Israel must remain open to all Diaspora Jews, not just students
Israel should not turn away Jews under any circumstances, and that includes the COVID-19 pandemic.
By JPOST EDITORIALProf. Roni Gamzu speaks during a special briefing to the media held at the Knesset, on June 26, 2013(photo credit: FLASH90)
This week’s decision by Prof. Ronni Gamzu, Israel’s coronavirus czar – to approve the entry of some 17,000 foreign students into the country – is a controversial but welcome development. Gamzu signed off on the decision Monday, stressing that the students would have to adhere to strict coronavirus regulations, including a 14-day quarantine period and attendance at educational institutions approved by the Health Ministry.“Prof. Gamzu stressed that in this complicated period there needs to be a balance between safeguarding public health and safeguarding the values of the country and the connection with world Jewry,” a Health Ministry statement read, warning that students violating quarantine would be deported.Gamzu told Army Radio that if a decision is made to have students learn in capsules, inspectors will make sure they adhere to the rules. He said this applied to university students, as much as yeshiva students. “Any institution that disrespects the restrictions will be closed, and anybody who disrespects the restrictions will be deported,” Gamzu said.According to the Health Ministry statement, some 2,000 university students, 12,000 yeshiva students, 5,000 participants in Masa programs, 500 high school exchange students on the Naale program and 1,500 people at private institutions will be permitted to enter Israel for their respective programs.Most yeshiva programs are due to begin at the end of August, while university and other programs start in September or October. Although the Health Ministry figures add up to more than 17,000, and it’s not clear how many of them are gap-year students or youngsters doing pre-army programs, the principle remains entirely just and defensible. Israel is a Jewish state, and as such cannot turn away Jewish students – as long as it does all it can to protect them. There is no reason that they shouldn’t be as safe here – if not safer – as they are in any of their home countries, including the US and UK.As Interior Minister Arye Deri pointed out, Israel should not turn away Jews under any circumstances, and that includes the COVID-19 pandemic.“The State of Israel is the national home of all the Jews in the world,” Deri told Channel 12. “A mother does not tell her children that she doesn’t have the strength to host them.”But not everyone was happy with Gamzu’s decision, to put it mildly. Opposition Knesset members, headed by Yisrael Beytenu’s Avigdor Liberman, warned that the move could import new infections into Israel and put additional strains on the country’s healthcare system. They also said that the country will pay a “heavy price” for allowing students in at a time when most non-Israelis are barred from visiting.“With all of Professor Gamzu’s diplomatic efforts, this is a failure in decision making,” Liberman insisted. “This is a wrong decision and we will pay a heavy price for it.”Former Mossad director Danny Yatom urged that Israel prevent the entry of the students, saying “this is not the time” and it “will burden the testing system and endanger hundreds of thousands of Israelis.”
Others claimed that Israel was allowing the students in for economic reasons, after the business newspaper Calcalist reported that the cancelation of trips for Jewish youths and young adults would cost the Israeli economy about $200 million.But perhaps the most salient opposition came from MK Merav Michaeli (Labor), a member of the coalition who frequently votes against the government. She appealed to the Interior Ministry against Gamzu’s decision, demanding an explanation for the “serious discrimination” against family members of Israeli citizens who have been denied entry into the country for months as a result of the pandemic.“It was announced today that it’s been decided to approve the entry of 17,000 yeshiva pupils and students who aren’t Israeli citizens, while relatives of Israeli citizens have been refused entry for many months,” Michaeli tweeted. “I would like to ask: 1. In what world? 2. Why are yeshiva students and students allowed over relatives of Israeli citizens?”Michaeli has a point. If the government is allowing foreign students in, then surely it should also allow the entry of family members of Israeli citizens.Israel must find a way to leave its doors open to new immigrants, relatives of Israeli citizens and visiting students. This is at the very heart of the Jewish state, and is key to its vital relationship with Diaspora Jewry.
