It was only after a great deal of deliberation that The Israel Democracy Institute addressed the issue of the political and social ramifications of evacuating settlements in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip (known by the Hebrew acronym Yesha). The idea of considering the evacuation issue and its implications for Israeli democracy and society had been raised at the Institute a few years previously, as it was clear to us that because of the inevitable political and social traumas resulting from such a step, advance preparation would be necessary. We commissioned journalist Yair Sheleg [who covers Diaspora and religious issues for Ha’aretz] to write a position paper on this issue as early as the year 2000. However, when the report was completed in 2002, we decided that it was not the right time to publicize it because the issue was not then high on the public agenda, and we did not want to create the [misleading] impression that the Institute wanted to use the report to advance the idea of evacuating settlements.
Today, however, even the prime minister from the Likud Party speaks openly about the establishment of a Palestinian state and the “painful concessions” that this will entail; the prime minister’s colleague, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, speaks even more explicitly about a contingency plan for the evacuation of seventeen settlements in Yesha, and a Likud government (that includes fiercely right-wing parties) adopted the American Road Map entailing significant Israeli withdrawal from Yesha. Therefore, it is difficult today to deny the reality of a possible evacuation scenario, whatever one’s views of such a scenario may be. This is why we decided to publish the report now and to bring its findings to the public for discussion, contentious as that discourse may be.
Yair Sheleg has updated the original position paper. We believe that both the supporters and the most intransigent opponents of the evacuation of settlements must look squarely at the possible consequences of such a move. In addition, both supporters and opponents must closely evaluate the report’s recommendations for minimizing the damage and dangers that are likely to ensue from a decision to evacuate settlements, should one be taken.
As with all publications of the Institute, we believe that this position paper will make a valuable contribution to public discourse in Israel and to the ability of Israeli democracy to cope with the problems on its doorstep.
Professor Arye Carmon, President
The Israel Democracy Institute