Israel
COVID crisis forces annual Mishpatim program online
By MYRON LOVE
Ten years ago, University of Manitoba Law Professor Bryan Schwartz, in conjunction with the Rothberg International School at the Hebrew University, introduced Mishpatim, now known as the Asper International Law Program on Israeli Law and Society – a program whose goal was to introduce the State of Israel to University of Manitoba Law students through direct exposure to Israeli scholarship and society.
“Mishpatim is a way to show some of our students what Israel and Jewish civilization is all about and come to their own conclusions,” says Schwartz, who was a long time board member of the former Winnipeg chapter of the CFHU. “Our program focuses on the nature of the Israeli legal system and how Israel applies its constitutional and regulatory framework to its social and economic challenges compared to the Canadian experience.”
Over the past few years, about 40 students a year joined Schwartz in Israel for two weeks in May. (While the program is open to law students from across Canada, most participants are U. of M. students.)
“We were really excited about this – our tenth year,” Schwartz says. “We had a record number of students enrolled and a huge international conference planned.”
And then the COVID epidemic hit.
Undeterred, Schwartz has created a new course to replace Mishpatim this summer. If he and his students were unable to travel to Israel, he would bring Israel to the students in the form of interactive Zoom sessions with leading scholars drawn from the faculties of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Schwartz notes that he has spent the past three months putting together the new online curriculum with the help of Dr. Daniel Ohana, Schwartz’s Canadian-born Israeli partner in Mishpatim for the past eight years.
The new four-week program, “Decision Making During Crises: Strategic Thinking in Times of Peril and Uncertainty”, began on July 6. Schwartz reports that more than 40 students are participating in the two-hour daily Zoom sessions Monday through Thursday in the mornings.
The first part of the course, which was led by Schwartz, focused on the Canadian and American legal frameworks for emergency powers of government (e.g., Canada’s War Measures Act) and the wider question of how individuals, groups and societies make decisions in times of crises. This part of the program included presentations by Israeli experts in Game Theory, Behavioural Economics, Group Psychology, Recognition-Primed Decisions and Rhetoric: Theories of Decision Making in Emergencies. Students were also exposed to how Jewish civilization as well as modern Israel has adapted to crisis.
“Israel locked down quickly,” Schwartz notes. “What can we learn from the Israel experience? What is the trade-off in Israel between human rights and security?
The second part of the new Mishpatim – led by the Hebrew University’s Ohana, will be examining: the functioning of the Israeli court system; Israel as the “Start-Up Nation” – also Palestinian entrepreneurship in Jerusalem; law enforcement; intercommunal tensions and co-operation through the COVID outbreak; the current situations of both refugees and illegal immigrants; the role of international law with regard to the Israel-Palestinian conflict and on decision-making at a time of crisis such as this.
“For a new start-up venture, our Mishpatim online is going very well,” Schwartz comments. “I am excited about the number of great presenters that Daniel has recruited.”
Schwartz also expresses his heart-felt appreciation for the continued support of the Asper Foundation. The Foundation has been a major sponsor throughout and, this year, repurposed its contribution to provide subsidies for the students participating in the Zoom seminars.
And, Schwartz adds that he is “thrilled” at being able to continue working with the people at the Hebrew University’s Rothberg International School as well as Daniel Ohana and his HU colleagues. “Any association with the university of Albert Einstein is a special honour,” Schwartz says. “The co-operation that we have had from the Hebrew University has been terrific. I couldn’t be more grateful.”
Israel
Join the Masa Canadian Professionals Volunteers Program!
You are invited on a 4-week volunteer program in Israel from October 14th to November 10th. Help rebuild Israeli society post-October 7th over Canadian Thanksgiving, Sukkot, and Simchat Torah. Spend three weeks based in Tel Aviv and one week based in Eilat!
This program is exclusively for Jewish professionals aged 22-50, working at Jewish organizations or remotely in any field.
The cost of the program is $150 USD to the organizer and $50 USD to Masa. Participants will receive a Masa grant of $2650 USD that is applied to participation and to cover additional costs. The cost of the program includes housing, meals while volunteering, transportation on travel days, health insurance, leadership training, and more. Volunteers are required to commit to the volunteer schedule, with the understanding that there will be the flexibility to work remotely for 8 specific days during the program. Flights are not included but you get a 15% discount from El Al.
Sign up here: https://www.masaisrael.org/go/canada-jp/ space is limited!
Don’t miss this unique opportunity to make a difference and connect with fellow professionals. For more information, contact Mahla Finkleman, National Manager of Partnerships and Outreach, Masa Canada, atmfinkleman@ujafed.org and/or Sam Goodman, Senior Manager of Israel Engagement, sgoodman@ujafed.org.
Save the Dates for Info Sessions:
- Thursday, September 5th, 12:00 – 12:30 EST
- Wednesday, September 11th, 12:00 – 12:30 EST
Join us in Israel for a meaningful and impactful experience with Masa!
weeks based in Tel Aviv and one week based in Eilat!
This program is exclusively for Jewish professionals aged 22-50, working at Jewish organizations or remotely in any field.
The cost of the program is $150 USD to the organizer and $50 USD to Masa. Participants will receive a Masa grant of $2650 USD that is applied to participation and to cover additional costs. The cost of the program includes housing, meals while volunteering, transportation on travel days, health insurance, leadership training, and more. Volunteers are required to commit to the volunteer schedule, with the understanding that there will be the flexibility to work remotely for 8 specific days during the program. Flights are not included but you get a 15% discount from El Al.
Sign up here: https://www.masaisrael.org/go/canada-jp/ space is limited!
Don’t miss this unique opportunity to make a difference and connect with fellow professionals. For more information, contact Mahla Finkleman, National Manager of Partnerships and Outreach, Masa Canada, atmfinkleman@ujafed.org and/or Sam Goodman, Senior Manager of Israel Engagement, sgoodman@ujafed.org.
Save the Dates for Info Sessions:
- Thursday, September 5th, 12:00 – 12:30 EST
- Wednesday, September 11th, 12:00 – 12:30 EST
Join us in Israel for a meaningful and impactful experience with Masa!
Features
New website for Israelis interested in moving to Canada
By BERNIE BELLAN (May 21, 2024) A new website, titled “Orvrim to Canada” (https://www.ovrimtocanada.com/ovrim-en) has been receiving hundreds of thousands of visits, according to Michal Harel, operator of the website.
In an email sent to jewishpostandnews.ca Michal explained the reasons for her having started the website:
“In response to the October 7th events, a group of friends and I, all Israeli-Canadian immigrants, came together to launch a new website supporting Israelis relocating to Canada. “Our website, https://www.ovrimtocanada.com/, offers a comprehensive platform featuring:
- Step-by-step guides for starting the immigration process
- Settlement support and guidance
- Community connections and networking opportunities
- Business relocation assistance and expert advice
- Personal blog sharing immigrants’ experiences and insights
“With over 200,000 visitors and media coverage from prominent Israeli TV channels and newspapers, our website has already made a significant impact in many lives.”
A quick look at the website shows that it contains a wealth of information, almost all in Hebrew, but with an English version that gives an overview of what the website is all about.
The English version also contains a link to a Jerusalem Post story, published this past February, titled “Tired of war? Canada grants multi-year visas to Israelis” (https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-787914#google_vignette) That story not only explains the requirements involved for anyone interested in moving to Canada from Israel, it gives a detailed breakdown of the costs one should expect to encounter.
(Updated May 28)
We contacted Ms. Harel to ask whether she’s aware whether there has been an increase in the number of Israelis deciding to emigrate from Israel since October 7. (We want to make clear that we’re not advocating for Israelis to emigrate; we’re simply wanting to learn more about emigration figures – and whether there has been a change in the number of Israelis wanting to leave the country.)
Ms. Harel referred us to a website titled “Globes”: https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001471862
The website is in Hebrew, but we were able to translate it into English. There is a graph on the website showing both numbers of immigrants to Israel and emigrants.
The graph shows a fairly steady rate of emigration from 2015-2022, hovering in the 40,000 range, then in 2023 there’s a sudden increase in the number of emigrants to 60,000.
According to the website, the increase in emigrants is due more to a change in the methodology that Israel has been using to count immigrants and emigrants than it is to any sudden upsurge in emigration. (Apparently individuals who had formerly been living in Israel but who may have returned to Israel just once a year were being counted as having immigrated back to Israel. Now that they are no longer being counted as immigrants and instead are being treated as emigrants, the numbers have shifted radically.)
Yet, the website adds this warning: “The figures do not take into account the effects of the war, since it is still not possible to identify those who chose to emigrate following it. It is also difficult to estimate what Yalad Yom will produce – on the one hand, anti-Semitism and hatred of Jews and Israelis around the world reminds everyone where the Jewish home is. On the other hand, the bitter truth we discovered in October is that it was precisely in Israel, the safe fortress of the Jewish people, that a massacre took place reminding us of the horrors of the Holocaust. And if that’s not enough, the explosive social atmosphere and the difference in the state budget deficit, which will inevitably lead to a heavy burden of taxes and a reduction in public services, may convince Zionist Israelis that they don’t belong here.”
Thus, as much as many of us would be disappointed to learn that there is now an upsurge in Israelis wanting to move out of the country, once reliable figures begin to be produced for 2024, we shouldn’t be surprised to learn that is the case – which helps to explain the tremendous popularity of Ms. Harel’s website.
Features
Message from a Palestinian in Gaza to protesters: “You’re hurting the Palestinian cause”
A very brave Palestinian who was willing to put his name to paper and write an article for Newsweek Magazine has exposed the utter hypocrisy of all those students – and others, who have been setting up encampments across the U.S. – and now Canada, too.
You can read the article at https://www.newsweek.com/message-gazan-campus-protesters-youre-hurting-palestinian-cause-opinion-1894313
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