly important as populations grow but incomes decrease and global warming threatens previously fertile land, all means must be explored to ensure there is sufficient nutritious food to feed the nation.
The conference, which was convened by the Stier Group, is an ideal platform for all those involved in food security to meet and exchange ideas.
A significant idea that was implemented by Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter was to change the name of his ministry to the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry. Unlike its bland predecessor, the new name speaks of present and future intentions and gives farmers a sense of optimism.
Participants at the conference included Prof. Eyal Shimoni, who chairs its professional steering committee and is one of the founders of Israeli food-tech program Food Security 2050; Yuval Lipkin, who leads the food security unit at the Haifa Technion’s Shmuel Neeman Institute; Dr. Tammy Meiron, the head of Food Security in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fresh Start Incubators which combine the investment of venture capitalists, the combined research into food security, and sustainability of researchers from all of Israel’s universities; and representatives of all categories within the food industry.
Gil Stier, managing director of the Stier Group, emphasized the importance of the conference for food security taking place in wartime and the efforts of farmers who are facing additional challenges during a period of crisis. He also expressed appreciation for the solidarity shown by all concerned.
Conference initiator Lior Caspi also spoke of its significance in developing ways to guarantee food security, which he said has become the goal of many nations, particularly those that, like Israel, are unable to produce all the food that is needed.
Sapir College President Nir Kedar recalled the 47 members of the Sapir community who were murdered or who fell in battle on October 7.
“We do not forget them or the hostages,” he said, mentioning hostage Omri Miran of Kibbutz Nahal Oz, who is the husband of Sapir College faculty member Lishay Lavi-Miran. Kedar pledged that crops in the Negev and around the Gaza border would flourish again.
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