Dear friends,
I think you will be as surprised as I by the outcome of the public opinion poll we conducted about human rights in Israel. We surveyed a representative sample of Israeli society – including Jews and Arabs, both males and females – about a number of issues. We asked them about the rights that are most important for people to promote, the cases in which they confront human rights violations, their opinions on equal rights for different groups in Israel, and their positions on human rights violations in the Occupied Territories.
The good news is that most Israelis believe in equality: 75 percent of the men and women polled believe that the State of Israel must improve the level of equality among its citizens. The public also demonstrates progressive positions on issues like opposition to segregation and exclusion, rights for same-sex partners and the government obligation to ensure a dignified quality of life for underprivileged communities.
But the overall picture is not that simple. For example, while 70 percent of those polled oppose segregation between Jews and Arabs in public places, 30 percent do not. And while 80 percent of respondents oppose limiting the presence of women at public events, 20 percent do not. These margins are not narrow enough.
The poll also reveals that freedom of speech, one of the most fundamental rights in any democracy, is not a consensus issue, and that the perspective on the occupation and the conflict readily overshadow many of the public’s positions regarding equality and human rights.
So, what can be done? The findings reveal negative trends regarding human rights in some fields, but there is also a genuine core of public support for ACRI’s work.
Take a look at our findings – how do your opinions measure up against Israeli society in 2017?
Yours,
Sharon
Adv. Sharon Abraham-Weiss
Executive Director
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel
