Thematic Quotes from Elad Vazana
When the Moroccan Jews came to Israel, the [Jews] that were already in Israel viewed them as Arabs. My grandmother speaks Arabic, makes Arab food and I was raised in a culture that is Arab and not very different from the Arab villages I visit.
Fear results in a kind of imaginary hatred, because of the desire to feel a part of something. Where I come from, hating the Arabs stems from the desire to belong [in Israel], and the fear of being different. But in fact, we’re brothers, we’re very much alike.
For seven hundred years, Muslims, Christians and Jews lived peaceful and harmonious lives in Grenada. There was mutual inspiration in every field – literature, poetry, medicine and science. Tangibly, this place that still accepts everyone. Over time I composed my vision: return to Israel and if all this was possible in Grenada, why shouldn’t it work in Israel? I thought I’d bring peace, that nobody had thought of it before. I had an idea for a start-up for peace, bringing Jews, Christians and Muslims together. I had never thought that would be possible, yet suddenly it became clear.
Sulha is actually a reconciliation rite among Bedouin tribes [....] The Sulha Peace Project founders, Gabriel Meyer and Elias Jabbour, borrowed the term sulha, as well as the concept of creating a space where it is possible to meet and try to achieve forgiveness, or at least understanding and recognition. There are different steps on the road to reconciliation. It’s a long road, and we have to take one step at a time, especially given the extent of anger and mistrust.
The current difficult situation here is the outcome of a lot of fear, demonization and mistrust. It’s a very long process, which could take generations, but I believe that we must begin now, the earlier the better. It’s hard work, building trust takes years of work, and then one shelling or one war and all the bridges just collapse.
We often feel the crises of faith and the fear at Sulha. I think that persistence is the key – it’s difficult, and sometimes you feel like going off and doing something else, something easier, and you persevere because you are committed to building something much larger. We are in need of a critical mass – more and more encounters in order to build enough trust, so that the leaders will want to sign treaties and have the people’s support, [obstacles and challenges, political peace processes, conceptions of peace, vision]
The Palestinians who attend the encounters and have to pass through checkpoints suffer humiliation and have to contend with hardships, such as feeding their children. It’s frustrating, and sometimes there is the sense the encounter is just an illusion. Often the communities of those [Palestinian] activists say, “Why are you going to meet with Jews? What aspect of our lives has changed? Everything is just the same, if not worse, so why do you go?”
I told myself my father is about to pass away, and we won’t have made sulha, forgiveness. How will I be able to bear that for the rest of my life? At a certain point we were told the end was imminent; [my father] held my hand and stroked my palm. I was so moved that suddenly I no longer wanted him to ask me to forgive him. I no longer needed this forgiveness because I realized I really wanted him to love me and recognize me as his son. This event made me think; often one side wants the other to apologize, and each side thinks that apologizing will be interpreted as a weakness. If I recognize your pain, you’ll use it against me because I’ll have admitted being wrong. Suddenly it all came together, in terms of my relationship with my father, as well as in the context of the Sulha and the Palestinians. I concluded that we aren’t necessarily seeking forgiveness, which never comes and is a source of frustration, but rather what we want is basic and simple recognition of each other’s existence.
I’ve learned the importance of perseverance, how powerful it can be, and its effect on others. When I give in, it might affect others, and I’m aware of my responsibility to persevere, even when everyone thinks this approach isn’t going to succeed.
There is always a feeling of not doing enough, but the amazing work many other people – not just us – are doing in the field create hope that is preserved [....] Perseverance and the openness to come together and work in new ways affect the kind of peace that could come. It’s like planting a tree, it’s really a long-term investment.
Our daily and immediate needs are different. Israelis need security because they feel fear, and the Palestinians need justice because they feel the injustice and discrimination. Mistrust, fear and demonization feed this cycle.
