Interviews
Learning to celebrate diversity
Gershon Baskin explained that the conference had been planned when relations between Israelis and Palestinians had begun to look optimistic.
Gershon Baskin explained that the conference had been planned when relations between Israelis and Palestinians had begun to look optimistic.
Gershon Baskin believes that civil society peace activists must work together across the conflict lines to design a new process that empowers the common people. Their well-established cooperation provides the basis for bringing the voices of both societies to the table. It is time for the public to stand up and it is time for civil society peace activists to take the lead.
Gershon Baskin organized the International Conference on Education for Peace and Democracy held in Antalya, Turkey.
Gershon Baskin explains that the way he does “peace” is that when one side says something, the other side gets a chance to also say something.
Israel could announce that it was launching a global energy effort – a sort of Manhattan Project.
The `mini-quartet` of Israel, the PA, Egypt and Jordan can provide the mechanism for renewing the peace process. This partnership of four interdependent neighbors is the best, and perhaps, the only way that we can move forward toward a political horizon of hope.
Gershon Baskin deals with issue of Palestinian residents of the territories who hold foreign passports and are being denied the right to remain in their homes.
The pursuit of peace must be translated into policies that send clear messages to our neighbors and to the world.
We Israelis should be interested in keeping Sam Bahour and the thousands of others like Sam as our neighbors in the West Bank. The chances for building real peace increase when people like Sam Bahour can be our neighbor. Shame on any government of Israel that would force people like Sam to leave.
The Palestinian public overwhelmingly supports the kidnap of Israeli soldiers – they view it as the one sure way to bring about a prisoner release, quite a vicious circle.