By Jerrold Kessel and Pierre Klochendler
JERUSALEM, Oct 7, 2010 (IPS) – “As a democracy Israel aspires to complete equality of all its citizens,” said Dr. Shlomo Alon, head of the education ministry’s Arabic and Islam education division as he launched a programme at the beginning of the new school year to make classes in Arabic compulsory in all Jewish public schools. But just a month later, the commitment to “complete equality” looks like it’s taking a back seat.
YERUSALEM (IPS) – “SEBAGAI negara demokrasi, Israel bercita-cita memenuhi persamaan hak bagi seluruh warganegaranya,” kata Dr Shlomo Alon, kepala divisi pendidikan Arab dan Islam di Departemen Pendidikan saat meluncurkan sebuah program pada awal tahun ajaran baru untuk membuka kelas wajib bahasa Arab di seluruh sekolah umum Yahudi. Tapi sebulan kemudian, komitmen untuk “melengkapi persamaan” tampaknya mundur ke belakang.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will present a proposal to his cabinet which will obligate any non-Jew applying for Israeli citizenship to declare loyalty to “the State of Israel as a Jewish democratic state.”
Pada 3 Oktober lalu, Perdana Menteri Benjamin Netanyahu menyampaikan proposal ke kabinetnya. Isinya, mewajibkan setiap warga non-Yahudi, yang mengajukan kewarganegaraan Israel, untuk menyatakan kesetiaan kepada “Negara Israel sebagai negara demokrasi Yahudi.”
It will be a sea change. Under Israel’s current Citizenship Law any prospective citizen must declare his or her loyalty simply to “the State of Israel”.
Ini akan menjadi perubahan mendasar. Di bawah UU Kewarganegaraan Israel saat ini, setiap calon warganegara harus menyatakan kesetiaannya hanya untuk “Negara Israel”.
In effect, the requirement applies mostly to Palestinians who marry Arab Israelis. Any Jew from around the world wishing to become Israeli automatically qualifies for citizenship without being required to take any sort of loyalty oath.
Akibatnya, persyaratan itu berlaku bagi sebagian besar orang Palestina yang menikahi orang Arab-Israel. Setiap orang Yahudi dari seluruh dunia yang ingin menjadi warganegara Israel secara otomatis memenuhi syarat itu tanpa harus melakukan sumpah setia.
Netanyahu stresses that his proposal dovetails into his insistence that the Palestinians, as part of a future peace agreement, accept Israel as a “Jewish state”.
Netanyahu menekankan, proposalnya sesuai dengan desakannya bahwa Palestina, sebagai bagian dari perjanjian perdamaian di masa depan, menerima Israel sebagai “negara Yahudi”.
While he is guaranteed backing from his nationalist-minded coalition, some ministers balk at the new proposed legislation. Says Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor: “This will only embitter relations between Israel’s Arab minority and the state.”
Sementara dia mendapat dukungan dari koalisi nasionalisnya, beberapa menteri menolak keras proposal itu. Deputi Perdana Menteri Dan Meridor mengatakan: “Ini hanya akan merusak hubungan antara minoritas Arab di Israel dan negara.”
At a time of increasing tension between the Jewish majority and the 20 percent Arab minority, the new Arabic proposal for schools is designed to assuage mutual suspicions.
Saat ketegangan meningkat antara mayoritas Yahudi dan 20 persen minoritas Arab, usulan pengajaran bahasa Arab di sekolah-sekolah dirancang untuk meredakan rasa saling curiga.
Though compulsory, the scheme at first covers only schools in northern Israel, about a fifth of the public schools in the Jewish sector. Until the new official directive, only from age 12 could Jewish pupils study Arabic, and only after learning English in the early grades. Even then, Arabic wasn’t compulsory.
Sekalipun wajib, rencana itu awalnya hanya mencakup sekolah-sekolah di Israel utara, sekitar seperlima sekolah-sekolah umum di kawasan Yahudi. Hingga instruksi resmi turun, hanya murid Yahudi berusia 12 tahun yang mempelajari bahasa Arab, dan hanya setelah belajar bahasa Inggris di kelas-kelas awal. Bahkan kemudian, bahasa Arab tak lagi diwajibkan.
To fulfill the requirement of learning a second language, Jewish pupils have quite a choice — Arabic or another of the languages widely spoken here such as Russian, Amharic or French. Few teenagers opt for Arabic.
Untuk memenuhi kebutuhan belajar bahasa kedua, siswa Yahudi punya pilihan –bahasa Arab atau bahasa lain yang digunakan luas di sini seperti bahasa Rusia, Amharic, atau Prancis. Beberapa remaja memilih bahasa Arab.
Now in 170 public schools in northern Israel, the new programme of the written and spoken language is taking root. It’s called ‘Ya Salaam’ (‘how wonderful’ in Arabic).
Sekarang, di 170 sekolah umum di Israel utara, program baru menulis dan bicara bahasa sudah mengakar. Ia disebut “Ya Salaam” (“betapa indahnya”, dalam bahasa Arab).
For the fifth graders in Mahmoud’s class, Arabic remains foreign. Slowly, laboriously though, it’s becoming more familiar to the ear, and to the hand.
Untuk murid kelas lima di kelas Mahmoud, bahasa Arab masih asing. Perlahan-lahan, dengan susah-payah, ia terasa lebih akrab di telinga, dan bagi tangan.
“It’s much harder than Hebrew,” says Yossi, 10. “But I’ve started to like the way it sounds.”
“Ia jauh lebih sulit daripada bahasa Ibrani,” kata Yossi, berusia 10 tahun. “Tapi saya sudah mulai suka mendengarnya.”
Miriam, a Jewish teacher at the school, says, “As kids, when we heard Arabic in the street, we were scared. Instilling the Arabic language at a young age may help overcome those fears.”
Miriam, seorang guru di sekolah Yahudi, mengatakan, “Sebagai anak-anak, ketika kami mendengar bahasa Arab di jalanan, kami takut. Menanamkan bahasa Arab pada usia muda dapat membantu mengatasi ketakutan.”
Eventually, the aim is to apply the pilot scheme to Jewish schools throughout the country. “We hope,” says Dr. Alon, “that this studying of Arabic promotes tolerance among our children, conveys a message of acceptance, and builds cultural bridges between Jews and Arabs.”
Akhirnya, tujuannya adalah menerapkan skema percontohan itu ke sekolah-sekolah Yahudi di seluruh negeri. “Kami berharap,” kata Dr Alon, “pelajaran bahasa Arab mempromosikan toleransi di antara anak-anak kami, menyampaikan pesan penerimaan, dan membangun jembatan budaya antara orang-orang Yahudi dan Arab.”
But for many Jewish parents and their children, Arabic is not always seen as a means of getting to know their Arab neighbours better, or to understanding them better.
Tapi bagi banyak orangtua Yahudi dan anak-anak mereka, bahasa Arab tak selalu dilihat sebagai sarana untuk mengenal tetangga Arab mereka atau memahami mereka dengan lebih baik.
Most Arab Israelis speak fluent Hebrew. Hebrew words are often interlaced in their Arabic. Said one Jewish parent who declined to give his name, “What’s important about knowing Arabic is that our children can understand what the Arabs are saying about us in their own language.”
Banyak orang Arab-Israel fasih berbahasa Ibrani. Kata-kata Ibrani seringkali terjalin dalam bahasa Arab mereka. Kata salah satu orangtua Yahudi, yang menolak menyebutkan namanya, “Pentingnya mengenal bahasa Arab adalah anak-anak kami dapat mengerti apa yang orang-orang Arab katakan tentang kami dalam bahasa mereka sendiri.”
Up until now, for those Jewish students, generation after generation, who did study Arabic, it was often perceived as “a national necessity”, as “a security- minded duty”, based on the conventional wisdom of “know thy enemy”.
Hingga kini, bagi para pelajar Yahudi, generasi demi generasi, yang belajar bahasa Arab, ia sering dianggap sebagai ” kebutuhan nasional”, sebagai “kewajiban demi keamanan”, berdasarkan kebijaksanaan konvensional “ketahui musuhmu”.
Many Jewish students who chose to study Arabic right through school go on to do their national military service in intelligence units or in security services.
Banyak siswa Yahudi memilih belajar bahasa Arab dengan benar di sekolah untuk masuk wajib militer di unit-unit intelijen atau jasa keamanan.
Most Jewish Israelis feel they share far more values with Europeans or Americans than with their immediate Arab neighbours, albeit many of their families immigrated from Arab countries and Arabic was spoken at home (often as a way for the parents to make sure their children would not understand them).
Kebanyakan orang Yahudi Israel merasa mereka lebih punya nilai-nilai Eropa atau Amerika ketimbang tetangga dekat mereka: Arab, meski banyak anggota keluarga mereka datang dari negara-negara Arab dan bahasa Arab digunakan di rumah (seringkali sebagai cara bagi orangtua untuk memastikan anak-anak mereka tak memahami mereka).
What drives young Jewish Israelis away from Arabic is their sense of being caught up in a never-ending struggle for Israel’s acceptance in the Middle East.
Apa yang mendorong anak muda Yahudi Israel menjauhi bahasa Arab adalah rasa terperangkap mereka terkait perjuangan tanpa akhir atas penerimaan Israel di Timur Tengah.
By their own admission, Israel’s place in “a tough neighbourhood” is usually seen only through the narrow prism of the long-drawn-out Israeli-Arab conflict, and their own overwhelming feeling that they belong to “a tiny Jewish state surrounded by” –not close to — the neighbouring Arab countries.
Dalam pandangan mereka, tempat Israel di “lingkungan keras” biasanya hanya dilihat melalui prisma sempit tentang konflik Arab-Israel yang sudah berlangsung lama. Dan mereka merasa berada di “negara Yahudi kecil yang dikepung oleh” –bukan dekat dengan– negara-negara tetangga Arab.
So, why this initiative now?
Jadi, mengapa ada inisiatif ini sekarang?
“An increasing demand from students and parents — as simple as that,” says Alon. “But our hope is that as the only democracy in the Middle East, making the study of Arabic compulsory will encourage a respect for civil rights and bring about greater acceptance of the Arab minority as full citizens. Besides, we want to provide more work opportunities for Arab teachers.”
“Permintaan yang meningkat dari siswa dan orangtua –sederhananya seperti itu,” ujar Alon. “Tapi harapan kami, sebagai satu-satunya negara demokrasi di Timur Tengah, mewajibkan bahasa Arab akan mendorong rasa hormat terhadap hak-hak sipil dan penerimaan lebih besar dari minoritas Arab sebagai warganegara penuh. Selain itu, kami ingin memberikan kesempatan kerja lebih besar untuk guru-guru Arab.”
Of the thousand or so Arabic teachers in the Jewish public school system, the overwhelming majority are Jewish. Now, 50 additional Arab teachers have begun teaching in Jewish schools.
Dari seribu lebih guru bahasa Arab di sistem sekolah umum Yahudi, mayoritas adalah orang Yahudi. Sekarang, 50 guru Arab tambahan mulai mengajar di sekolah-sekolah Yahudi.
Even Alon concedes that for all the good intentions, two hours a week of Arabic is just a start, no more than a taste of what’s needed to bridge the gap between Jewish and Arab Israelis. Not merely a cultural gap, but deep inequality in terms of the application of civil rights.
Bahkan Alon mengatakan, demi tujuan baik itu, dua jam seminggu untuk pelajaran bahasa Arab hanyalah sebuah awal, memenuhi kebutuhan untuk menjembatani kesenjangan antara orang Yahudi dan Arab-Israel. Bukan hanya kesenjangan budaya, tapi ketimpangan mendalam dalam penerapan hak-hak sipil.
Still, in spite of its limited scope, if expanded and implemented properly, the ‘Ya Salaam’ project might do yet something to eliminate the current hostility towards Arabic as a language, and even perhaps bring Jews and Arabs slightly closer together.
Namun, meski lingkupnya terbatas, jika diperluas dan dilaksanakan dengan benar, proyek “Ya Salaam” yang sekarang diterapkan mungkin menghilangkan permusuhan terhadap bahasa Arab, dan bahkan mendekatkan orang-orang Yahudi dan Arab.
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http://www.ipsnews.org/news.asp?idnews=53100
Translated to Indonesia by Imam Shofwan