■ LONG BEFORE the pandemic, there were thousands of people in Israel who didn’t have the wherewithal to put nourishing food on the table, and more often than not lived on bread and potatoes – and not always three times a day.
With the loss of jobs during the pandemic, the food situation got worse. True, there are plenty of individuals and organizations that run soup kitchens or distribute something in the nature of a limited credit card that enables recipients to maintain their dignity and to purchase items in the supermarket like anyone else, but with far greater limitations. Among those involved in feeding the poor is businessman Moti Ben-Moshe, who for the past 18 years has dedicated himself to feeding the poor, but now wants fellow businesspeople to join him in providing good nourishing food on a monthly basis to needy Jewish and Arab families. With this in mind, Ben-Moshe this week hosted a gala event at the David Intercontinental Hotel in Tel Aviv, where guests included President Isaac Herzog, Welfare and Social Services Minister Meir Cohen, and many leading businesspeople including owners and CEOs of supermarket chains. Among those who joined Ben-Moshe’s efforts well in advance of the gala event were London-based philanthropist Len Blavatnik who supports several philanthropic projects in Israel and fellow philanthropist Yitzhak Mirilashvili. Others who joined him included Yael Eckstein, president and CEO of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews and global entrepreneur Sheikh Mohamed Al-Abbar of Dubai.
Ben-Moshe said that he wanted to add 30,000 more needy families to the list of recipients of monthly food packages.
Herzog, as a former minister of welfare and social services, was no stranger to the food security initiative. He had supported it in his ministerial capacity, he said, adding that in its improved nationwide reform, it was helping to take people out of the cycle of poverty.
Just as the whole population has a shared history, he said, it should also have a shared responsibility with the haves providing for the have-nots.
Among attendees at the gala event was Israel Prize laureate Miriam Peretz who shared a table with social and educational activist Adina Bar-Shalom, Bank Hapoalim CEO Dov Kotler, Israel director of Colel Chabad Mendy Blau, former Finance Ministry director-general Shai Babad, Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion, Dimona Mayor Benny Biton, and National Insurance Institute Director-General Meir Spiegler among many others.
■ LIFE IS not fair. The mandatory retirement age for civil servants is 67, going up to 70 for judges. Some exceptions can be made by the Civil Servants Commissioner who is authorized to approve the extension of employment, but more often than not civil servants have to retire by age 67. One of the glaring examples of what makes this unfair is that professional diplomats who have served the interests of the state for most of their adult lives are forced to step down, no matter how distinguished a record they built up over the years. But the age factor does not apply to political appointees. So far, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid has made four political appointments naming Asaf Zamir as Consul General in New York, Amir Haik as Israel’s first ambassador to the UAE, Shimon Solomon as ambassador to Angola and Yael German as ambassador to France. Lapid had initially planned to appoint German as ambassador to the Court of St. James in London, but this would have meant the recall of current ambassador to the UK Tzipi Hotovely, which would have caused considerable unrest within the Foreign Ministry, even though Hotovely is also a political appointee, who was selected for the role by then-prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. German, a former Minister of Health, and before that the mayor of Herzliya, will undoubtedly do a good job as ambassador, but she happens to be 74 years old. This is great news for those who advocate against a cut-off age for employment if the employee is still mentally and physically capable. But it is most unfair in relation to long-time professional diplomats, who must resign at age 67, and whose only hope at being given another posting is to join the appropriate political party and become one of its valued members.
■ AS WOMEN increasingly take leadership roles in diplomacy, politics, commerce, law, economics, banking, medicine, science, academia, journalism and many other fields, groups and organizations fighting for equal rights for women will have to find new causes, even though they still have a few battles to fight such as sexual harassment, treatment of women who have been sexually assaulted, the establishment of more shelters for battered women and their children and equal pay for equal work.
Meanwhile, women are proving their mettle in so many areas, which not so long ago were essentially a male province.
Among such examples is lawyer Anat Bernstein-Reich who for more than two decades has been promoting business relations between Israel and India. She is chairperson of the Israel-India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka Chambers of Commerce, vice president of the Israel-Asia Chamber of Commerce, and president of the Israeli chapter of The Indian Entrepreneurship Organization.
Among the initiatives that she has led are the establishment of the Agribator – the Center for Israeli Agriculture Technologies in India, the management of the Bridge to Innovation program for the Innovation Authority and the promotion of a residential neighborhood in the city of Mysore in southern India. Bernstein-Reich won the Friend of India Award for her contribution to the economic advancement of India.
She is also active in promoting women in business and serves as Israel’s representative in international women’s organizations. She was recently invited to be the global leader of finance as part of the G100 – the organization of one hundred leading women in the world.
Bernstein-Reich recently merged her activities with BDO Israel, a leading consulting firm, and will head its India-Israel investment banking and business development department.
In welcoming Bernstein-Reich, Yigal Toledano, partner and head of BDO Consulting, said her experience and massive connections, along with the understanding of India’s business culture, will enhance the investment banking practice and will increase the number of Israeli deals in the subcontinent and its scope. India’s operations at BDO Israel will function alongside those of China’s, Sheng BDO under the management of Ilan Maor, the Vietnam Desk under the leadership of Einat Halevy Levin, and the Investment Banking Department headed by Tamar Ben Dor.
■ INVITEES TO the opening of the new Bible Lands Museum exhibition of Early Birds Soaring With The Ancients, did not know quite what to expect. Pre-publicity had mentioned highlights that include: ostrich eggs dating back over 3500 years, a 2000-year-old mummy of a bird of prey on display to the public for the first time, symbols of gods and kings in bird-form, Greek ceramics decorated with bird images, spectacular Roman frescoes and Byzantine mosaics from the Land of Israel and surrounding regions, but until one actually sees these and other amazingly creative items such as sculpted bird ear-rings, it is difficult for people who are not particularly interested in ornithology to imagine the influence of birds in the legends, mythology and symbols of the region. The Bible Lands Museum is, of course, the most ideal venue for such an exhibition given that birds are frequently mentioned in the Bible, with the dove being the far most mentioned, followed by the eagle and the owl, though other birds are also noted. It was mind-boggling to realize how many people, institutions and organizations were involved in getting the exhibition off the ground until Bible Lands Museum Director Yonit Kolb started reeling off the names of all who had made the exhibition possible. The occasion also provided an opportunity for Kolb’s predecessor, Amanda Weiss, who for 36 years worked in and for the museum and is a member of its founding family, to meet up again with Yitzhak Eldan, the founding president of the Ambassadors’ Club of Israel and a former Chief of State Protocol. It was in that role that Eldan was photographed with Weiss and then-US President George W. Bush during the latter’s visit to Israel in May 2008. When Eldan reminded her, Weiss, who has been photographed with many dignitaries and other famous personalities, exclaimed that she didn’t have that photo. Eldan promised to send her a copy. Weiss remains involved with the museum as a member of its founding family, and like her mother Batya Borowski, sits on its Board of Directors. Eldan had invited several diplomats to the exhibition. Among those who came was Nigerian Ambassador Nart Augustine Kolo, who in June of this year was the last ambassador to present credentials to former president Reuven Rivlin prior to the conclusion on July 7 of Rivlin’s seven-year term.
Among the many people whom Kolb thanked was Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund Chief Ornithologist Yaron Charka – a consultant to the curators of the exhibition – and one of the speakers. He said that in the biblical story of creation all the animals and birds were given names so that they could be identified. Relating to legends about birds, Charka said that the ancient Egyptians believed in the myth of the bird that laid the egg from which the sun was hatched. KKL-JNF has established and operates a number of bird-watching sites throughout Israel, he said. There are many varieties of birds in Israel representing color, song and freedom said Charka. In addition, there are migrating birds that fly through Israel from Europe on their way to Africa.
Alluding to the massive construction taking place all over Israel, Charka stated that it was important to rehabilitate the world of nature.
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