state prominent israelis under 40

O n J u n e 8, 1948, less t h a n a m o n t h after Israel was p r o c l a i m e d
a state, The New York Times p r e d i c t e d , " T h e tiny n a t i o n c r e a t e d
on t h e shores of t h e M e d i t e r r a n e a n will a t t r a c t p r o d u c t i v e , m o d e r n
m i n d s . " F o r t y years later, it is clear t h a t Israel not only a t t r a c t e d
t a l e n t e d , d e d i c a t e d people, b u t , m o r e i m p o r t a n t l y , it c r e a t e d a n
e n v i r o n m e n t t h a t p r o d u c e d its o w n " p r o d u c t i v e , m o d e r n m i n d s . "
I spoke w i t h a small s a m p l e of Israel's most p r o m i s i n g y o u n g
leaders, in fields r a n g i n g from a g r i c u l t u r e to h i g h technology to
tennis, to learn w h a t it is a b o u t g r o w i n g u p in Israel t h a t nourishes
talent. All of those interviewed w e r e b o r n after t h e S t a t e w a s
established, a n d most were b o r n in Israel (those w h o w e r e b o r n
elsewhere c a m e to Israel as children).
T h e a n s w e r to t h e q u e s t i o n — " W h a t was t h e r e a b o u t g r o w i n g
u p in Israel t h a t n o u r i s h e d y o u r w o r k a n d gave it meaning?'.'—
WITH THE
STATE
PROMINENT
ISRAELIS
U N D E R 40
d r e w responses as varied as t h e individuals. B u t some c o m m o n t h e m e s
w e r e voiced.
Almost e v e r y b o d y felt a p e r s o n a l c o n n e c t i o n to t h e c o u n t r y a n d
to t h e people. Y e t m a n y expressed t h e s e n t i m e n t t h a t , after 40 years
of statehood, t h e Zionist d r e a m h a s n o t yet b e e n realized; t h e y w a n t e d
to do t h e i r share t o c o n t r i b u t e .
P e r h a p s t h e most significant message t h a t c a m e t h r o u g h was this:
Israel, w i t h all of its p r o b l e m s , is t h e only h o m e t h e y h a v e ever
k n o w n ; this is t h e c o u n t r y t h a t h a s n u r t u r e d t h e i r considerable talents.
T h i s is t h e c o u n t r y w h e r e t h e y i n t e n d to use these talents.
T h e s e a r e t h e children of survivors a n d i m m i g r a n t s a n d t h e y lived
t h r o u g h w a r , severe food r a t i o n i n g a n d t h e s q u a l o r of i m m i g r a n t
transit c a m p s to b e c o m e t h e first g e n e r a t i o n of J e w i s h Israelis in
almost 2,000 years. T h e y p a i d a price for this privilege. T h e y lost
family in t h e wars; their careers w e r e delayed b y a r m y service a n d
then
reserve d u t y , a n d
t h e y w e r e stymied b y
a
cumbersome
b u r e a u c r a c y t h a t grinds d o w n initiative.
B u t t h e y n o t only survived t h e difficult b i r t h of a c o u n t r y , they
s o m e h o w t h r i v e d a n d h a v e m a d e e n o r m o u s strides in these 4 0 years.
So has t h e c o u n t r y . T h e r e is p e a c e w i t h E g y p t , relative e c o n o m i c
stability, a n a r r o w e d social g a p b e t w e e n S e p h a r d i m a n d A s h k e n a z i m
a n d t h e c o n t i n u e d ability to successfully a b s o r b i m m i g r a n t s from
E t h i o p i a a n d t h e Soviet U n i o n .
Serious p r o b l e m s r e m a i n : t h e Israeli-Arab conflict (with its special
p r o b l e m s of h o w to resolve t h e Palestinian question), O r t h o d o x secular tensions a n d a n e c o n o m y t h a t scares off p o t e n t i a l olim (new
i m m i g r a n t s ) because it is so difficult to e a r n a living.
B u t t h e i m m i g r a n t s a n d survivors w h o built t h e c o u n t r y left us
JOEL REBIBO
t h e solution to these p r o b l e m s in their children. A n d t h a t is w o r t h
celebrating.
36
M O M E N T * J U N E
1988
What was there about growing up in Israel that nourished your work and gave it meaning?
Amir Peretz
Mayor of Sderot
Amir Peretz was a career
army officerforeightyears,
but was seriously wounded
in 1974 and spent two
years recuperating in a
hospital. In 1982, he
returned to his home town
in the Megev, Sderot, and
entered politics. He now
heads the city of 10,500
and is widely seen as a
rising star in the Labor
party. Peretz was born in
Morocco in 1952, moved
to Israel with his family
in 1956 and settled in
Sderot.
66
4 *
There are two sides to this coin. O n the tragic side, the fact that we
weren't here at the beginning m a d e us feel alienated from society, a feeling
that we are still coming to terms with.
O n the positive side, it is clear to everyone that we have contributed
to settling the development towns in the Negev a n d the Galilee. These
are regions that are of the utmost importance to Israel's future.
T h e fact that I belong to a group that for m a n y years lived under the shadow of the pioneers
developed in me a heightened awareness of social justice. Therefore, in every decision I make,
be it political or social, I consider the social ramifications.
99
Savion Liebrecht
The two volumes of Savion
Liebrecht's short stories,
Apples from the Desert
and Horses on the Highway, published by Sifriat
Hapoalim, have won her
critical acclaim. Although
bom in Germany in 1948,
she moved to Israel a few
months later and grew up
in Bat Tarn. After serving
in the army during the SixDay War, Liebrecht studied philosophy and English literature at Tel Aviv
University.
A m o s Mansdorf
At 23, Amos Mansdorf is
the 20th-ranked male tennis player in the world. He
is a winner of the Riklis
Israel Tennis Centre Classic Grand Prix, the Auckland Grand Prix and the
South African Open. Bom
in Tel Aviv, Mansdorf
attended high school in
Ramal Hasharon.
T h e fact that I wasn't a m o n g the founders of this country, but
that I was absorbed by those who had the good fortune to be
here when statehood was proclaimed, has always given me the feeling
that I a n d my community from Morocco h a d something to prove. W e
h a d to find ways to help the country grow so that we could feel equal
to those who were here originally.
Short Story Writer
66
I
r
^BjBP
• MPU
ft^H
V
*
M y stories deal with o u r reality. T h e conflict between O r t h o d o x
a n d secular, J e w a n d A r a b . I also write a lot about the children
of Holocaust survivors.
M y parents are survivors a n d I think that personally I ' m still h a u n t e d
by the horrors of the Holocaust. But suddenly I find myself in a situation
where morally I'm no longer the victim, I'm causing someone else to
be a victim. I still feel like I ' m the minority, but I ' m not the minority—
I'm a majority a n d someone else is the minority.
;
Creative people create out of conflict. For me, these are the conflicts
that have fueled my work. I also d r a w on my past. I was a soldier during
the Six-Day W a r — i t was terrible. I was eight years old during the Sinai
campaign. Those things are also part of my writing. ^ ^ ^ ^
Tennis Pro
^L^^ Growing u p here, I h a d an opportunity to learn tennis at
^^^P
Israel Tennis Centre. There is nothing like it anywhere in
world. Any child in Israel can walk in a n d play tennis for a token
of five dollars a month, which includes lessons. It's a social program,
a competitive, professionally oriented one.
the
the
fee
not
I think I do a lot of good for Israel's image when I compete abroad.
T h e Israel t h a t people see on the news is soldiers beating Arabs or b o m b squad members dismantling bombs. In me, they see an Israeli who is
a tennis pro, someone who acts like a normal h u m a n being.
W h e n I do well it is good for the country. ^ ^ ^ ^
J U N E
1 9 8 8 » M 0 M E N T
37
What was there about growing up in Isr
Amira Dothan
Vice President, Ben-Gurion University and Retired Brigadier General, Israel Defense Forces
Amira Dothan went into
the army at age 18 and
served for 22 years, achieving the rank of brigadier
general in 1986. She was
in charge of all of the
female soldiers in the army,
navy and airforce, and was
the first woman in Israel
to attain this high rank.
Mow retiredfrom the army,
she is vice president of BenGurion University, where
she is also working toward
a master's degree in organizational psychology.
Michael Morin
Actor
Michael Morin is currently starring in Tehoshua
Sobol's The Jerusalem
Syndrome, a controversial play about the Jewish
revolt against the Romans
in 70 C.E.—with obvious
parallels to today's military and political situation. The play is being
staged by the Haifa Theatre as part of Israel's 40thanniversary celebrations.
Morin studied acting at the
Nissan Nativ studio in Tel
Aviv and acted in the
Israeli army's theatrical
troupe. He was bom in
Pelach Tikva in 1962.
Vida Mashour
66
W h e n I grew u p , peace was something you sang about. For me,
Israel was a place of good guys a n d b a d guys, a n d we
understandably were the good guys fighting those who threatened o u r
existence. But with time, my worldview changed, a n d today I see both
sides of the coin.
In The Jerusalem Syndrome, I play a soldier who shoots an A r a b w o m a n .
I feel very strongly the h u r t of both sides: the A r a b w o m a n who has
no homeland a n d who feels she has nothing to lose, a n d the soldier who
pleads with her to return to her c a m p a n d in the end fires at her because
he has an order from his c o m m a n d i n g officer a n d he is only a soldier.
T h e soldier is just a plaything and, maybe, so is the w o m a n . Both are
being m a n i p u l a t e d by the politicians who remain behind the scenes. T h e politicians are the ones
who have tried to b a n the play, m a y b e because they see it as a mirror reflecting their image.
As an Israeli, I'm going to use every possible opportunity to cry out for people who are victims
of religious or racial discrimination.
Journalist, Television Personality
Vida Mashour edits and
publishes a weekly Arab
newspaper called Asinara.
In its fifth year, it is the
only independent Arab
newspaper in Israel and
has a circulation of
60,000. Mashour began
her career in the media
working for Israeli television in Arabic. For seven
years she had her own
television show. Bom in
Bethlehem,
Mashour
earned her B.A. degree in
Beirut. Soon after, she
married an Israeli Arab,
moving to his home in
Nazareth.
M O M E N T « J U N E
F r o m being a baby, to breathe was to know that I belonged
^^^P
to a people who fought a n d died a n d did their best for us to
have a country of our own. M y parents c a m e from Russia where J e w s
were a minority. H e r e we are independent, a n d my independence is mine
a n d I must maintain it. O n e of the ones who opened the road to Jerusalem
in the w a r of independence was my uncle. It is as if I fought in all the
earlier wars as a child because my father, brothers a n d uncles were all
serving for their whole lives in the reserves, in the wars. I served during
the '67 w a r myself.
1988
W h e n I got married in 1972 a n d became a new citizen, I understood
that if I really wanted this society to improve, to treat everyone
fairly, I would have to fight.
I a m discriminated against in two ways: as an A r a b in a Jewish state,
a n d as a w o m a n . I have worked very h a r d through the media to speak
about the rights of women, a n d I have interviewed m a n y A r a b women
in Israel. It is, you might say, my most important issue. In other countries
in the Mideast A r a b women hold high positions. Here in Israel, it is only
lately that A r a b women are beginning to go to university a n d get better
jobs. I also work with Jewish Israeli women on this, a n d I a m publishing
the Naamal newpaper in Arabic. Naamat is the largest women's organization
in Israel that works for equal rights for all women.
As an A r a b I have to face it that the only way I can get a good j o b is to be able to do something
a Jewish Israeli can't do. T h a t is why my work has always been in the A r a b sector.
In the ideal, I would like to see a Palestinian state beside the state of Israel. Even though I
would continue to live in Israel, I would know that my people h a d their own home. ^ ^ ^ ^
that nourished your work and gave it meaning?
Doron Tamir
Doron Tamir is the director of HMM (Conducting
Wires, Ltd.),
which
manufactures electronic
and telecommunication
cable. The company has
annual sales of $20 million, much of that from
exports, making Tamir one
of Israel's most successful
young industrialists. A
graduate of the Technion
with a degree in industrial
and management engineering, he was born in Tel
Aviv in 1948.
Leah Shakdiel
Leah Shakdiel, a town
council member in Teroham, a development town
in the Megev, was nominated in 1986 to serve on
the local religious council.
Her nomination was
blocked by Israel's ministry
of religious affairs on the
grounds that it was against
halacha for a woman to
serve on such a body.
Shakdiel,
a modern
Orthodox woman, took on
the rabbinical establishment in a battle that has
made headlines in Israel.
Israel Finkelstein
Israel Finkelstein has
directed the excavation of
the site of biblical Shiloh,
and has just published a
book on the Israelite settlement of Canaan after the
Exodus. Last year, he was
a visiting professor of
archaeology at the Oriental
Institute of the University
of Chicago. Finkelstein
earned his Ph.D. at Tel
Aviv University, andjoined
Bar-llan University in
1976, where he is now a
senior lecturer. He was
bom in Tel Aviv in 1949.
Industrialist
j^L^C
First of all, having grown up here continues to nourish me, in
^ ^ ^ ^ two respects. I know people practically in every area of business
here, whether it is from elementary school, high school, the Technion,
the army. O v e r the years you get to know people a n d it makes a difference;
you feel you belong to this place. A n d that makes you feel that there
is nothing that is unattainable, you just have to find a way.
It's not that we have an " o l d boys' network" here, but wherever you
go—government ministries or large corporate offices—you find out after
about 15 minutes of discussion that the guy you need to do business with
is someone you know from the a r m y or school or the neighborhood or
family. W h e n there is a c o m m o n background it makes it m u c h easier
to get things done. T h is is the advantage of a small country: everyone knows everyone,
Secondly, I take it for granted that I live here a n d even if there are difficult periods I don't
ever consider leaving. I have nowhere to go back to—this is my country, i
Town Council Member, Activist
I grew u p in a very Zionist home. M y parents h a d rebelled against
their haredi (ultra-Orthodox) family in Poland a n d moved here
in 1934. I grew u p with the message that the only hope for the Jewish
people is Zionism, as it is lived here. I feel that I'm part of the luckiest
generation in the history of the Jewish people. But the Zionist revolution
isn't over yet, a n d I need to contribute my share.
I feel a need to do something to advance this country, to help it become
more attractive to Jews in exile, economically a n d socially. M y parents
thought that any J e w who didn't come here to live was crazy, but 40
years after the State was established I realize that m a n y J e w s will continue
to w a n t to make their homes elsewhere. M y fight to get on the religious
council is only a small part of the struggle. But ultimately, it is about m a k i n g Israel a more just
a n d equal society a n d therefore more attractive for " • ^ ' • ^ ^ ^ ^
Archaeologist
/^^^Z
I grew u p in a Zionist family deeply rooted in Israel—my great^P^P
grandfather immigrated from Europe to Palestine in the middle
of the 19th century—so that I always felt the sense of history here.
T h e r e was an urgent need for a nation in the making, emerging from
the ashes, to look for roots a n d connections to its glorious past. Archaeology
was the m e d i u m which could supply the bridge to the roots a n d it did
so in excavations like M a s a d a a n d Hazor. T h e impact on the young
generation was overwhelming.
Later, as a scholar, I also learned the limitations of the medium, even
its dangers—politically speaking. O n e way or another, the search for the
past was part of w h a t you call growing u p in Israel. ^ ^ ^ ^
J U N E
1988 •MOM ENT
39
What was (here about growing up in Isr
a
Elisha G o o t w i n e
Agricultural Researcher
As director of the sheep
department at Volcani
Institute, Elisha Gootwine
heads a project that he
predicts will double the
prolificacy of sheep in
Israel, a breakthrough that
could make meat more
available. After serving in
the army for three years,
he studied applied genetics
at Hebrew University, and
earned a Ph.D. in embryonic development at the
Weizmann Institute. Gootwine was born in Haifa
in 1950.
Defense Correspondent
Tallie Selinger is Israel's
only female defense correspondent. She works for
Davar, one of Israel's
leading newspapers. Bom
in Tel Aviv in 1956,
Selinger attended school
there except for the two
years when her father
served as press attache in
the Israeli consulate in
New Tork. She studied
political science and history
at Tel Aviv University.
^^^L
O n e of the basic elements of life in Israel is the army. It's a
^P^P
part of you from the time you are born, a n d stays with you
throughout your life. I ' m 32 a n d I've lived through five wars. It leaves
its m a r k on family, friends a n d neighbors. Israel 'is' the I D F (Israel Defense
Forces), though that isn't always good. It is central to our lives a n d that
is why I cover it.
I was born into journalism. M y father (Azarya R a p p a p o r t ) covered
the 1948 Independence W a r for Ha'aretz, a n d so it was natural for me
to go into journalism. M y grandparents arrived here from Russia at the
turn of the century, a n d they were socialists who read Davar every morning.
I just know that they're u p there now getting a lot of joy out of my
working for that paper.
99
Yeshiva Founder, Poet
Haim Sabata is the
founder of the Ma'ale
Adumim Hesder Yeshiva,
and a poet. He is described
by a colleague as a "charismatic educator who
knows how to kindle enthusiasm in the minds of young
people . . . not blind worship, but the love of learning and discovering." Bom
in Cairo in 1952, he moved
with his family to Israel
in 1957 and studied in
yeshivot in Jerusalem.
M O M E N T * J U N E
I suppose that on one level the genetic research we do here isn't
that different from the work being done in the U.S. But there
is a difference.
A researcher in another country might be content with discovering
scientific truth. But t h a t isn't enough for me. I'm looking at how my
research can help agricultural settlements a n d kibbutzim to succeed. O u r
work could contribute to increased aliyah, settlement of the land, a n d
a stronger ecomony, a n d that's what's important. This work has implications
for the welfare of the country. This is the driving force behind my research
team,-and it is unique in Israel.
T h e r e is a feeling here of being the first to make things h a p p e n , after
2,000 years. It isn't taken for granted that everything you want will happen. You have to persevere
a n d make it happen.
Tallie Selinger
Haim Sabata
/^L^^
1988
ft
I was in Jerusalem, praying mincha on Y o m K i p p u r , w h e n I got
called u p to join my tank unit in the Golan Heights (at the start
of the 1973 Y o m K i p p u r W a r ) . T h a t night we were fighting to hold
back the Syrians; by M o n d a y m o r n i n g most of the tanks in my unit h a d
been hit. T h e n my tank was hit. I still h a d the prayers of Y o m K i p p u r
in my head. W h a t would h a p p e n to the Jewish people if we didn't stop
the Syrians? I could see the Syrians, in huge numbers, a n d I could see
o u r boys outside their battered tanks. But I h a d complete faith that we
would win because of our c o m m i t m e n t to the country.
I decided there a n d then to establish ayeshiva.
I h a d always believed that we needed to bring back authentic Jewish
culture. Not that we couldn't hold on to the cultures of exile, but they h a d to be put into Jewish
context. I w a n t e d to give students a vision to believe in, faith, but without euphoria, without
a sense that we can depend on miracles. W e have to work toward personal fulfillment. W e have
to be strong so that we d o n ' t have another Holocaust, but we must not permit our strength to
destroy o u r moral sensitivities,
j^^^^
that nourished your work and gave it meaning?
David Harel
Mathematician
David Harel is a professor
of applied mathematics at
the Weizmann Institute
and founder and chief
scientist of Ad-cad, a
research and development
center established in Rehovot in 1984. The company
makes a sophisticated computer graphics tool which
it has sold to McDonnell
Douglas, GTE and other
companies. Harel earned a
bachelor's degree in life science and computer science at
Bar-Ilan University, a master's degree at Tel Aviv
University, and a Ph.D. in computer science at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he holds the
record for the quickest Ph.D.—I year and 8 months. He
then did post-doctoral research at IBM. Although bom
in 1950 in London, Harel moved to Israel with his family
at the age of 7 and settled in Petach Tikva.
^ ^ ^ ^ T h e r e is a striking difference between the U.S. a n d Israel in the
^P^P
general atmosphere towards scholarship. In the U.S., theyiddishe
mamas w a n t their sons to be doctors, lawyers, or at the very least,
businessmen. Money is more i m p o r t a n t a n d status is a new-model car.
In Israel there is a tradition of scholarship. Here, if you are a scientist,
professor, poet or writer, you are admired. There is something in the
atmosphere t h a t encourages people to become scholars, a n d that helps.
W e ' r e the guys who can sit in the garages or backyards a n d come
u p with something clever, but we d o n ' t know how to market these solutions
as well as t h e Americans.
In the past 15 years, small high-tech companies have flourished here.
If you are in a science like genetic engineering or computer science, the
environment is supportive a n d you can make a contribution.
Most of my work is in theoretical mathematics, which is easier t h a n
other fields in Israel because you don't need expensive equipment in the
laboratory for research. ( ^ ^ ^
Singer
Yardena Arazi
Tardena Arazi is Israel's
leading popular singer. She
was bom on Kibbutz Cabri
in the western Galilee in
1951.
^^^L
G r o w i n g u p we h a d a very strong connection to nature. Israeli
^P^P
children grow u p outdoors. I also grew u p with a very keen
awareness of political a n d social issues. At home we fought a lot about
politics a n d religion—my father was virulently anti-religious a n d I couldn't
agree with h i m — a n d the fights sometimes ended in tears.
I've hiked the entire country, either on my own, in school or in scouts.
I know the country. It's a part of me a n d that's reflected in my songs.
T h e y are a b o u t Israel a n d life here. I love rock a n d roll but I can't sing
it. I tried early in my career, but it wasn't me. I a m a n Israeli who
was raised in a special way a n d it is reflected in my songs,
^^f^
Rafi Bukaee
Rafi Bukaee directed
Avanti Popolo, Israel's
entry for best foreign film
at the 1987 Academy
Awards. The film is about
two Egyptian soldiers in
the Sinai who meet up with
an Israeli patrol white
trying to get back home
during the Six-Day War.
Born in Tel Aviv in 1957,
Bukaee studiedfilmat Tel
Aviv University.
Film Director
^L^^
I was in West Beirut on a filming assignment when the first bombs
^P^P
fell at the start of the L e b a n o n war, a n d it was h a r d for me
as a J e w to watch it. I stopped filming a n d went home; it took a long
time to return to movie-making until finally I was able to make a film
from both the A r a b a n d Jewish perspective on the problem- W e have
a problem of strength as a nation, as a h u m a n e nation, ^fe^h
'
'fi'
99
J U N E
1 9 8 8 « M 0 M E N T
41