Time for a dialog

Silvan Shalom Jerusalem

Almost 20 years have passed since the day the world started to change, following the end of the Cold War. Enemies of yesterday have become friends. The threats of the past have transformed into agreements of economic, cultural and scientific cooperation.

This process has not excluded the Middle East. Israel's relations with Arab and Muslim states are growing. Relations with major Muslim states like Turkey are flourishing. And these, in addition to the full diplomatic and peaceful relations that Israel has with Egypt and Jordan.

A few days ago, Israel completed the evacuation of all Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip. The decision of the Israeli government to evacuate Israeli citizens from that region was anything but an easy one. Thousands of families were forced to leave their homes. Children had to leave their kindergartens and schools, and many people lost their means of livelihood. Despite all these difficulties, Israel has implemented its disengagement plan in order to break the political stalemate in the region and to restart the peace process. This historic decision reflects Israel's yearning for peace with all its Arab neighbors.

Today there are no more Israelis in Gaza. Israeli military rule in that area has ended. Responsibility for the affairs of Gaza and its residents is in Palestinian hands. The Palestinians now have the chance to take their fate into their own hands. Gaza, we hope, will serve as a model of how the Palestinian Authority (PA) is able to build a functioning, democratic, and peaceful society.

This requires ending the anarchy and violence which have characterized Palestinian governance in the past, and establishing the effective rule of law. The PA must act as demanded by the international community -- to dismantle the armed terrorist organizations who continue to use their violence as a political weapon against Israel's civilians and against the Palestinians themselves.

The PA with the help of the international community must ensure that there is only one source of authority for the use of force in Palestinian society, and, together with the international community, must work to rehabilitate the Palestinian economy and provide economic opportunities to their people

Israel stands ready to assist where possible in these processes. Israel has expressed its strong support for international aid and assistance for the social and economic development of Gaza, and we are committed to facilitating these efforts. We seek to ensure conditions that will benefit ordinary Palestinians, without posing a security threat to Israel.

Israel's drive for peace and good relations with does not end with its immediate neighbors. We seek good relations with all nations. At this time of renewed hope for progress towards peace in the Middle East, we believe that the time is ripe to promote dialog with all countries.

This is particularly true regarding the Muslim world. Israel does not see Islam as an enemy and has never seen it as such. On the contrary, history has shown us that Jews and Muslims lived in peace, harmony and friendship for many years in the past. This should be the aim for the future.

I have just returned from the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where I met with many of my Arab and Muslim counterparts to discuss bilateral ties and regional cooperation for the benefit of all our citizens. We all agreed that there is much to be gained for all by increasing our efforts to promote understanding and cooperation between us.

The ability to speak, to exchange views, and to listen to each other, does not of course require that we all automatically agree. On the contrary, open dialog enables a possibility of exchanging views, consulting, and resolving differences if and when they arise, all within the context of mutual respect, sincerity, honesty, openness and transparency.

Nor should the Palestinian issue serve as an obstacle to such contact. Indeed, at a time when Israel enjoys peaceful relations with Egypt and Jordan, and open contacts with the Palestinians and many others of our Arab and Muslim neighbors, there is no reason for other Islamic countries to persist with the boycotts of the past.

One of the central challenges we face in building such dialog is the fact that in certain parts of the world, information and knowledge about Israel has been deliberately biased and one-sided for many decades. This "knowledge" is often designed to foster hatred and to incite violence and hostility against us.

The true picture of Israel is less well-known. Many people are unaware, for example, that the modern state of Israel is an open, democratic and pluralistic society in which multiculturalism is an inherent part of daily life. There is also a broad lack of knowledge about Israel's far-reaching achievements in the fields of hi-tech, medicine, and scientific research, and the fact that Israel shares its know-how with many countries around the world. We are happy to do the same with Indonesia.

For such mutually beneficial cooperation to develop, we need to be able to talk to each other. We need to understand each other better, and to remove the barriers of the past, so that we may build cooperation and friendship for the future. Now is the time to begin this dialog.

The writer is deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs of the State of Israel. This article was sent courtesy of the Israel embassy in Singapore.