An international sanctuary for victims of famine and war should be established in Israel

The trouble with giving state aid to developing countries, or donating to charities working with developing countries, is that much of the aid intended for victims of war and famine is channelled through the governments of various banana republics, tin-pot dictatorships and other corrupt regimes whose leaders siphon off donations to buy weapons, private planes, prestigious cars or to build magnificent palaces for themselves. Sadly, all-too-often, these third world tyrants put their own personal aggrandisement ahead of the welfare of their people. [1] What is required to circumvent this problem is a humanitarian programme where victims of famine or war are removed from trouble zones to a place of safety: a sanctuary for refugees located in a dedicated host nation. This nation would work together with the international community to provide the permanent infrastructure required to meet the immediate and ongoing needs of refugees until they are able to return to their homelands. Geographically, most victims of war and famine are from Africa or the Middle East [2] so it would be sensible to set up this humanitarian aid centre somewhere in that region, but the question is "where exactly"? Clearly, the host nation would have to be relatively stable, have a well-developed economy and maintain a good relationship with the international community, and the only country in the region that fits this bill is Israel. Naturally, with of hundreds of thousands of people being displaced by war or effected by famine every year the host country must have sufficient land and other resources to construct a facility large enough to feed, clothe and house refugees on a wholesale basis, and Israel certainly has this capacity. We know that because, over recent decades, millions of migrants have accepted the Israeli government's invitation to go and settle there. [3] In fact, the Israeli government is so desperate for people to emigrate to their country that they actually give financial assistance to individuals who agree to relocate to Israel. [4], [5] Naturally, there will be some infrastructure costs to Israel in terms of building new roads, laying on water and electricity, etc. but we all know that Jews are generous by nature and are notoriously selfless with their money, so there can be no doubt that most of the people of Israel would be delighted to have the opportunity to provide hospitality to people less fortunate than themselves. But even if a small minority of Jews are reluctant to put their hands in their pockets to fund such a good cause, the Torah (the Jewish scriptures) commands Jews to give to charity in accordance with their means and they are forbidden to ignore the needs of the poor. [6] Furthermore, the Israeli government also could use some of the $3.15 billion they receive every year from the American taxpayers to fund this vital humanitarian project. [7] Moreover, the United Nations Millennium Project, which is a repeated commitment of the world's governments to commit 0.7% of rich-countries' gross national product to Official Development Assistance, currently funds such major humanitarian schemes, yet Israel currently contributes nothing at all to the pot. [8], [9] With this being the case, donating Israeli public funds to such a worthwhile cause as a safe haven for the world's most vulnerable people will help right some of the wrongs of the Israeli government's current foreign aid policy. There is, of course, one anomaly in this plan: that of the Palestinian refugees. There plight is briefly described here in the impartial words of the BBC: "In the course of Israel's creation in 1948 and its occupation of the West Bank and Gaza in 1967, more than half the Arabs of pre-1948 Palestine are thought to have been displaced. Today there are millions of Palestinians living in exile from homes and land their families had inhabited for generations. Many still suffer the legacy of their dispossession: destitution, penury, insecurity. Palestinian historians, and some Israelis, call 1948 a clear example of ethnic cleansing - perpetrated by the Haganah (later the Israeli Defence Forces) and armed Jewish gangs." [10] Obviously, these Palestinian refugees should be allowed to return to their homes and farms in Israel and they should be given full citizenship, but this arrangement will have to form part of the ongoing Arab-Israel Peace Process. In conclusion, with hundreds of thousands of people in Africa and the Middle East in desperate need of foreign aid, and with the international community"s donations being diluted by despotic leaders and corrupt government officials, the only solution is to establish an international sanctuary for refugees of famine and war, and the best place for that is in Israel, and I hope to see this proposal implemented without undue delay. In the meantime, however, please continue to give generously to good causes in the developing world, as any money reaching those in need is better than none. Thank you. [1] http://www.dailymail.co.uk... [2] http://www.unhcr.org... [3] http://www.nationmaster.com... [4] http://www.gov.il... [5] http://www.jewishagency.org... [6] http://www.torah.org... [7] http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org... [8] http://www.unmillenniumproject.org... [9] http://www.unmillenniumproject.org... [10] http://www.bbc.co.uk...