In all, the Oslo Accords cost the Israeli public approximately 423 billion NIS for Judea and Samaria alone. In addition, they continue to cost the taxpayers 15.3 billion NIS annually – with no end in sight.
The roughly 423 billion NIS that we have already paid is one and a half times more then the 284 billion NIS that [Moshe] Feiglin proposes.
Since the Oslo Accords were signed, instead of spending $500,000 on every Arab family that could be convinced to emigrate, we have spent $750,000. This sum is constantly increasing. It is a shame that we didn’t listen to Feiglin earlier. He made this proposal years ago, and this week he simply repeated it.
If so, a question remains: Why is forced Evacuation/Compensation for Jews considered reasonable, while voluntary Evacuation/Compensation for Arabs is considered unrealistic?
This is the real price we have paid for the Oslo Accords. An entire generation – people approximately 35 and under – has come of age after Oslo, recognizing the Arab claim to the Land of Israel. These Israelis have grown up believing that the “salt of the earth” is the Arab, while the Jew is living in the Jewish homeland on borrowed time. An entire generation has grown up thinking that they are guests in their own land, and that they must pay – and constantly bribe – the “true sons” of this land in order to justify their continued presence here.
This is why the proposal to encourage emigration is considered unrealistic today. Not because there is no money to enact it, for it actually saves money. Not because it is unethical, for there is no plan more ethical. Not because the Arabs are not interested, for many are very interested. Not because they have nowhere to go, for they have a wide array of possible destinations.
It is considered unrealistic simply because we have stopped believing that this is our land.
This is this plan’s real greatness. It is not the calculations and not the question of whether it will cost us half a million shekels or 300,000 shekels. It is all about the principle that dictates that when the movie ends, those who will be here will be the Jews. The greatness of this plan is that it gives the Oslo generation of “visitors” the political tools to once again develop their sense of belonging in their land.