 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||
|
ELECTIONS TO WORLD ZIONIST CONGRESS; "THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO IDENTIFY WITH ISRAEL" Representatives of Zionist organizations and independent lists running slates in the upcoming elections for the World Zionist Congress have been at work for several months now to establish the framework for American Jewry to vote in elections to be held by April 2002. The Area Election Committee (AEC), organized in the United States by the American Zionist Movement, is the instrument prescribed by the WZO Constitution to administer elections to World Zionist Congresses. Each country that sends delegates is responsible for designing its own democratic means for determining a national delegation within general parameters set by the WZO Rules for the Election of Delegates. "It is the singular event in all of American Jewish communal life that enables us as individuals to democratically elect Jewish leadership. This election creates the U.S. delegation to Congress, the collective American Jewish voice shaping our partnership with Israel and world Jewry," said Mel Salberg, President of the American Zionist Movement. "The elections" he continued, "will also provide grassroots American Jewry an opportunity to identify with Israel, especially at a time of crisis when the need for solidarity is critical." "The Congress will take place in the summer of 2002. It is envisioned that voter registration will begin this Fall with the actual election taking place by February 2002" said Moshe Kagan, a veteran Zionist leader who was unanimously elected Chairman of the U.S. AEC. "The democratic basis of Zionist movement elections is what distinguishes it from every other Jewish communal institution in the United States. Elections to the Congress provide two essential elements to our community - the right to vote for leadership and the right to an American Jewish voice in the "Parliament of the Jewish People -- the World Zionist Congress." "Any American Jew who subscribes to the basic principles of Zionism has the right to register to vote. Recent WZO decisions, mandating that at least 25% of all delegates must be between the ages of 18 and 30, will ensure that the perspective of the next generation of Jewish leadership will be expressed at the Congress," Kagan added. The Area Election Committee, through the American Zionist Movement, is considering the use of Internet technology, including the ability to register online and vote online. The Committee is seeking ways to make registration as easy as possible and to get the word out to the public. Karen Rubinstein, AZM Executive Director, said she believes these elections, bolstered by the use of modern technology, have the potential to "significantly change the way Zionism is viewed in the United States and around the world" and she encouraged media attention to the issues involved. Organizations participating in the Area Election Committee are: American Friends of Likud, American Jewish League for Israel, AMIT, ARZA/WUNA, Bnai Zion, Emunah of America, Labor Zionist Alliance, MERCAZ, Meretz USA, NA'AMAT USA and Religious Zionists of America and a representative of "American Zionists for Unity and Tolerance," an independent list that won two seats to the 33rd World Zionist Congress.
|
