April 17 Congress: Intergenerational

On April 17 two Israeli-Palestinian Public Negotiating Congresses took place at the center of Tel-Aviv:
Youth - In the Salon Conference Hall, ZOA House; Adults - In an open public place in front of ZOA House

The Next Congress September 3

An important next step is  to establish an international coalition to support an Israeli-Palestinian Public Negotiating Congress with political power. Representatives of the US administration and the international community are going to attend the mini congress in Tel-Aviv on September 3.

Israeli - Palestinian Congress of the People

On April 30, we are conducting ‘A Congress of the Israeli-Palestinian People’ at the center of Tel-Aviv. The Palestinian delegation includes 20 representatives from all walks of life: business people, ex-generals, educators, students and even an ex-prisoner. The Israeli delegation is still forming

On the Road to Jericho

The next  Israeli-Palestinian public negotiating congress is scheduled for April 10-11 at Almog Junction (which is on the road to Jericho, West Bank).  It is the 25th such meeting, and each delegation will include at least 10 representatives from all walks of life -- Israeli generals, Palestinian commanders, Israeli settlers, Palestinian ex-prisoners, academics, business people, and students.

With the goal of a larger congress always in mind, Dr. Sapir Handelman and Mr. Ibrahim Enbawi will once again demonstrate the real possibility of finding common ground among panelists reflecting the entire political spectrum.  A larger congress, they propose, would help MOP show that solutions are possible.

Beginnings

When developing important plans, it is often a good idea to think back to the beginning to see what progress has been made.  Viewing video from the very first Minds of Peace negotiating session at the University of Missouri St. Louis gives a sense of Dr. Handelman's purpose and commitment.  He introduces the project by saying, “The consensus among analysts is that there is no new thing--everything has been tried and failed.  We believe at this table that this is not true.  We believe that this is nonsense....There is always a place for creative ideas, for new initiatives, especially in such a complicated situation.”  From that optimistic beginning we now have 22 rounds of successful negotiations, and we are looking forward to the next one.