Dinny McGinley (Donegal South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank both Deputies for raising this matter. In 2010 the population of Israel was recorded as 7.78 million, of whom 75% were Jewish. These figures are inclusive of areas of East Jerusalem and the Golan, whose annexation is not accepted internationally. Some 1.6 million were Arabs, amounting to 20.4% of population, the great majority of whom are full Israeli citizens. A total of 44% of the Israeli Arab population live in the Northern District, including Nazareth and adjoining areas, where they form a slight majority of the population. Another 190,000 Arabs are Bedouin living in the Negev Desert in the south. Only about 120,000 live in the major Israeli cities in the central belt. Arab Israelis are mostly Muslim, with about 10% Christians. I do not include in this analysis the 200,000 or more Arabs in East Jerusalem, who are not for the most part Israeli citizens and who are not considered by us to be living in Israel. They are, one might say, part of a different problem, one which we address frequently in this House. I am not addressing here Ireland's strong criticisms of Israel's policies in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Arab Israelis are full citizens of Israel and are accorded full equality by the basic laws of the state, which form the constitution. In their ability to vote for their government in a genuine democracy, in personal security, freedom of expression and assembly, and protection under the law, especially for women, their situation compares favourably with ordinary citizens, even those in majority populations in other countries in the region, and especially so with members of ethnic and religious minorities. Israeli Arabs are more prosperous and enjoy better access to education, health care and other state services than populations of most neighbouring Arab states. This is not the full story, of course. Arab Israelis judge their circumstances not against those of people in other countries but against the standards enjoyed by the majority community in Israel. By those criteria Arab Israelis are more clearly seen as a minority that has remained disadvantaged and marginalised for a variety of reasons.

For much of Israel's history, for reasons to do with the wider conflict, many Israelis regarded Arab citizens in their midst with considerable suspicion. Arab Israelis have also encountered measures which discriminate in favour of Jewish citizens in areas such as access to land or in employment, where having served in the armed forces will often constitute an advantage which Arab Israelis, who are exempted from compulsory military service, will not enjoy. In addition, as all governments have found, poverty, marginalisation and disadvantage reinforce each other in a vicious circle which is difficult to break. It is exacerbated in this case, as in many states, by the concentration of economic activity and opportunity in the major cities where few Arab Israelis live.

The results of these factors are that Arab Israelis are markedly worse off than Jewish Israelis in terms of incomes, employment, education, housing, and access to land. There are specific additional problems for the Bedouins, some 60,000 of whom live in unrecognised villages in the Negev Desert, subject in many cases to eviction and displacement, in some cases with the intention of favouring incoming Jewish Israelis.

Many Jewish Israelis, particularly in recent years, have recognised this as a serious imbalance to be addressed as a priority. There have been a number of government reports and initiatives, such as the recommendations of the Or Commission in 2003, and the establishment in 2008 of an Equal Employment Opportunities Commission, which has been mentored to an extent by the Equality Commission of Northern Ireland. President Peres has personally led efforts to address issues of access to employment for Arab Israelis. Regrettably, some more extreme nationalist Israeli leaders continue to regard Arab Israelis with suspicion or hostility and actively promote discriminatory measures.

These are all real problems and human rights issues, familiar in many states, including in Europe. They are raised by Ireland and our EU partners in our relationship with the Israeli authorities, using the guidelines in the EU human rights strategy, in the same way as the EU addresses similar problems in its relations with other states, especially those with which we have association agreements. The EU sees this as a critical and consistent element of our dialogue with Israel and with all states.

There is a real danger, implicit in the terms of the debate we are having here today, that we will be accused of focusing on these issues only because the state involved is Israel. If we were to focus on populations under threat in the Middle East, even leaving aside the massive violence in Syria, we would not start with Arab Israelis. Our major concern with the Israeli authorities cannot be this issue. Rather, it is the position and freedom of the Palestinian population under occupation beyond the Green Line.

See this speech in context