Israeli Intellectuals Critical of Government’s Policies; Seek New Roads to Peace

Many thoughtful Israelis are deeply concerned over what they consider their government’s inflexibility on the issue of peace with the Arabs. They are convinced that the key to genuine peace is Israel’s reconciliation with the Palestinians but fear that such a likelihood grows ever more remote as the government pursues a policy of “creeping annexation” in the occupied territories, Newsweek magazine reported today. Newsweek set up a colloquy in Jerusalem with “six of Israel’s most eminent liberal intellectuals to discuss ways in which a meaningful Arab-Israeli dialogue might be opened.” They proposed monetary compensation to Palestinian refugees in the occupied territories and formal assurances by the Israel government that it does not intend to annex the territories. They criticized Premier Golda Meir’s broad coalition government, which one said represented “the lowest common denominator of a large number of parties.” The six Israelis interviewed by Newsweek senior editor Arnaud de Berchgrave and correspondent Michael Elkins were Prof. Don Patinkin, professor of economics at Hebrew University; Meron Benvenisti, a specialist in Arab affairs on the Jerusalem City Council; Shimon Shamir, head of the Mideast history department at Tel Aviv University; Yoram Ben-Porath, an author and expert on Arab problems; Prof. Michael Bruno, chairman of the economics faculty at Hebrew University, and Amos Tversky, professor of psychology at Hebrew University. Mr. Benvenisti said annexation would leave Israel with only two options: “Either we will remain a Jewish state and be undemocratic, or remain a democratic state but not Jewish. If we want to preserve our Jewish character with what will then become an almost half-Arab population, we will have to deprive the Arabs of their legitimate share of political and government management.” Prof. Bruno said, “We seem to be sliding into de facto annexation. Creeping annexation if you will. The majority of our population is against annexation but present day-to-day policies are likely to lead us into it.” Prof. Shamir said that “unless some sort of settlement is reached with the Palestinians, whatever can be accomplished with Egypt and Jordan would not last.”