Should Israel prioritise SA Jews?

GILLIAN KLAWANSKY

South African-born Fachler – who lives in Israel and holds a Masters in Law from South Africa, a Masters in Contemporary Jewry from the Hebrew University in Israel, and writes for Haaretz newspaper – analysed the sometimes-rocky relationship between Israel and South African Jewry. He considered some events that shaped the history of the two countries and their impact on South African Jews.

“Foreign affairs in the Diaspora is something that is run by an elite,” he said. “When people vote, it’s usually for economical reasons and security; they don’t put foreign affairs at the forefront of their decision.

“So, however Israel acted to South Africa is not a reflection of its electorate – the electorate always praised South African Jewry. You can criticise Israeli foreign policy without criticising Israel.

“Israel, like every other state, has to base its actions on its national interests,” he added.

Fachler looked at when Israel illegally kidnapped Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann from Argentina in 1960, which led to two years of right-wing riots against the Jews in Argentina.

While Jews in that country and those who worked in Intelligence in the US, were put at risk, Fachler said one could argue that it was worth being able to try and execute one of the biggest perpetrators of the Holocaust. Yet, it remains an incident that puts Israel/Diaspora relations under debate.  

Reflecting on how Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion had said at the time that Argentinian Jews could make aliyah to protect themselves from the riots, Fachler fast-forwarded to the 2015 attacks in France at a Jewish supermarket.

“Immediately, Israel made comments encouraging French Jews to make aliyah,” he recalled. “That’s not how you help Jews in the Diaspora. You help them where they live – not by telling them to leave. While aliyah is important, ensuring that Diaspora Jews flourish, is vital too.”

South African Jews are among the most Zionistic in the world, Fachler pointed out. This was acknowledged as early as 1947 when a Jewish historian noted that South African Jews were more concerned with the plight of Israel than of South Africa itself.

Yet, South African issues did grow in importance for Jews, when the National Party came to power in 1948 and implemented apartheid. In the 1950s, South Africa was powerful and still a member of the Commonwealth, so the world wasn’t too concerned about apartheid and aside from a few instances, there was minimal tension between South Africa and Israel.

Yet, tension rose dramatically in the 1960s. In 1961, while there was rising pressure to vote against apartheid, most Western countries abstained. “Israel wanted to cultivate a relationship with black Africa – it thought African countries would act as a block against Arab resolutions against Israel,” said Fachler.

So, in 1961, Israel voted against South Africa and sided with the Afro-Asian countries and South Africa saw this as a slap in the face, which hurt the local Jewish community. For the first time, the SA Zionist Federation condemned Israel’s vote, which upset the Israeli representative in South Africa.

South Africa, which had at this time given the Zionist Federation special dispensation to transfer money to charities in Israel, now stopped this – a big blow to South African Jewry. It resulted in the end of diplomatic relations between South Africa and Israel.

“At no time in the 60s did Israel ever say anything about worrying about the strong South African Jewish community,” said Fachler. “It was more concerned with fostering relations with African states which was ironically widely regarded as a huge gamble.”

In 1967, South Africa was impressed with Israel’s strength in the Six Day War and sent humanitarian aid to that country, which placed pressure on Israel to reciprocate. It allowed South Africa to set up a consulate in Tel Aviv in 1972.