July 14, 2008
By Anshel Pfeffer
A little after 6 AM last Thursday morning, two groups entered the small hall of the Absorption Ministry at Ben-Gurion International Airport's old Terminal 1 building. Each group was comprised of about 30 new immigrants. The first to arrive were immigrants from Great Britain, who had come under the auspices of the private Nefesh B'Nefesh organization. They were followed by a group of Falashmura, brought to Israel by the Jewish Agency. This chance meeting allowed for a close observation of the changing of the guard that is characterizing the contemporary encouragement of immigration to Israel, as private organizations are replacing the Jewish Agency.
Currently, the Jewish Agency and Nefesh B'Nefesh are working on a strategic agreement that would transfer to the private organization a large part of the Jewish Agency's responsibilities for encouraging immigration from North America. This will mark another stage in the historic change occurring at the Jewish Agency, as the encouragement of immigration is taking a backburner to its activities promoting Jewish educational activity the world over.
Each of the two groups of immigrants sat at its own tables, accompanied by guides who spoke their languages. The British seemed more at ease in their new surroundings. They quickly completed the bureaucratic process and left for the ceremony held in their honor. At the festivities they were joined by another 220 immigrants from the U.S., who had arrived at the same time, in a specially leased plane on a direct flight from New York. On the way out, they smiled at the Ethiopians and wished them well. Although the two groups had arrived here together, even this short observation left no doubt as to who was going to have an easy absorption and whom it would take years to become integrated. The differences between the groups illustrate the transition from "distress immigration" to "immigration by choice." The immigration of Falashmura is expected to end this month and, along with the decline in immigration from the former Soviet Union, it appears distress immigration to Israel is on the decline. At the same time, the Jewish Agency has a hard time adjusting to encouraging immigration among Jews who live in comfort and security in the Western world. The organization, which is suffering from a large monetary deficit and a problematic image, is finding it difficult to market Israel as a quality-of-life option for these people.
This vacuum was filled by Nefesh B'Nefesh, a non-profit organization that was established in 2002 to encourage Jewish immigration from North America and Great Britain. The organization identifies potential immigrants, helps them find housing and work quickly, gets them in touch with people of similar background in Israel and helps them overcome bureaucratic problems. On Thursday's flight was the 15,000th immigrant Nefesh B'Nefesh has so far brought to Israel.
Yet, despite their common goal, and perhaps even because of it, a harsh rivalry has developed between the Jewish Agency and Nefesh B'Nefesh, accompanied by public mudslinging. About a year ago, all contact between the two organizations came to an end. However, recent months have seem a rapprochement as the two bodies have been holding talks, via lawyers, toward reaching a strategic agreement. Major American Jewish donors on the one hand, and the hard core at the Jewish Agency, who are making it difficult for the body to operate in the U.S. on the other, are encouraging the two organizations to divide the roles between them. According to sources at both Nefesh B'Nefesh and the Jewish Agency, under the agreement that is currently being hammered out, Nefesh B'Nefesh will be responsible for most of the activity to encourage immigration from North America, with the Jewish Agency simultaneously cutting back on its system of emissaries there. In turn, the Jewish Agency will focus more on encouraging Jewish education and reinforcing local communities' connection to Zionism.
The major disagreement between the organizations, according to one source involved in the negotiations, concerns the credit for the activity. Nefesh B'Nefesh is demanding more establishment recognition for its activity while the Jewish Agency is demanding that the permits for immigration and its overall framework continue to bear its imprint.
Officials at the Jewish Agency have denied such claims and have said in response that, "The Jewish Agency is and will continue to be the exclusive body in charge of Jewish immigration from every place in the world on behalf of the government of Israel. We welcome any cooperation from organizations that support the ingathering of Jewish immigrants to Israel." Nefesh B'Nefesh refused to reply to inquiries.