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“Very elegant - a beautiful fit for the city of Jerusalem."
-Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu |
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The Importance of the Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem
Remarks by Benjamin Netanyahu
Prime Minister of Israel
February 20, 2011
I want to commend all of you at the Simon Wiesenthal Center for your decision to build a Museum of Tolerance in Jerusalem. A few years ago I had the pleasure and the privilege of visiting the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles and I saw first-hand what an impact this Museum had on such a diverse range of people, Jews and non-Jews alike, from hundreds of countries and all walks of life. Now that type of experience, that attracted 5 million people to that museum over the past 18 years will be made available to all those who come to Jerusalem.
Recently Rabbi Hier, my good friend, came to visit me. He is absolutely irrepressible; you can’t stop him. And I had the opportunity to understand from Rabbi Hier the remarkable vision behind this unique project. What is remarkable is not only the impressive design of the Center, but more importantly what you intend to do inside of it. This cultural and education Center which promotes the ideals of universal tolerance and respect will give visitors a better understanding of the history of our people as well as an appreciation of the need to protect the shared values that are so vital to our common future.
I think we can appreciate in view of what is happening in our world today, this earthquake that is taking place between Pakistan and Gibraltar, how these values of tolerance and respect for human rights are so important, so cherished and so endangered including in the times of turbulence.
So I have no doubt that the new museum will make an important contribution to the unity of our people, and to peace and to the understanding of what it is we really hope to see develop in our region and beyond. I look forward to joining you when the Museum opens its doors in Jerusalem—the sooner the better.
Thank you. Mazel tov. Keep up your good work. Congratulations.
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Letter from Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat: |
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June 20th 2011
Simon Wiesenthal Center
1399 South Roxbury Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90035
Dear Friends,
The Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem (MOTJ) is set to expand the understanding of tolerance amongst peoples, faiths, and communities from the heart of Jerusalem, a city where people of all religions and backgrounds live together, practicing their faith freely. The city of Jerusalem is working together with the representatives of the museum in developing the site, which will be an important anchor for millions of tourists from around the world. I am very excited about the new design of the MOTJ by the renowned Israeli architect, Chyutin.
I personally visited the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, California in 2009 and was deeply impressed. I saw first hand its effect on young people and the diverse visitors who represent the entire spectrum of communities and religions. The MOTJ is rooted in the enduring Jewish values that advance human dignity and social justice, especially in its social laboratory, which will explore the critical challenges facing Israel and the world today. I have no doubt that the Museum will be a magnet for the millions of tourists who come from around the world to experience Jerusalem. All friends of Jerusalem should support this great project.
Sincerely,
Nir Barkat
Mayor of Jerusalem
view letter here.... |
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Background Materials and Approbations:
Click above for more information, approbations and photos of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Shimon Peres, Benjamin Netanyahu, Nir Barkat, Alan Dershowitz, Irwin Cotler and the Unanimous Israeli Supreme Court Ruling in Favor of the Project Moving Forward
"For almost 50 years the compound has not been apart of the cemetery, both in the normative sense and in the practical sense, and it was used for various public purposes." It also noted: "During all those years no one raised any claim, on even one occasion, that the planning procedures violated the sanctity of the site, or that they were contrary to the law as a result of the historical and religious uniqueness of the site ... . For decades this area was not regarded as a cemetery by the general public or by the Muslim community ... . No one denied this position."
Important Facts:
•The site that was given to the Wiesenthal Center by the government of Israel and the Jerusalem municipality previously served as the City's municipal parking lot for more than 40 years.
•During that time, Muslim groups never protested that the parking lot was once part of an ancient burial site.
•In 1964, the highest Muslim religious authorities declared that entire area, including adjacent Independence Park, a 'mundras' - an abandoned, ancient cemetery where public facilities may be built.
•The Simon Wiesenthal Center initiated a town plan to build a museum on the parcel allocated to it by the Government of Israel and the Municipality of Jerusalem and the City of Jerusalem issued a building permit to construct a museum. For five years during the public planning process, the Center for Human Dignity was the subject of hearings at open City Council meetings, through notices published in both Hebrew and Arabic newspapers, and the architectural model was on public display at City Hall. At no time throughout that entire public process, did a single person or organization come forward to object to the use of the grounds on the premise that the site was a Muslim cemetery.
•All of Jerusalem is layered in memory and history and it is not unusual for construction work in Jerusalem, a 3,000-year-old city, to encounter archeological artifacts and bones. That is why there is a special department called the Israel Antiquities Authority, charged with the special handling of any archaeological artifacts or remains that are found. Since the commencement of excavation, the project has been under their supervision, and every instruction has been followed. Most important, the Antiquities Authority, which is an independent body, supported the technical solutions that the Simon Wiesenthal Center filed with the Supreme Court.
•Given Jerusalem’s history, it is safe to assume that many prestigious academic and civic institutions may, in fact, be built on ancient remains. Human dignity demands that we respect and treat with reverence these remains of ancient civilizations without impeding the right of Jerusalem, or any other city, of building a future. If cities were not allowed to be built on the relics of previous civilizations, there would be no modern-day Rome, Jerusalem, or Cairo.
Photos:
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From 1923 to 1931, the Supreme Moslem Council developed a plan to establish a pan-Islamic University in the area that would have included all of would become Independence Park and our current site. The planned campus would have included many large buildings that would have required extensive excavation. The project was never realized because of lack of funds. It is worth noting that in 1929, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin el Husseini, initiated the building of the Palace Hotel in another part of the same cemetery and re-interred dozens of remains found there. The Mufti invoked the concept of mundras‚ in which a cemetery is considered to be abandoned and loses its sanctity. This concept is widely sanctioned and practiced throughout the Arab world, in Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the Palestinian territories. |
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The Museum is not being built on the nearby Mamilla cemetery, but on an adjacent site which, for nearly a half-century, served as Jerusalem's municipal car park where every day hundreds of Jews, Christians, and Muslims parked their cars. Electric, cable and sewer lines were laid below the ground. |
Editorials and Op-Ed Pieces:
êscroll below yellow highlighted article to read full article text ...
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CEMETERY INTO BUSINESS CENTRE
An area of over 450 dunams in the heart of Jerusalem, now forming the Mamillah Cemetery, is to be converted into a business centre. The townplan is being completed under the supervision of the Supreme Moslem Council in conjunction with the Government Town Planning Adviser. A six-storeyed building to house the Supreme Moslem Council and other offices, a four-storeyed hotel, a bank and other buildings suitable for a college, a club and a factory are to be the main structures. There will also be a park to be called the Salah ed Din Park, after the Moslem warrior of Crusader times.
The remains buried in the Cemetery are being transfer red to a spot round the tomb of al Sayid al Kurashi, ancestor of the Dajani family, in a 40 dunams walled reserve.
In an interview with “Al Wihda,” the Jerusalem weekly, a member of the Supreme Moslem Council stated that the use of Moslem cemeteries in the public interest had many precedents both in Palestine and elsewhere. He quoted the cases of the Bab al Sahira (Herod’s Gate) Cemetery, which formerly stretched down Saint Stephen‘s Gate; the Jaffa Cemetery, which was converted into a commercial centre and Queen Farida Square in Cairo, which not long ago was a cemetery.
The member added that the Supreme Moslem Council intended to publish a statement containing dispensations by Egyptian, Hejazi and Damascene clerics sanctioning the building programme. He pointed out that the work would be carried out in stages and by public tender. Several companies had already been formed in anticipation, and fueUsage1019=
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