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The Relationships between Jews and Arabs in Contemporary Israel: The Second Netanyahu Government
Abstract
This paper deals with the relationships between the Jewish majority and the Arab minority in Israel today. It emphasizes the fact that the analysis of those relationships has been given much less attention than the relationships between Israel and the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. In fact, this issue has been ignored as part of the so-called "Peace Process". The paper will make the claim that in terms of the long-range stability of Israel, majority-minority relations within the state are crucial, and that those relations ought to be discussed within the framework of a comprehensive solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (something that, ironically, not only Israelis but even Palestinians and others are reluctant to do). The paper will emphasize a variety of declaratory, constitutional and policy initiatives that could be taken in order to improve the relations between the majority and the minority, including expansion of the definition of the State, the establishment of cultural and educational autonomy to the minority, and the formal recognition of Arab community as a "national minority". The overall argument of the paper is that a redefinition of Arab-Jewish relations in Israel is essential for both the country's future stability and improvement in the quality of its democracy. The record of the Netanyahu Government in 2009-2010 will be assessed against the backdrop of deteriorating Jewish-Arab relation inside Israel.
Discipline
Political Science
Geographic Area
Israel
Sub Area
None