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CONSERVATIVE RABBIS SET TO PASS RESOLUTION SUPPORTING FENCE
by Daphna Berman
Ha'aretz, Feb. 6, 2004
An international meeting of Conservative rabbis next week in Jerusalem will most likely pass a resolution supporting the separation fence, president of the Rabbinical Assembly (RA) told Anglo File this week.
"The resolution is not yet the official position of the RA and we have scheduled a visit to the fence through the IDF for next week so that people will be able to see for themselves," Rabbi Reuven Hammer said. "But my assumption is that it will probably be carried by an overwhelming majority."
The resolution, which makes no mention of the fence's route or the logistics of its construction, supports Israel's right to build such a barrier, Hammer said. A draft of the resolution that he provided Anglo File with refers to the fence as "a legitimate tool of self-defense" and says that it will "aid the renewal of the negotiations for peace and maintain the Jewish and democratic nature of the State."
American-born Hammer, who lives in Jerusalem and is also the first non-American resident ever elected as president of the RA, added that the route of the fence might become an issue of heated discussion next week.
"The RA is concerned with the welfare of the State, [and] we speak frequently from our pulpits about Israel," he said. "But that doesn't mean that we aren't critical."
The 104th convention of the RA will begin next Monday and is the first such meeting in Israel since the outbreak of the intifada. The RA represents over 2 million Jews worldwide, and the 300 participating rabbis represent tens of thousands of congregants - most of whom, Hammer insists, will be pleased with the resolution.
"With any large number of people, there is bound to be a difference of opinion," he said. "But I think most of the people in Conservative congregations will support the resolution given the conditions."
The president of the New York-based Union of Reform Judaism, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, meanwhile said that the Reform movement has yet to formulate an official statement regarding the construction of the separation fence. Yoffie expressed sympathy for Israel's security needs, but said he would only support the initiative if it would leave room for the "viable" creation of a Palestinian state.
"A fence that takes 30 percent of Palestinian territory is problematic because of the repercussions it has on a future solution," he said, adding that a fence built closer to the Green line, with the approval of the U.S. government would be more likely to garner the support of the Reform community. The issue of the fence is "a significant part of the debate that will likely be discussed in the near future," he said.
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