News from Israel: Meretz Israel MKHaim Oron on Infiltration Bill

Meretz Israel Brief – 3.2.10 MK (Member of Knesset) Haim Oron (Meretz) calls on the government to rescinder infiltration bill 2.2.10 Meretz Chairman Haim Oron has today advised the government that the infiltration bill should be replaced with a bill defining the status of refugees. The bill received its first reading in the Knesset yesterday, proposing the automatic detainment of illegal immigrants on entry into the country, a notion contrary to the 1991 convention for proceedure in the treatment of asylum seekers. The bill also seeks to refute Article 6 of the current law regarding the treatment of asylum seekers, effectively prohibiting the absorption of subjects from enemy states, such as Sudan. The proposal has inspired much criticism from internal elements in government, including liberal parties such as Meretz. In a statement following the bill motion, MK Oron claimed: “the terms of the bill must be anchored in the legislation of international convention, to enable citizens of specified enemy states who pose no threat to Israel to seek asylum here without risking deportation to places where they will suffer oppression.” As the Interior Committee for the Law for Protection from Infiltration adjourned for the second consecutive day, MK H.Oron addressed the committee: “Israel has both a moral and historical obligation to refugees. It is the duty of the Knesset to disambiguate the status of refugees according to the strictures of international law. Another Meretz representative, Ilan Gilon bolstered the position of the Chairman, claiming “beyond my embarrassment is shock at this glaring example of racism, where the discussion's participants rely on facts distorted to fit their agenda, such as the idea that refugees are carriers of contagious disease. In the core of the Judaism lies a conscience that renounces the righ t to exist in the midst of racism. I suggest background checks as the determinant of whether individual asylum seekers pose a security threat, while women and children are granted the right to humanitarian aid in Israel.”

Translated by Shoshana  Kedem, MERETZ UK original in hebrew at Meretz Israel

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The charities we introduced to you:

Charities of our choice at the conference we held on Sunday 24th Jan 10.  Below are the links for further details and information.  All are in need of extra funding!  A full reflective report of the meeting on Sunday will be released later.

Israeli Children, is fighting against the government decision to deport children of migrant workers that were born and raised in Israel.

Save Behnam  is a single-handed grassroot campaign for an Iranian Refugee and Asylum Seeker.

African Refugee Development Centre (ARDC), Tel Aviv. ARDC was one of the first and is today one of the leading organisations to reach out to non-Jewish African refugees in Israel.

Asylum Aid UK. London: Asylum Aid is a leading national charity working to secure protection for people seeking refuge in the United Kingdom from persecution and human rights abuses abroad. They provide legal aid, and act as a lobby and support group

SOS Children Villages, the world's largest orphan and abandoned children's charity.  Child sponsors and donors worldwide provide a new family and home for more than 78,000 children in 500 unique Children's Villages in 124 countries, including on both sides of the divide in the Middle East, that is in Israel, as well as in the West Bank and Gaza, one of the few international organisations for whom the child only matters.

David Project (Boston).  A United States based educational trust and lobby group that serves to promote "strong voices for Israel," that also campaigned for the story of Arabic speaking Jewish Refugees to be publicised.  They and Isra TV are producers and promoters of the documentary "The Forgotten Refugees.





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Official Meretz UK statement on decision to create university centre in a settlement town the West Bank

Meretz UK agrees with its Israeli sister movement that the decision to transform Ariel College into a "university centre"  shows that there is no difference between Barak and Netanyahu (Meretz Israel Member of Knesset Haim Oron, yesterday).  We feel that the decision hampers severely the efforts of so many Jewish organisations, including ourselves, to counsel constructively against the boycott of Israeli universities.  Having one standing in the West Bank shows how low the moral conscience of the Israeli leadership has sunken.  We stand with all those progressive forces in Israel and abroad who are dedicated to create a more progressive and fairer Israel.

The Leadership of  Meretz UK

related news items:  left warns of global boycott
Haaretz:  Barak under Fire

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From our Israeli Sister Organisation: Knesset Presidency refuses request by MK H.Oron and N.Horowitz to discuss the conduct of security forces against leftist activists in Sheikh Jarah 19.1.10

Following the refusal of the Presidency to address the issue of police violence against protesters at Sheikh Jarah and the states arbitrary detention of human rights demonstrators in Jerusalem, Meretz Chairman H.Oron and MK N.Horowitz forwarded the matter to Knesset speaker Reuvin Rivlin. In an urgent letter Meretz representatives urged the Speaker to put the issue on the Committee of Environmental and Internal Affairs agenda for review. Translatation: Shoshana Kedem, Meretz UK Volunteer





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