I am glad that a member of the Australian Jewish establishment has finally recognised that “Israel is an imperfect democracy” rather than the oft-stated claim that it is the only democracy in the Middle East (“Sydney Writers Festival needs to right a few wrongs”, 12/5). Israel in fact is a theocracy, a state that purely exists to further Jewishness at the expense of its Israeli Arabs, the Druze and the occupied Palestinians in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank.
I remind Vic Alhadeff that in an exchange between Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin the former recognised the right of Israel to exist in peace and security, as well as committing itself to resolving all issues through negotiations. It was Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence at the Annapolis conference that Israel be referred as “the homeland of the Jewish people”. This was tantamount to asking Mahmoud Abbas to endorse Zionism as well as undermining the position of its Arab citizens.
Alhadeff is disingenuous in his claim that many of its Arab neighbours refuse to accept a Jewish presence in the Middle East. He overlooks the fact the Israel has peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan.
No one is disputing the recognition of Israel’s right to exist. We are talking about Israel’s inability to hand over the 24 per cent of Mandate Palestine back to its original inhabitants.
Roy Clogstoun, Maleny, Qld
[This letter was written in response to one by Vic Alhadeff titled “Sydney Writers Festival needs to right a few wrongs” in The Australian 12/5]