Citizens of all nations must choose

Submitted by Charles Gruenspan (United States), May 14, 2007 at 11:25

Israeli Druse and Beduin Arabs currently fight and die to protect Israel, against almost exclusively Arab Muslim enemies, without giving up "loyalty to their kinsmen by blood and the religion of peace," as you put it.

Similarly, Americans of Italian, German, and Japanese origin fought to protect America in WWII against fellow landsmen. But just as American segregation of many Japanese during WWII caused long term repercussions, Israel should end its policy of treating all Israeli Arabs citizens with suspicion.

In a democracy with civil rights, one can fight to protect the society, without compromising individual religious belief and practice in any way. It is not too much to expect each and every member of a free society, who accept the advantages of economic, religious, and political freedoms, to take his or her turn in fighting to protect those freedoms. Israeli Muslim women seem to have no problem in accepting equal rights without giving up their religion of peace. For those who will not swear loyalty to their land and serve to protect it, they should be treated as resident aliens, with full civil rights, but not the right to vote in national elections.

Presumably, they will have the right to vote in their Palestinian state.

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