Israel
Election Day fun
By BRUCE BROWN, Rehovot, Israel
Once again Election Day has come and gone and the world continues to spin; albeit slightly more rightward for Israel.
I went to sleep the night before a bit more excited – I love the hoopla of an Israeli Election Day – and a bit more apprehensive – I was still not sure who to vote for – than usual.
Election Day in Israel is a holiday and we had a fun day ahead of us. My son was set to participate in our democratic process. My wife and I were set to vote – well, almost, as I was still undecided. We had a family lunch date with friends. And then I was looking forward to watching the exit polls at home.
My son – still too young to vote but not too young to hold an opinion – was manning a party booth outside the local polling station. Dressed in a party hat and t-shirt and armed with multi-colored brochures he was out of the house by 7:00 AM. -surprising, because we can barely get him out of the house on a school day, which starts an hour later!
As opposed to the sterile polling environment of Canada, Israel’s polling stations are last minute electioneering grounds. Every party has a booth with party hacks or students-for hire (such as my son) vying for last minute votes. And multiple cars covered with party posters and carrying huge loudspeakers on their roofs compete for sound waves by blaring political jingles – a classic Israeli ‘balagan’.
But lots of fun and a great place to catch up with neighbours and friends to debate Iran, the religious, the economy, last summer’s war and who to vote for and who not to vote for.
I think the last time I voted in Canada was in the 1998 election when I cast my vote for Brian Mulroney. Oops – should I have written that? In Israel everyone knows not only what you earn and how large a mortgage you have, but also how well you get along with your mother-in-law and who you vote for. We are a very open and argumentative society so voting preferences are common water cooler and Friday night dinner table talk.
Anyway, by mid-morning my wife, daughter and I – and even our dog – went to visit my son and to vote. With our identity cards and a falafel in hand – a not unusual text message arrived from my son a few minutes before we left the house: “I’m hungry” – off we went to the polling station.
It was more crowded than usual and we actually had to wait in line – or what counts for a line in Israel – to reach the ballot box. My wife confidently cast her vote. And I – in a last-minute decision )no doubt influenced by a quick chat with a party faithful just outside) – cast my lot for a pure centrist party. Okay – there were two of them, but being a good Canadian I will keep my specific choice secret.
Afterwards, we drove to Tel Aviv where we met friends at an excellent Persian restaurant – an appropriate choice given some of the election issues. For sure the talk was about the elections but also about other things just as in any normal country. And Israel, in its own special way, is a normal country…even on Election Day.
Towards mid-evening I popped my microwavable popcorn and relaxed in front of the TV to watch the exit polls. Since it appeared to be a virtual tie I went to sleep around 11:00 PM believing a national unity government was inevitable. True to form for Israel – where the unexpected should be expected – I woke up the next morning to a strong right wing lead, with the overwhelming likelihood of another four years of Netanyahu rule – with a strong tilt to the religious right.
Good? Bad? With Election Day come and gone one thing is clear. The Israeli beat goes on.
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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