Copyright 2006 The Palm Beach Newspapers, Inc.
By SUSAN R. MILLER
Palm Beach Post (Florida)
BOCA RATON, Fla. — In Israel, Magen David Adom is like the Red Cross, and more.
Its fleet of more than 1,000 ambulances is first on the scene giving medical and disaster assistance. The emergency rescue service collects and distributes blood.
But despite its more than 65 years of providing humanitarian aid, the organization has been refused membership in the International Committee of the Red Cross, which recognizes 183 national societies.
The reason: Magen David Adom’s symbol is a red Star of David. The star is a symbol of Judaism, appearing in blue on the Israeli flag.
Under the Geneva Conventions, only the Red Cross and Red Crescent (for Muslim countries) are accepted symbols.
In December, diplomats from more than 100 countries met in Geneva and voted overwhelmingly to create a new symbol: the red crystal. It is to be used in conflicts where existing symbols might be perceived as having cultural, religious or political connotations. Magen David Adom would place its symbol, the star, inside the crystal.
In June, members of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent movement will gather in Geneva to vote on whether to accept the symbol and Magen David Adom into the fold.
A woman who has championed bringing Israel into the International Committee of the Red Cross fold was in Boca Raton Thursday to discuss how the American Red Cross has supported Magen David Adom’s efforts to join the International Red Cross.
She also talked about her role in brokering some of the negotiations that led to the acceptance of the new symbol.
Bonnie McElveen-Hunter, chairman of the American Red Cross and a former U.S. ambassador to Finland, was the guest speaker at a luncheon sponsored by the American Friends of Magen David Adom at St. Andrews Country Club.
“We must right the wrong of discrimination against MDA,” McElveen-Hunter told her audience, mostly members of local Jewish organizations. “The Red Cross is unyielding, and we will do everything to see it through to its completion,” she said.
Since 2000, the American Red Cross has supported Magen David Adom by refusing to pay the International Red Cross more than $42 million in dues.
If accepted into the International Red Cross, the organization would be eligible to request funds from the international movement and would have access to training, information and forums from which it has been excluded.
The Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County has been keeping its members briefed in recent months, said Elise Dolgow, director of the federation’s Jewish Community Relations Council. She hopes negotiators can get past the politics.
“These opportunities can quickly disappear and when you have them, you have to do the best you can to make it happen,” Dolgow said. “If there is a window of opportunity and a political will, then we need to try to close the gap and make it happen.”
The use of the red crystal - the new, neutral symbol - is the result of a compromise and one that didn’t come without its challenges, McElveen-Hunter said. Plus, changes in Israeli leadership in recent months have complicated negotiations.
And despite the progress, the vote on accepting Magen David Adom still will be far from unanimous, McElveen-Hunter said.
Syria has indicated opposition, as well as Sudan, Iraq, North Korea and Cuba. She said the reason given by opponents often is that it’s not the right time.
“I can’t tell you how many times I have heard that. I have not heard any legitimate reason,” she said.
David Meltzer, senior vice president of ARC International Services, said there are “powerful forces” that oppose allowing Magen David Adom to join. He doesn’t expect it will happen without a fight.
Although former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon signed the memorandum of agreement, there are concerns Israel’s new government, led by Ehud Olmert, won’t honor it. “Israel could back away from implementation,” Meltzer said.
His other concern is that they simply won’t get the needed votes.
“We will be doing some arm-twisting,” he said. “We are pulling in all of our allies to get over the finish line.”