Despite a recent barrage of criticism, organizers of the upcoming Jerusalem 3000 festivities plan to proceed full steam ahead with the celebration making three millennia since King David made Jerusalem his capital.
That politics would creep into a celebration of Jerusalem seemed somehow inevitable, even though ardent attempts were made to keep politics out.
Last week, a delegation from the 15-member European Union informed officials of the Israeli Foreign Ministry that the E.U. member states had decided to boycott the festivities.
Among their reasons: The celebrations fail to represent adequately the multiethnic makeup of Jerusalem, particularly its Christian and Muslim communities.
The celebration has also been the subject of criticism by two fervently Orthodox members of the Jerusalem city council.
Their dissatisfaction: Some of the events planned for the celebration, they say, offend Jewish sensibilities and border on the sacrilegious.
The festivities – scheduled to start on Sept. 4 and last through January 1997 – will include cultural, scientific and religious events and will involve the participation of many international bodies.
The municipality of Jerusalem and several government agencies – including the Foreign Ministry, the Education Ministry, the Tourism Ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office – are involved with the project, which is expected to draw thousands of visitors from around the world.
The E.U. delegation threw something of a pall over the plans by announcing their boycott of the festivities last week.
In a statement presented by the Spanish, French and Italian ambassadors to Israel, the E.U. nations said their support of the events could be interpreted as taking a position on the question of the permanent status of Jerusalem – a subject to be discussed by Israeli and Palestinian negotiators until next year.
In addition, the European Union has decided to withdraw all its support of regular annual events in the city – such as the prestigious Israel Festival and the Jerusalem Film Festival. It has also withdrawn its backing of special conferences, such as the annual conference of the World Health Organization, which is scheduled to convene in Jerusalem next year.
The E.U. nations said they were upset that these annual and special events have been incorporated into the Jerusalem 3000 festivities.
The delegation also voiced its dissatisfaction with the celebration’s emphasis on Jerusalem as the capital of Israel – a viewpoint, they said, that slights the city’s Christian and Muslim communities.
Yigal Palmor, deputy spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, said the event’s planners would not bee deterred by the E.U. criticisms.
“We intend to go with the program as planned,” he said in an interview. “We see no reason to change anything, because the celebrations are a framework dedicated to cultural, scientific and tourist-oriented activities.”
“It has nothing to do with politics, and should not be politicized.”
Tourism Minister Uzi Baram had a similar reaction. He said the fact that most Israelis view Jerusalem as a united city under Israeli rule should not harm the special link that other faiths have to the city.
Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert criticized the E.U.’s decision, calling it hypocritical.
“these are historical and cultural celebrations. Only the European Union wants to bring politics into it,” he said.
Olmert, who criticized the European officials for lacking the courage or the decency to recognize the Jewish people’s historical links to the city, also pointed out that the E.U. financial contribution to the celebrations was insignificant.
Yossi Tal-Gan, director general of the Jerusalem 3000 celebrations, said despite the E.U.’s decisions, many cities around the world will be participating in and supporting a host of events.
On the home front, meanwhile, the celebrations drew strong criticism from two fervently Orthodox members of the Jerusalem city council, Chain Miller and Meir Porush.
Their ire was triggered in part by plans for a performance of the Beethoven oratorio, “Jesus on the Mountain of Olives.”
The concert, one of the opening events of the Jerusalem 3000 festivities, is being sponsored by the city of Berlin, with Israeli-born Daniel Barenboim conducting the Deutsche Staatsoper.
The two council members are demanding the cancellation of the concert, which they said was sacrilegious.
Tal-Gan dismissed the objections.
“We’ve been trying to create a delicate balance between Judaism and Christianity,” Tal-Gan said in an interview.
“As far as Islam is concerned, it’s difficult to make programs without partners. Still, we open the celebrations with an exhibition dedicated to the Muslim contribution to the history of the city.”
Orthodox members of the Jerusalem city council recently won one victory as the Jerusalem 3000 celebration approach.
They forced Olmert to decline a loan from Florence of an exact replica of Michelangelo’s sculpture of David.
The Jerusalem officials found the nude statue to be in bad taste and offensive to the sensibilities of the city’s fervently Orthodox community.
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