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DE RUEHTV #2682/01 2481109
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 051109Z SEP 07
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3138
INFO RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 1973

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 002682 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: XF KMPI KPAO SCUL PGOV IS
SUBJECT: TEL AVIV RESPONSE TO PRESIDENT'S JUNE 5 PRAGUE 
SPEECH 
 
REF: SECSTATE 88465 
 
¶1. Israel's status as a well-established democracy means that 
most of our public and media outreach on the Freedom Agenda 
is focused on promoting the functional integration of Israeli 
minorities -- particularly the Israeli-Arab community -- into 
the political system.  As part of these efforts, the 
Ambassador met with leading democracy and human rights 
activists such as Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Imam Yahya 
Hendi, and Martin Luther King III to support their efforts to 
promote peace and democracy through multi-cultural and 
inter-faith dialogue. 
 
¶2. In addition to his diplomatic engagement, the Ambassador 
regularly promotes democracy in his public remarks. 
 
-- In his speech at our July 4 reception, attended by the 
Prime Minister and Acting President and carried live on 
Israeli television, the Ambassador stressed that both the 
United States and Israel were founded on the dream of 
democracy and a better life for all of their people. 
 
-- In an event at Al-Qasemi Academic College, an Israeli Arab 
academic institution, the Ambassador noted that "experience 
has taught us that healthy democracies require the constant 
and dedicated work of engaged, active, knowledgeable 
citizens."  He recognized that "Israel is not alone in facing 
fateful questions that sometimes bring the majority's real 
need for a feeling of security into conflict with the 
principle of fair treatment for 'the other,'" but emphasized 
that in the United States "we have grappled with questions of 
ethnic diversity and we have a rich history of overcoming 
racial prejudice and discrimination," which he went on to 
discuss. 
 
-- In an interview in the spring with Lilac Magazine, an 
Arabic-language magazine with a high circulation in the 
Israeli Arab sector, the Ambassador expressed his view that 
"the Arab community in Israel can be an immense asset for the 
country, because if Israel wants to live in peace with its 
neighbors it first must live at peace with its own Arab 
community."  He suggested that in a democracy like Israel 
"the Arab community can serve as a bridge between Israel and 
the Arab world....  In other words, they can become 
'diplomats.'" 
 
¶3.  A number of Embassy programs and initiatives supported 
the Ambassador's outreach efforts. 
 
-- Active MEPI grants to Israel's Arab community include a 
project to increase Arab-sector representation on the boards 
of government-owned corporations and another to strengthen 
leadership and encourage political participation at the 
municipal level. 
 
-- Israeli participants in this summer's American Council of 
Young Political Leaders program included an Israeli-Arab, our 
standard practice for this program. 
 
-- Our ACCESS micro-scholarship program that provides 
supplemental English-language training to Israeli-Arab 
students contributed this year to a significant increase in 
the college entrance exam scores of program graduates, more 
of whom are attending university and establishing the civic 
and financial foundations for meaningful participation in 
Israeli democracy. 
 
-- Speakers participating in PD programs frequently address 
questions of effective minority participation in democracy. 
For example, earlier in the year Harvard Law School Professor 
Charles Ogletree and University of Rhode Island Professor 
Bernard LaFayette made separate visits to Israel to address 
the political empowerment of minorities and the effective use 
of democracy to advance minority rights.  Both noted that, 
despite the human imperfections embedded in a system that 
depends on the will of the people, democracy's malleability 
and openness to change make it the best vehicle for 
long-lasting political and social advancement. 
 
-- PD, POL and USAID met with the Seeds of Peace President 
Nicolla Hewitt on July 19 to discuss strategies and potential 
partners for the organization's initiative promoting peace 
and coexistence. 
 
-- As part of his work with the large Russian immigrant 
community in Israel, the Embassy's Human Rights Reporting 
Officer met with exiled Russian dissidents active in the 
"Other Russia" coalition. 
 
¶4. By decision of the Forum's organizers, Israel is not a 
participant in the Forum for the Future at this time. 
 
********************************************* ******************** 
Visit Embassy Tel Aviv's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/telaviv 
 
You can also access this site through the State Department's 
Classified SIPRNET website. 
********************************************* ******************** 
JONES