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Read the latest news and views about – and of interest to – South African and world Jewry, The South African Jewish Report sends out a digital newspaper 52 week of the year – and when there is a weekly print edition (an average of 45 weeks a year) a digital PDF version is attached as well.The website, Jewish Report Online, publishes updated news and views 24 hours a day, six days a week – even when there is no print edition.

Published

9 years ago

March 3, 2016

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ANT KATZ

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Below is a copy of the newsletter that was published today. Excuse any formatting anomalies as it is published on a different platform and we do like to bring it to readers as quickly as possible.

Shalom reader,

Lots of exciting news this week!

Prof Zeblon Vilakazi, acting vice-chancellor at Wits, asked Jewish Report on Wednesday to assure Jewish students that the university was doing its utmost to firmly deal with BDS’ illegal actions of beginning Israel Apartheid Week seven days early and thus creating an ongoing stand-off with Wits’ management. The question remains: Will Wits be able to walk the strong talk its offering?

BDS: What a lot of impotent huffing and puffing writes David Saks, while Steven Gruzd asks: Has the Palestinian issue hijacked SA foreign policy?
Read the full statement issued by Wits’ Senior Executive Team on the afternoon of Wednesday 2 March.

In what is thought to be the highest level diplomatic engagement between Israel and South Africa in many years, Ambassador Jerry Matthews Matjila, director-general of the SA Department of International Relations and Co-operation, has invited his Israeli counterpart, Dore Gold, to hold bilateral talks in Pretoria next week.

Donald Trump’s surging candidacy has sent shivers through the ranks of the Republican elite and created deep anxiety among Jewish Republicans, some of whom are so unnerved, they are prepared to vote for Hillary Clinton, the Democratic shoe-in, if Trump wins the GOP nomination – which looks more and more likely after his ‘Super Tuesday’ showing.

One of the major announcements out of the budget speech last week was that of a final exchange control and tax amnesty for South African residents with undisclosed offshore funds. It provides favourable terms to encourage people to come clean, ahead of the introduction of OECD’s automatic exchange of information programme next year. Tax ‘safe havens’ aren’t safe no more…read all about it.

Visit our website –www.sajr.co.za -for great reads andfind all the LATEST content on the website here.

And don’t miss these two great reads:

Editor Vanessa Valkin interviews Nancy Spielberg, philanthropist, film maker and sister of Steven.
NANCY SPIELBERG A FORMIDABLE FORCE IN HER OWN RIGHT; and
‘YOU’RE BASICALLY INVISIBLE UNLESS YOU’RE WHITE’ writes GEOFF SIFRIN in his TAKING ISSUE column

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Read us in print or online – go to www.sajr.co.za – it’s all there!

It has been an unusually busy week.

The visit by Shimon Peres drew top MPs among a crowd of 1500 who converged on the Sandton Convention Centre last Sunday to hear Israel’s statesman extraordinaire and Nobel laureate address the community, writes SUZANNE BELLING. See pictures from the event in th newspaper.

Exposing young minds to a fresh Middle East narrative – SAIF took15 of the brightest BDS and ANCYL leaders to Israel and the Palestinian Territories. Read what they had to say on their return.

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BOTCHED BRIS: REGULATORS

BRIT MILA BOARD ANNOUNCED–Chief Rabbi Warren Goldstein and the Johannesburg Beth Din this week announced the establishment of a Regulatory Brith Milah Board. This comes on the back of last year’s inquiry following a 2014 bris in Johannesburg that led to irreparable damage for a baby boy. The mandate of the board is to oversee and govern the practice of circumcision.

Related reads on JR Online:

JR’s original story on 14 July 2014 went global: BOTCHED BRIS LEADS TO INVESTIGATION was the headline. “A recent circumcision in Jo’burg ‘which resulted in injury to the baby’, had prompted the Chief Rabbi and the Av Beth Din to announce a commission of enquiry to investigate this case. The commission would be headed by retired Justice Phillip Levinsohn, former Deputy Judge President of KZN.”

BRIS FINDINGS LEAVE UNANSWERED QUESTIONS published in Nov. 2015 was taken up by most of the world Jewish media. The commission recommended the mohel no longer perform circumcisions.” In fact, the Nov. story made JR Online’s Top News series as 2015’S MOST VIRAL STORY.

MIDEAST TRIP SURPRISES

YOUNG MINDS SEE MIDEAST –Bafana Modise left SA last month hoping he & his 14 ANCYL/BDS colleagues would return from their trip alive due to SA media’s portrayal they were exposed to. Now, he’d feel safe to travel to the Mideast alone. Ironically, the travellers went just weeks after President Zuma had called on ANC members for the first time not to travel to Israel. The problems are religious, said several of the party afterwards, not political

Related reads on JR Online:

ANC SPEWED AFTER VISIT TO ISRAELA monumental brouhaha erupted last July after Cosas, BDS & Ancyl chastised a group of influential young members of the delegation. The group had reportedly been offered R40,000 not to go by BDS.

BDS MISCALCULATES YOUNG MINDS
SAJBD director David Saks’ story after four participants in 2015 “Young SA Leaders” visit to Mideast shared experiences & insights with SA Jewry at a report-back evening last August.

THE DEFIANT 16 FUTURE LEADERS?The crème de la crème of young leaders travelled in their personal capacities in 2015. Yet they were admonished on their return. All 16 had an attitudinal sea-change. They love their ANC-affiliated organisations and hate what BDS is doing. This time, says the Fed’s Benji Shulman, “BDS seems to no longer be willing to have a fight” with its members.”

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AMONG THE MOST POPULAR READS ON THE WEB THIS WEEK

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JEWISH REPORT PRINT READERS ON GREAT FORM THIS WEEK