Givat Haviva Voice

On a cold winter evening three and a half years ago, I went to Hampshire College in Massachusetts. At the time, I was the Jewish Agency emissary of Hashomer Hatzair in North America. I went there to help one of our youth group counselors, Allison, who was caught in a double bind. As a counselor for Hashomer Hatzair, in opposition to the occupation in the territories and inequality between Jews and Arabs in Israel, she found herself under attack and socially boycotted by Jewish students on campus. On the other hand, identifying as a Zionist who views Israel as the national home of the Jewish people, Allison found herself attacked and boycotted by leftist groups and supporters of Palestine on campus, who accused her of racism. "Even in the United States, it's difficult and complex to be a Shmutznik (nickname for member of Hashomer Hatzair, leftist Zionist youth movement)," I thought to myself as I walked to meet with students from both groups who came to hear me media...

Today was a terrible day. Jews burned a family of four Palestinians in the village of Duma in the West Bank . A baby was murdered; his parents and brother have been burned and are fighting for their lives. I arrived at the village after the end of the funeral as part of a delegation from the Meretz Party led by MK Eswai Freij. We couldn't see the family because the Palestinians were afraid that it was too risky to have Jewish Israelis at that time. Instead we met the governor of the Palestinian Nablus Region, in which Duma is located. We were there in solidarity and to express our shame and rage at Jewish terrorism. The Palestinian governor thanked us for coming. He spoke about Jews being burned by Nazis in the Holocaust and now entering this village to burn Palestinians. He denounced acts of terror perpetrated by both sides and spoke about his expectations for change from Israeli society. MK Friej introduced me to the governor as the head of Givat Haviva, which is working ...

The Honorable Minister for Gender and Minority Equality, and the Advancement of Youth and Senior Citizens, Ms. Gila Gamliel; the Honorable German Ambassador to Israel, Mr. Andreas Michaelis; Mr. Ayman Odeh, Chair of the Joint List of Arab Parties; Ms. Ms. Zehava Galon, Chair of Meretz party; Prof. Eileen F. Babbitt and dear members of the Ridgefield Group; Ms. Judith Stelmach, representative of Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Israel; mayors, representatives of government agencies, directors and activists in civil society associations, members of the business sector, friends and partners ; distinguished guests: Welcome to the Third Givat Haviva Conference on Building a Shared Society in Israel. Givat Haviva was founded 66 years ago. The first center for the partnership of Jews and Arabs was established here more than half a century ago. It was founded by pioneers and groundbreakers. Many of our graduates are out in the field, leading organizations, heading municipalities, working as ...

Givat Haviva is deeply shocked about the attack in the synagogue "Congregation B'nai Torah", where five people lost their lives. We send condolences to the families of the victims and wish speedy recovery to the wounded. There is no justification for harming innocent people and there is nothing that can excuse the slaughter of worshipers during the prayer service. Givat Haviva condemns all attacks towards Israeli and Palestinian civilians, synagogues and mosques. We call on the leaders of both sides to avoid any unnecessary incitement and do everything to stop the deterioration and acts of revenge which are leading us to a vicious circle of violence. We call upon the leadership to act harshly to terrorism and to return to the path of reconciliation and hope.  The Israeli-Palestinian conflict contains too much pain, suffering and loss. We must go back, soon, to the path of conflict resolution. It is possible Stop the cycle of bloodshed. And give us a c...

Yaniv Sagee, Executive Director, Givat Haviva Twenty-four years ago I fell in love with my wife and life partner, Galia. I was then 26 years old, the Secretary General of Kibbutz Ein Hashofet. This was about a year after I returned from representing Hashomer Hatzair and the Jewish Agency in the United States. It was four years after I completed my service in a Paratroopers Commando Unit, where I spent time Lebanon and served in the First Intifada as part of my reserve duty. Galia was a fresh discharge, who had just completed her military service as a welfare officer of the Golani Brigade. After five years of being together, we got married and our first son was born, Tav Sagee. Today, after the completion of his year of civil service in Hashomer Hatzair, he was inducted into the army for combat service. At the height of the Gaza conflict, the next generation is joining the cycle of war. How long will this continue? My father, Yaakov Sagee (Weissman) was born 77 years ago, in...

Heads of Local authorities from Wadi Ara in a call to the public: In these difficult days, we, heads of local authorities in the Wadi Ara region, together with Givat Haviva, find that it is appropriate to turn to the residents living in this area and to call upon them to maintain a peaceful fabric of life.  Over the past few weeks we have witnessed acts that may harm our long term efforts to promote equality and civic and economic partnership in our region. We believe that violence and racism are not the solution. It is important to maintain restraint, not to follow any rumor, and to seek ways to strengthen the solidarity that exists between the different communities in our area. Over the last decade we have worked very hard to create the basis for a joint and secure life for all the residents of this region. Our region is an example of a region where common economic and commercial life exists, where educational activities, communal activities and social and cultural activities ta...

Mr. Mohammed Al Madani and the Palestinian delegation, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy, Mr. William Grant, mayors, heads of peace organizations, the Kibbutz Movement, youth movements, students, dear citizens – Salam aleikum! Welcome to Givat Haviva, ahalan wa-sahalan! From the day it was founded, 65 years ago, by the kibbutzim of Hashomer Hatzair, Givat Haviva has been committed to peace. We have organized this conference together with our Palestinian associates from Al Tawasul, out of a sense of urgency shared by citizens who are holding hands, demanding their leaders to make peace. It was almost a year ago that President Obama visited here in Israel.  He chose to make his keynote speech at a public event, addressing the entire nation. In that speech, he said: "That's where peace begins -- not just in the plans of leaders, but in the hearts of people.  Not just in some carefully designed process, but in the daily connections -- that sense of emp...