Recent events epitomise the challenge faced by millions across the Middle East: when autocratic regimes are confronted, how can democracy be secured and not derailed by extremists? How do we support those who share our progressive values without promoting those who would seek to exploit the ballot box to undermine them?
These dilemmas don’t just affect Egypt but are felt acutely by its neighbours, none more so than Israel, which fears the loss of a partner yet understands that liberal democracy is the best safeguard for the future. Israel is a country founded on social democratic ideals and it was heartening to hear the Israeli prime minister support Egypt’s democratic campaigners, despite the fact that this might not be in Israel’s realpolitik interests. In fact, Israel has never taken the easy route, having remained a vibrant democracy through 60 years of existential danger. Watch any Knesset debate or follow the tough decisions of Israel’s judiciary and it becomes clear that Israel’s declaration of independence, drafted in the midst of a war of survival, built these values into the country’s DNA.
It is this Israel that I want all progressives to see, acknowledge and support. Despite criticisms that could be made of the Israeli government, I want our movement to stand proudly alongside those Israelis who make daily sacrifices to uphold freedom, justice and peace; those who champion complete equality for all of Israel’s inhabitants, irrespective of religion, race, sex and sexuality in the face of constant security threats.
This is not to diminish the tragic nature of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or to deflect attention from the quest for a final status agreement and a just solution to the problems of settlements, refugees and Jerusalem. But it is a call for all of us on the left to recognise that, in good times and bad, Israel’s attributes are undeniably progressive: a free and vibrant media; a robust, independent judiciary; strong trade unions; a generous welfare state; equality for gays and lesbians; and an unrivalled commitment to free, world-class education. Once these realities are acknowledged, voices in favour of a two-state solution and a more equal future can make common cause with our fellow progressives in the Israeli Labor party, the Israeli trade union movement and beyond.
By bringing our shared values to the fore we join with those in Israeli and Palestinian society who pursue the goal of peaceful coexistence, and who support a two-state solution that safeguards Israel’s progressive ideals from the threat of indiscriminate violence; and sees a Palestinian state rooted in freedom and democracy, not Hamas’ brand of dictatorial and violent Islamism, which is the antithesis of liberal, social egalitarianism.
This is the progressive case for Israel, and it is why Labour Friends of Israel is kickstarting this important debate. It is to remind ourselves of the values that brought us into progressive politics, and to acknowledge that there is still only one country in the Middle East where those values are lived out – however imperfectly – every day. Our aim must be to see these values spread outwards to Israel’s neighbours, not disappear altogether.
I am a strong advocate of Israel’s right to exist and defend itself and believe that international solidarity is the cornerstone of a progressive political agenda, but find this article a little too similar to a George Galloway polemic on indefectibility. Yes it is admirable that Israel is a democratic and mostly pluralistic state largely devoid of racism, sexism and homophobia but that is not a reasoned argument for supporting “the state”.. Israel does not have a Labor government. In 1948 Israel could not have existed with any other government than democracy because there was no hierarchy in exile to provide an alternative.. opting for democracy in Israel is not in the same league as opting for universal & womens suffrage. The progressive case for Israel cannot be based on its history, or its relative enlightenment to its neighbours, it should be based on hard facts; what it can contribute to progressive politics globally and what potential there is for the government to actually act as a progressive force. Israel is not Poland.. if it were ever driven to exile it will never be re-created, Israel must not just defend its borders, but defend any prospect that its borders may one-day be breached. Robust self-defence however does not “progressively” apply to Jews who choose to build on occupied land, or Jews that choose to buy property is East Jerusalem. Authorising settlement expansion after the Egyptian revolution, during a Libya civil war is not progressive politics. What then is the progressive case of Israel? Progressive values dictate that Israel’s right to exist within internationally recognised borders is a non-negotiable right of all peoples. Can Israel work for a progressive internationalist solution for the stateless Palestinians; can Israel show the way to regional cooperation to help the people of Egypt realise the opportunities of open economies; with radical Islam marginalised in the popular uprising, can Israel show the way to glasnost of relations and the adaptability only democracy can provide? Yes, Yes, Yes.. but will it? Maybe, just maybe the topic of the meeting should be “Making the Israeli case for progress?”