| International Convention Center, Jerusalem
December 13, 1998 BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): With all of you, the minister of education, the American secretary of state, with members of the legations, and beyond anything else, with you, youth of Israel... (APPLAUSE) ... and with our friend, the American president, a friend of Israel, Bill Clinton. I extend my wishes also to Mrs. Hillary Clinton, who, together with my wife Sarah, visited a few institutions, very important ones for youth in Israel. And I wish also from a young lady who joined us from the United States, Chelsea Clinton... (APPLAUSE) ... to extend our wish to you, and we all tell you welcome to Jerusalem. I have to say that I highly appreciate the fact that President Clinton asked me that, although with a visit, he has really a fully packed schedule-wise, rather brief, the president asked particularly to come to meet you, and I know why. Because you, you youth are the hope, you are the future of this country. (APPLAUSE) Tonight we are celebrating the feast of Hannakah, first candle. This year is a very special holiday. It is the Hannakah feast on the year of Jubilee, and we are celebrating the victory of the Maccabeans, with special appreciation for their heroism and achievements. Were they not there on their guard to protect the people and its heritage, it's quite doubtful as to whether we would be here today. Fifty years ago, we realized the dream of the Maccabeans, and in the spirit of the Maccabeans, we fought against armies much, much larger than ours and we actually defeated them. And just like the Maccabeans, we established Jewish sovereignty once again in the land of Israel. Throughout these 50 years, we have aspired for one thing. We wanted to have peace. In the charter declaration, we extended a hand to peace to our neighbors, and this hand is still extended and present to all our neighbors. (APPLAUSE) I said last night that there's no people that suffered more from war and violence than the Jewish people, and there's no state that wishes to have peace more than Israel. But one has to say that we weren't the only ones to have suffered. Also our neighbors, the Palestinians, have suffered. And they, too, like us, continue suffering from wars and terrorism imposed on them. I believe that the time has come to put an end to this mutual suffering, and it is my intention, with your help... (APPLAUSE) ... to make this very, very difficult and vital deed to complete the circle of peace between us and all the neighbors, with Lebanon as well, and bring about a final peace, quiet up there, with the dawn of the idea from Lebanon, with Syria and obviously, first and foremost, to complete the peace process with our Palestinian neighbors. This is what we are doing now. This is what we've been actually discussing in the Wye encounter. We have spent hours today, and we should yet spend many more hours to do it, and there's no more important mission than that. But today, one question must be posed. In order for our endeavors not only to yield fruit, but in order for peace to be sustainable, to be a lasting one, not to be fragmented, so it won't be broken, were you to ask me what is the most important element, what do you think I would tell you? Education, education for peace, education for peace. (APPLAUSE) And I'd like to explain why I'm saying these words. Let me say to you, children are even maybe taken for granted, it is not so taken for granted, I'm not sure that this is exactly what you're thinking. When you learned Bible, studied the Bible, you studied about the division of the law (ph), and Ben (ph) just read out the Isaiah vision, when they will wage war no more, no sword against the other, part of our culture goes through our literature, our prayers, our aspiration, an enormous aspiration among this people that has suffered so much from wars. Isn't someone here who, or a relative of his or hers or friend, has ever been in a course of wars, or any act of terrorism? Can we have hands up in the air? Practically everybody. There is no people that want it more and, therefore, in our text books, in our curricular, in encounters, Jewish and Arabic, we express this enormous aspiration within a people to think peace for us and for our neighbors. And I'd like to explain to you why this is so true. I'll give you proof. It is not always very effective, one can always find some exception, but usually as a rule, it does function and that's actually the proof of the test. Palestinian can visit to Tel Aviv. They go freely. They go to the beach, in Netania (ph). They go to every city, restaurants, cinemas, because usually they encounter the same indication versus peace which is almost our second nature and it should never, ever be, God forbid be sought for anything else. And now the other side of the test. You know to demonstrate the problem that I'm to illustrate to you so that we can really deeply understand it, what happens amongst the counterpart. Can one of you enter Gaza. Yes you may. As you reacted, yes one may enter Gaza undoubtedly but the outcome, well that's another story. (APPLAUSE) I would like to see a situation whereby each one of you can go out the back (ph) and go to (OFF-MIKE). (OFF-MIKE). Leave, go to a kosher, obviously a fish restaurant in Gaza. This I would like to see. That's peace. This is what we want to obtain. That's my dream. That's your dream. (APPLAUSE) That we have to be counted I say sincerely that this is not the situation today. And the question is what happens amongst the counterpart. I can tell you that we examined the (OFF-MIKE) part of the Wye agreements and the Oslo agreements. We actually allocated special attention, part of the agreements are intended to test one thing. What happens there in their text books? What happens there in their schools? What happens there with their study curricula? And when we examine matters, we regretfully discover that in the textbooks Israel does not yet exist and that Israel does not appear. You know it's very difficult to make peace with a state that does not exist and (OFF-MIKE) curricula where we open the Palestinian education TV as you probably have seen over the past few months and we see children, girls, three, four-year-old say, I'm going to be a shahid (ph). You know what's a shahid (ph). I'm going to be a living bomb. This is reflected, this is projected to children. And I'm saying these words and I know that you don't really applaud this, I do say those things in order to speak the truth. Our aspiration of peace is not enough. We must insist for education (OFF- MIKE), reconciliation, end the violence, end of this terrible bloodshed to be also amongst the counterpart and that's actually one of the fundamental elements that we have set at Wye. Education versus peace and not for hatred. Education for co-existence and not war. And this is a condition within the agreement. I believe that such an education is possible. I know that there are those here in (OFF-MIKE) that say this will never happen -- ever happen. Had I thought about it, I would have never really signed the document. NETANYAHU (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I'm not acquiring Israel's systems and perseverance. There will always been attempts to try to evade it or to announce or say that the Palestinians are not going to abide by comply with -- wrong. For five years we've asked them insisting on keeping on their commitments to allow the Palestinian charter. Somebody was born here prior to 1917. Who was born after 1917? According to that Palestinian charter... (APPLAUSE) ... whoever was born here after 1917 should be expelled from the country according to the charter. The state of Israel will have no right to exist (ph). Obviously, this does not tally with peace and the declaration for peace because if this is the document determining for the Palestinian public at large, that's their chart of declaration, a declaration of independence or their charter, negation of our existence. Obviously, there was no way of making progress in the route of education versus peace; therefore, we insist that the promise made to the Israeli government five years ago, yet it is not working, have kept -- bring in such hole (ph) to see tomorrow. This gathering of the entire Palestinian leadership, those that ratified are approved in your document and they should speak up openly and make integration to their people. Every Palestinian boy and girl, "Ladies and gentlemen, this document is null and void. It exists no more. Israel has a right to existence not because it has the strength to protect itself, that's obvious. But because it has the right to exist. (APPLAUSE) And without declare null and void in the presence of the United States, we declare null and void publicly this charter. I believe, I hope, that this will be told, had been taught, no need, it won't happen, stop dreaming. But I said, "This is the certain vital steps went to the Summit, the United States and President Clinton insisted on it, and I wished and hoped that tomorrow we're going to see this first step an indication for peace. (APPLAUSE) Further steps were required but some sections provided we were actually honest about keeping this part of the agreement. We have to see also sometimes with other sections, war against terrorism, stop the violence, (OFF-MIKE), all the sections that are so important for us because all we really want, all I want, all what you want is to live in this country, truly in peace, namely no violence, no terrorism, no war. (APPLAUSE) I think that is the only way to attain real peace, not to patch up, not to cover up and not to despair. We don't despair. We know and are willing to struggle for those vital things in order to attain this turning point. Our friend, President Clinton, you understand. Your eyes see. Your ears hear. You have really represented cross section of youth in Israel and this youth in its entirety just like the people in Israel all of them want peace. (APPLAUSE) And I believe that the vast majority of the Palestinian public wants also peace. (APPLAUSE) And I believe that what is plainly really requested eight after commencement of the struggle between us and the Palestinians in this country we need courageous leadership on the Palestinian counterpart to cross the river to tell the people things as they are. To tell them Israel here is a permanent factor. It's a fact not only because it has such a strong army that could always defend it, but because this is the way it is slated to be and thus it is going to be. And I would like to say not in the course of grandchildren's lives or not even in the adulthood of my children time, but in the foreseeable future I would like to see you all going on a hike to this kosher restaurant, I'll give you the address, there in Gaza. King David ends one of his psalms in a prayer calling to the Lord to give strength to the people and bless its people -- his people for peace. (APPLAUSE) We also carried a prayer to go together to have the courage to insist on the right and protect our security -- defend our security and thus that we and our neighbors should have peace and security. This I'm saying here in Jerusalem the city of the very same King David, the city that was joined to cast (ph) together and that should never, ever be divided again. (APPLAUSE) A city of hope, a city of peace. |
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