Here is a calendar of upcoming events, up and down the country. Some are organized by us, others by like-minded organizations and groups.
UN Resolution 2334 and New Zealand
At the end of 2016, NZ used its position on the UN Security Council to co-sponsor UN Resolution 2334. This resolution, among other things, undermined Israel’s historical claims to Jerusalem as its historical and cultural capital. In protest, Israel withdrew its ambassador from New Zealand.
Its reported that all but two (Bill English and Murray McCully) of the government caucus at the time, objected to New Zealand’s actions. Gerry Brownlee has led the way for relations with Israel to be restored. This will be the first time the Ambassador will be publicly speaking in Christchurch since relations were restored.
You are invited to a briefing on this controversy, and Israel’s views on how relations between our two countries can progress from here.
There will be an extensive Q&A time.
Admission is free but please bring a plate of finger food. A collection will be taken to help defray expenses.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Prior to his appointment as the Ambassador of Israel to New Zealand, Dr. Gerberg was Director of Southern Africa Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem. He also served as Ambassador to
Georgia (2007-2012) as well as Ambassador of Israel to Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Botswana and Malawi (2002-2003).
Ambassador Dr. Gerberg is married to Shifra Gerberg
and they have three children.
Diplomatic Positions:
2007-2012: Ambassador to Georgia
2002-2003: Ambassador to Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Botswana and Malawi
1999-2002: Ambassador to Zimbabwe
1996-1997: Consul General, Israeli Consulate General in Shanghai (China)
1992-1996: Consul General, Israeli Consulate General in Bombay (India)
1985-1989: Second Secretary, Israeli Embassy in Manila (Philippines)
Academic Positions:
2014 – 2015 – Lecturer, University of Haifa
2005-2007 – Lecturer, Tel-Aviv University
Education:
2002 -2009: Ph.D. in International Politics from University of South – Africa (UNISA)
1998-1999: M.A. in Political Science from Haifa University
1998-1999: Israeli National Defense College – National Security
1990-1991: Davis Institute- Direction in New World Order
1990-1991: Truman Institute – Pre-Negotiation in Diplomacy
1983-1984: Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Foreign Affairs Cadet’s Course
1982-1986: M.A. in Mass Communications from the Hebrew University
1979-1980: Teaching Diploma in Social Science from University of Tel-Aviv
1976-1980: B.A. in Political Science from University of Tel-Aviv
You are invited by the Zionist Federation of New Zealand, and the Christians for Israel to the Auckland premiere of the documentary “Whose Land? Part 1: Foundations”
A century after the Balfour Declaration of November 1917, the argument over the land – then known as Palestine – rages on.
Politicians, Clerics, school teachers living in the Gaza strip, the West Bank and the Old City of Jerusalem, teach their children, teenagers and young adults that the Balfour Declaration was illegal, and that the whole of the land – now known as Israel – in fact belongs to the Arab people who known today as the Palestinians.
The Palestinian claim goes on to assert that the Jewish people have no historic connection with Jerusalem, that they are in fact trying to judaize the Holy City and that the Jewish presence there is illegal.
Moreover this claim is now becoming widely accepted among many in the Western world. So what historical and legal claim do the Palestinian Arabs have over Jerusalem and the Land of Israel?
Do the Jewish people have historic and legal rights? If so, when and where did they originate?
In the first of a two-part documentary “Whose Land?” Richard Kemp, together with a group of historians and international lawyers, examine the conflicting claims of the Palestinians and the Israelis through the eyes of verifiable history and international law.
Presented by Col Richard Kemp CBE (ret’d). Produced and directed by Hugh Kitson.
Following the film there will be a Q&A with Fraser Hudson (co-producer of Whose Land?) and Andrew Tucker (legal expert in International Law) who is interviewed in the movie.
ABOUT THE PRESENTER
Colonel Richard Kemp CBE is a retired British Army officer who served from 1977 to 2006. He was Commander of British Forces Afghanistan, an infantry battalion Commanding Officer, worked for the Joint Intelligence Committee and COBR and completed 14 operational tours of duty around the globe.
Kemp testified before the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, denying allegations that Israel engaged in war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Gaza War in December 2008 to January 2009. Kemp based his assessment on publicly available information from both sides, press reports and his 30-year experience of counter-terrorism operations and planning.[22] In June 2009, Kemp wrote “HAMAS, THE GAZA WAR AND ACCOUNTABILITY UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW” for the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. In this paper, Kemp accused Hamas of deploying women and children as suicide attackers, and wrote that “women and children are trained and equipped to fight, collect intelligence and ferry arms and ammunition between battles”.
In October 2009, Kemp made a presentation to the United Nations Human Rights Council in response to the introduction of the Goldstone report in which Israel and Hamas were accused of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity during the Gaza War. Kemp spoke to the UN HRC on behalf of UN Watch.[24] Kemp said: “Of course innocent civilians were killed. War is chaos and full of mistakes. There have been mistakes by the British, American and other forces in Afghanistan and in Iraq, many of which can be put down to human error. But mistakes are not war crimes… Based on my knowledge and experience, I can say this: during Operation Cast Lead, the Israeli Defense Forces did more to safeguard the rights of civilians in the combat zones than any other army in the history of warfare.”
On 11 March 2015, Richard Kemp visited the University of Sydney in Sydney, New South Wales to deliver a lecture on “Ethical Dilemmas of Military Tactics” and the complexities in dealing with violent non-state actors like ISIL. This lecture was interrupted by a group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators led by Associate-Professor Jake Lynch, the Director of the University’s Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies. Following a heated exchange between the protesters and audience members, the pro-Palestinian protesters were evicted by security guards. In response to the incident, Richard Kemp wrote a letter to the University of Sydney criticising Lynch’s behavior and accusing the latter of anti-Semitism. The University of Sydney has since commenced an investigation into the incident.
Special Invitation
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Transplanted: Refugee Portraits of New Zealand
The New Zealand Portrait Gallery Oct 28 – Nov 6th
Please join us for a special viewing and talk on ‘Transplanted: Refugee ‘Portraits of New Zealand’, a ten-day photographic exhibit and curated ‘talking space’ around refugee experience and issues.
These gorgeous two-metre tall portraits are by renowned photographer Alistair Guthrie, former winner of the Brian Blake Memorial Prize. The curator of the project, Tracey Barnett, is a journalist who has reported from refugee camps and detention centres. She will be speaking about her reporting, as well as the dramatically changing new war against asylum—and how it is specifically affecting our own shores. She will also be your personal docent to speak about the narratives around each portrait.
When: Sunday, 11:00am Nov 5th
Where: New Zealand Portrait Gallery, 11 Customhouse Quay, Wellington
RSVP: Samantha Treister: sam@tebbs.net
Seats are limited, to secure a seat please contact Sam asap.
$5/person (all money raised will go to Hadassah Hospital in Israel.)
The Holocaust Centre of New Zealand invites you to an evening of Chamber Music hosted by Inbal Megiddo & Donald Maurice, with performances by members of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, New Zealand School of Music and the Druzýa Quartet (Winners of the National Chamber Music New Zealand 2017 Contest).
They have put together an excellent selection of music written in ghettos, concentration camps and post-war. Pieces include the Ballad of Mauthausen and a Jazz tribute to Coco Schumann, one of the founding members of the Ghetto Swingers jazz group formed within Theresienstadt concentration camp. Several of the pieces performed tonight will be New Zealand premieres.
Running times:
Doors 6:30pm
Main Act 7:00pm
Interval 8:00pm
Finish time 9:30pm
(please note all times are approximate and subject to change)
We’re holding a sausage sizzle at Shirley Bunnings on Marshland Road.
Each sausage sizzle has been a wonderful opportunity to meet the public, raise awareness of Israel, the Middle East and Jewish culture.
The funds will go toward furthering Holocaust Education and fighting racial intolerance.
If you can help out for a morning or afternoon, then feel free to email Rebecca Marchand, our Secretary, on rebecca.marchand@nzfoi.org or call her on (021) 0224 2515.
You are invited to a the Christchurch premiere of the documentary “Whose Land Part 1: Foundations”?
A century after the Balfour Declaration of November 1917, the argument over the land – then known as Palestine – rages on.
Politicians, Clerics, school teachers living in the Gaza strip, the West Bank and the Old City of Jerusalem, teach their children, teenagers and young adults that the Balfour Declaration was illegal, and that the whole of the land – now known as Israel – in fact belongs to the Arab people who known today as the Palestinians.
The Palestinian claim goes on to assert that the Jewish people have no historic connection with Jerusalem, that they are in fact trying to judaize the Holy City and that the Jewish presence there is illegal.
Moreover this claim is now becoming widely accepted among many in the Western world. So what historical and legal claim do the Palestinian Arabs have over Jerusalem and the Land of Israel?
Do the Jewish people have historic and legal rights? If so, when and where did they originate?
In the first of a two-part documentary “Whose Land?” Richard Kemp, together with a group of historians and international lawyers, examine the conflicting claims of the Palestinians and the Israelis through the eyes of verifiable history and international law.
Presented by Col Richard Kemp CBE (ret’d). Produced and directed by Hugh Kitson.
ABOUT THE PRESENTER
Colonel Richard Kemp CBE is a retired British Army officer who served from 1977 to 2006. He was Commander of British Forces Afghanistan, an infantry battalion Commanding Officer, worked for the Joint Intelligence Committee and COBR and completed 14 operational tours of duty around the globe.
Kemp testified before the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, denying allegations that Israel engaged in war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Gaza War in December 2008 to January 2009. Kemp based his assessment on publicly available information from both sides, press reports and his 30-year experience of counter-terrorism operations and planning.[22] In June 2009, Kemp wrote “HAMAS, THE GAZA WAR AND ACCOUNTABILITY UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW” for the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. In this paper, Kemp accused Hamas of deploying women and children as suicide attackers, and wrote that “women and children are trained and equipped to fight, collect intelligence and ferry arms and ammunition between battles”.
In October 2009, Kemp made a presentation to the United Nations Human Rights Council in response to the introduction of the Goldstone report in which Israel and Hamas were accused of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity during the Gaza War. Kemp spoke to the UN HRC on behalf of UN Watch.[24] Kemp said: “Of course innocent civilians were killed. War is chaos and full of mistakes. There have been mistakes by the British, American and other forces in Afghanistan and in Iraq, many of which can be put down to human error. But mistakes are not war crimes… Based on my knowledge and experience, I can say this: during Operation Cast Lead, the Israeli Defense Forces did more to safeguard the rights of civilians in the combat zones than any other army in the history of warfare.”
On 11 March 2015, Richard Kemp visited the University of Sydney in Sydney, New South Wales to deliver a lecture on “Ethical Dilemmas of Military Tactics” and the complexities in dealing with violent non-state actors like ISIL. This lecture was interrupted by a group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators led by Associate-Professor Jake Lynch, the Director of the University’s Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies. Following a heated exchange between the protesters and audience members, the pro-Palestinian protesters were evicted by security guards. In response to the incident, Richard Kemp wrote a letter to the University of Sydney criticising Lynch’s behavior and accusing the latter of anti-Semitism. The University of Sydney has since commenced an investigation into the incident.
You’re invited to an evening with the Ambassador of Israel, Dr Itzhak Gerberg.
Deputy Mayor Mr. Kelvin Clout and the Ebenezer Emergency Fund are sponsoring his visit and we expect a large number at Holy Trinity Church on the corner of Devonport Road and 3rd Avenue, Tauranga at 7 pm sharp start. There will be a light supper and a koha will be taken for defraying expenses and supporting Aliyah.
If you have interested people who would like to come, please feel free to invite them but there will be no notice in the paper.
Come for a great evening with music and dance as well as hearing the Ambassador who will have a Q&A session also.
Date and Time: Monday, December 4, 7pm sharp.
Venue: Holy Trinity Church, 215 Devonport Rd, Tauranga
Contacts:
Susan Bell – (021) 143 7262
Dorothy Finlay – (07) 570 1196
Hosted by Ebenezer Emergency Fund, NZ — Operation Exodus.
You are invited to a Hanukkah celebration.
To mark Hanukkah, RockHaShalom are going to give a talk about modern Israeli folk dance, give a demonstration of some dances and then anybody can join in the fun of learning some new moves.
Admission is free but a collection will be taken to help defray event expenses. Please bring a plate of Hanukkah-themed finger food for afternoon tea. Coffee and tea provided.
Dance is a time honored way for societies to express themselves in ways that other methods such as prose and poetry cannot. Dance captures emotions, feeling and even history.
Hanukkah (sometimes transliterated Chanukkah) is a Jewish holiday celebrated for eight days and nights. It starts on the 25th of the Jewish month of Kislev, which coincides with late November-late December on the secular calendar.
In Hebrew, the word “hanukkah” means “dedication.” The name reminds us that this holiday commemorates the re-dedication of the holy Temple in Jerusalem following the Jewish victory over the Syrian-Greeks in 165 B.C.E.
Every community has its unique Hanukkah traditions, but there are some traditions that are almost universally practiced. They are: lighting the hanukkiyah, spinning the dreidel and eating fried foods.
- Lighting the hanukkiyah: Every year it is customary to commemorate the miracle of the Hanukkah oil by lighting candles on a hanukkiyah. The hanukkiyah is lit every night for eight nights. Learn more about the hanukkiyah in: What Is a Hanukkiyah? | How to Light the Hanukkah Menorah | Hanukkah Candle Lighting Blessings.
- Spinning the dreidel: A popular Hanukkah game is spinning the dreidel, which is a four-sided top with Hebrew letters written on each side. Read The Hanukkah Dreidel to learn more about the dreidel, the meaning of the letters and how to play the game. Gelt, which are chocolate coins covered with tin foil, are part of this game.
- Eating fried foods: Because Hanukkah celebrates the miracle of oil, it is traditional to eat fried foods such as latkes and sufganiyot during the holiday. Latkes are pancakes made out of potatoes and onions, which are fried in oil and then served with applesauce. Sufganiyot (singular: sufganiyah) are jelly-filled donuts that are fried and sometimes dusted with confectioners’ sugar before eating. Learn more about Hanukkah food traditions: Hanukkah Food Traditions | What Is a Latke?