Indians in Israel looking towards their roots
Jerusalem, Nov 20 (UNI) As the knowledge of the possibility to acquire Indian citizenship among the Indian Jewish community in Israel sinks in, there is a growing enthusiasm to ‘get linked to their roots’.
A large section of the Indian community in different parts of the country have welcomed the development expressing willingness to acquire Indian citizenship.
Roley (Savitri) Horowitz, President of the Indo-Israel Cultural Association, who still retains her Indian passport twenty years after she came to Israel as a tourist and converted to Judaism, choosing to live here.
‘‘My soul remains Indian and it doesn’t allow me to relinquish the Indian passport. I prefer all the hardships, mainly related to travel with the Indian passport, but it is too dear to part with.’’ Horowitz is preparing to participate in the coming ‘‘pravasi divas’’ celebrations and was preparing a petition from the Indian Jewish community expressing their interest in dual citizenship.
Noah Massil, the President of The Central Organisation of Indian Jews (COIJ) and editor of ‘Maiboli’ Marathi quarterly in Israel expressing gratefulness to the lack of anti-semitism in India says “we brought the message of peace and non-violence from India so vital for this region”. Illustrating the ways through which the Indian Jewish community remebers its “Indian Roots”, Massil said "we celebrate ‘hoduyada’ (gathering of the Indians) every year in the southern port city of Eilat besides celebrating the Indian Independence day every year with cultural programmes’'.
Moshe Binyamin, Chairman of CIOJ, proudly announces that their efforts have borne fruit. As he prepares for a conference in the southern town of Nevatim dominated by Jews from Cochin towards the end of the month, he says, more and more Indian Jews would start looking towards having an Indian passport.
Sharon Binyamin, Deputy Director of Social Services of Jerusalem Municipality, who was born in Delhi and immigrated to Israel at the age of 19 says she would “have the Indian citizenship for ideological reasons, to have her bond renewed. It is difficult to erase 19 years of ones existence”. Moreover, “sentimental reasons” keep “dragging” her towards India and this development would “remove practical problems”.
Among many things the Indian Jews also brought with them cricket.
A game that still remains quite unknown to Israelis is dominated mostly by the Indian community with Jews of British and South African origin completing the scene with a few others.
