Palestinians left outside J'lem fence are moving into capital

[Gimel]

Thousands of Palestinians who once lived in East Jerusalem and reside today outside the complex of walls and barriers being built to the north, south and east of the city are moving back into the municipal environs of the capital. According to unofficial estimates, some 300 Palestinians with Israeli identity cards are returning to Jerusalem's municipal area every week. They are driven by the fear of losing social and economic benefits as a result of being cut off from the city by the so-called "Jerusalem envelope."
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The task force finds that some 60,000-90,000 Palestinians who live outside Jerusalem's municipal borders, and outside the wall, carry Israeli identity cards, thus making them eligible for permanent residence in Israel.

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read more here:http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/405106.html

[Jim Sagle]

1. But...but...but THAT would mean those who call Israel an APARTHEID state

are (gasp!!!!!!) LYING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Gimel]

2. Didn't we know it?

The propaganda has it's own brand of Orwellian speak.

[_Jumper_]

3. Not necessarily

During the apartheid days in South Africa, black South Africans were better off working in white areas because the pay was higher there than in the Bandustans. These Palestinians are staying in Israel for economic reasons. It does not prove that Israel is a country that treats people equally and part of the case for Israel being an apartheid state is based on the conditions in the Occupied territories. That said, this does show that things in Israel are, at the very least, tolerable for Palestinians so it apparently isn't hell for them like some allege. However, we are progressives. Our goal must not be tolerable conditions for any group. Our goal should be complete equality in all facets of life. We should not expect any less from Israel, Iraq, Afghanistan, China, or any other foreign country than we would expect of our own country.

I am not familiar with conditions for minorities in Israel. Can anyone shed some light on that issue? Is it an apartheid state in Israel proper, paragon of tolerance, or a country that tries to treat everyone equally but falls a bit short like the USA?

[PsychoDad]

4. Some very good points

And excellent questions. I'm looking forward to the answers also.

[Gimel]

5. People are humans

Humans make mistakes and have biases. The laws on equality are clear, however. Individuals may encounter prejudices, that's true. But there are prejudices in every society, among Jews also. The religious and non-religious sectors have prejudices and stereotypes concerning each other. New immigrants often find difficulties and encounter prejudices at times. So do the elderly, the unemployed, the ugly and the handicapped.