Rose Klein-Herman Rader
The Atlanta Connection
The 'DT's International
Forum on Electoral
Reform is the brainchild
of Atlanta businessman
Bernard Marcus who,
along with his son Fred,
35, has provided most of
the funding for IDI
Forum. Fred Marcus at-
tended the session in Tel
Aviv this week.
Marcus said the
impetus for getting in-
volved with electoral
reform was the
"tremendous uproar in
the Diaspora over the
difficulties over forming a
government after the last
election," particularly
because of the Who Is A
Jew debate. "We believe
that it is better to treat
causes than symptoms."
The Marcuses contacted
Professor Ken Stein of
Atlanta's Emory Univer-
sity, who in turn con-
tacted the IDI, and the
Forum was born. "We
wanted- to establish a
body that would advance
the process. The IDI pro-
vides the direction; we
provide the resources,"
said Marcus.
As for the Forum's role,
Marcus said he feels very
strongly about self-
determination. "Israel
has to make its own deci-
sions; that's our underly-
ing theme. We act in an
advisory capacity. We
don't want to stimulate a
pressure campaign."
He said the Ya'akobi
Committee has been
"very responsible, com-
mitted and receptive" to
the Forum's input.
"Electoral reform deals
with fundamental
issues,'"' said Marcus. "We
want to help Israel
achieve a system which
promotes stable govern-
ments capable of making
decisions and facing ex-
ternal and internal
threats." He added that
most American Jewish
leaders are still unaware
of the project but he
believes that the'majority
of them see the need for
electoral reform in
Israel. ❑
1 NEWS
Happy 50th Anniversary
November 19, 1939
I
`Scoop' May Endanger
Israeli Captives' Lives
LOUIS RAPOPORT
Israel Correspondent
O
ne of Israel's best-
known journalists
sold the National
Broadcasting Company
(NBC) the story that broke
this week about an Israeli-
Iranian deal that included
oil purchases and a possible
swap of Moslem fundamen-
talist prisoners for three
Israeli soldiers held by Iran
or Iranian-backed groups.
- The Israeli journalist, who
was secretly paid in five fig-
ures by NBC with the money
deposited in an American
account, has jeopardized the
lives of the Israeli captives
"out of pure greed," accor-
ding to an informed source.
The same journalist was
paid $27,000 by NBC for
providing most of the mate-
rial used in last month's
NBC "scoop" alledging that
Israel and South Africa were
cooperating on nuclear and
missile projects.
Israeli officials refused all
comment this week on the
reported Iran-Israel oil and
prisoner-swap deal, but the
informed source said that
the journalist had blown the
cover off an extremely com-
plex operation, and that in
additoon to endangering the
lives of the Israeli hostages,
"he has cut the throat of
[Iranian President] Rafsan-
jani," who is considered to be
more moderate than the
others who rule Iran.
Many Israeli journalists
work for foreign media com-
panies on a full- or part-time
basis. To avoid Israeli Army
censorship, some reporters
used to leave the country to
file abroad. But nowadays,
because/of the communica-
tions revolution that permits
almost instant transmission /
across telephone lines, the
reporter simply sends his
dispatch, and then quotes
the foreign newspaper or
magazine in the Hebrew
press, saying, for example,
"NBC reports ... "
In the last week, the
goveinment has taken ac-
tion against three Israeli
reporters for being in an off-
bounds area of the West
Bank, against army orders.
The government's action has
been sharply criticized.
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