February 2011 • Volume 5 • Issue 9 • Shevat / Adar 5771

China National Chemical Cor-poration (ChemChina) and Koor Industries of the IDB Group, one of Israel’s leading business groups, signed a stra-tegic cooperation agreement on 9 January 2011, regarding Makhteshim Agan Industries (MAI), one of the world’s lead-ing generic agrochemical com-pany.

This transaction will be the biggest deal of buying an Israeli company by a Chinese compa‑ny. Under the agreement MAI will become a private company held by ChemChina (60%) and Koor of the IDB Group (40%).

At an enterprise value of US$3.4 billion, this transaction is one of the largest in the ag‑rochemicals sector, the largest cross‑border acquisition of an Israeli company and one of the largest cross‑border acquisi‑tions by a Chinese State‑Owned Enterprise in the past five years.

The transaction will en‑able ChemChina to become the global leader in the generic agrochemicals industry. The

ChemChina to buy israel’s makhteshim agam industries

In thIs Issue

regional newsElsa enters Baccalaureate Programme 3-6

business newsBangalore and Israel expected to sign a MOU 8-9

art and CulturePianist Victor Goldberg takes

on Hong Kong 10-12

FeatureJews in Tianjin Photo Exhibition 13

one-to-oneFather Desbois the memory keeper 14

Feature1,800 year old bathing pool discovered 18

Jewish communities in asiaCandle-lighting and the months Parshas 19

By Philip Jay

February 2011 • Volume 5 • Issue 9 • Shevat / Adar 5771 www.jewishtimesasia.org

with a focus on China, which is the main engine growth of the global economy. I am pleased that our partners in ChemChina see this deal as an important step to strengthen ties with Israeli industry and the Israeli economy as a whole, and I am sure that this cooperation will contribute to strengthening the relationship between the People’s Republic of China and the State of Israel.”

Closing of the transaction is expected during the second or third quarter of 2011 and is still subject to certain approv‑als. Compass Advisers LLP is ChemChina’s financial adviser in this transaction.

group is a leading large‑scale chemical enterprise in China, mainly engaged in chemical materials, oil refining, agro‑chemicals, rubber tires and chemical equipment.

ChemChina has total assets of about US$29 billion and to‑tal sales of about US$23 billion in 2010.

MAI manufacturers and distributes branded off‑patent crop protection products. With sales of US$2.2 billion in 2009, MAI ranks seventh in global agrochemical companies and fourth in Europe.

Jianxin Ren, President of ChemChina, stated: “On behalf of ChemChina, I am delighted that we have signed agree‑ments to become partners in Makhteshim Agan with Koor Industries of the IDB Group. In the course of negotiations we have come to admire and re‑spect the inspired leadership of Mr Nochi Dankner, Chairman

of the IDB Group, and his tal‑ented and dedicated team. Our partnership has added signifi‑cance because it can strengthen the economic ties between the State of Israel and the People’s Republic of China in the fields of agriculture, chemical science and beyond.”

“I have great respect for the State of Israel, its people, and our new partners at the IDB Group. I am looking forward to many years of mutually prosperous partnership and friendship with Mr Dankner and thank him for investing his trust and friendship with us at ChemChina.” He added.

Nochi Dankner, Chairman of IDB Group, said, “The stra‑tegic partnership signed today is a significant milestone for the economic relations between China and Israel. This transac‑tion exemplifies the strategy of the IDB Group to be a leading Israeli business group, with ac‑tivity in emerging markets and

Crop protection products for the agriculture sector

Nochi Dankner, Chairman of IDB Group

Kung Hei Fat Choy !!Happy Chinese

New YearYear of the Rabbit

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Jewish Times Asia February 2011 3

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Jewish Times Asia

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Elsa enters Baccalaureate Programme

Hong Kong’s Elsa High School, East Asia’s first Jew-ish High School, has recently received authorisation as an International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme School. Elsa High will join the IB in-ternational community and announced that their current Grade 10 students will begin the Diploma programme in August 2011.

The school is only in its second year of operation, build‑ing on the strong foundations of Carmel’s Elementary School, now celebrating its 20th anni‑versary.

Considerable praise must be given to the Head Principal, Mrs Rachel Friedmann, her staff and the pupils.

“We applied for IB status as soon as the school opened, we

Yosef Banda released from Japan jail Yosef Banda, one of the three boys who were arrested and detained in prison in Japan for alleged drug smuggling, was released from detention on 17 January 2011, in Israel, to the delight of his family and friends from around the world who supported him.

David C. Buxbaum of Anderson & Anderson, who worked with Tasuku Matsuo of Matsuo & Kosugi on this case, expressed his joy upon receipt of the good news. “The release from jail of Mr Banda, was ful‑ly in accordance with the laws in Israel and those of Japan,” Buxbaum said. “The Ministry of Justice in Japan fully cooper‑ated in his release,” he said.

Buxbaum said the support

from the Jewish community throughout the world for the three fine boys from Bnei Brak, was of major importance in the ultimate success in bringing Yosef back to Israel and having him released from prison.

Certainly, the very impor‑tant help of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Shafran and Rav Itshe Rosengarten in helping to or‑ganise many aspects of this case and in providing religious and material support for Yosef Banda, were major contributors to its ultimate disposition .

Buxbaum noted that of the remaining two boys, Yakov Grunwald is still waiting for his appeal to be decided and if suc‑cessful he will be released im‑mediately. Yoel Goldstein, the

third young boy incarcerated in Japan, has still not completed his trial. Apparently, said Bux‑baum, the Goldstein team is hoping that if Yakov Grunwald is successful on his appeal, the trial judges in the Goldstein case will pay important atten‑tion to that case and perhaps find him innocent.

Yosef Banda was 17 years old when all this started. The other two boys and Yosef have been through a terrible ordeal. Yosef is now a mature young man. While the three boys were surely innocent, the person responsible for their horrible situation, Benzion Miller, has been sent to jail in Israel for his nefarious acts.

Courses on Sufism and Hebrew for world peaceJaipur’s Central University in India has recently announced a language course on Hebrew and Sufism.

The language course in He‑brew was in response to the in‑creasing bi‑lateral ties between the states of India and Israel.

“The growing strategic and diplomatic relationship between the two nations is generating

many opportunities for profes‑sionals. The proficiency in this language besides management or engineering degrees will open floodgates for our students in fields like space technology, agriculture and strengthen‑ing business ties,” said MM Salunkhe, vice‑chancellor of Central University.

The university may also

open a research centre on Juda‑ism and plans to invite Jewish and Sufis speakers to find out solutions to growing confronta‑tion between Muslims and Jews across the globe.

S y e d N a z m u l H a s a n Chisthy, a Sufi scholor has of‑fered his assistance to design the curriculum for research pro‑gramme in Sufism.

The granting of the IB status is considerable and rigorous but Elsa High managed to impress.

“The IB inspectors were particularly impressed by how similar our philosophy is to that of the IB. We too have a holistic approach to educa‑tion and view the whole child, emphasizing each aspect of the individual’s development. We accept non‑Jewish as well as Jewish students and all students learn together, with our Inter‑national Stream (as we call our non‑Jewish students), following an International Studies course whilst Jewish students study Hebrew and Jewish Studies.

With the addition of the IB status Elsa High can now com‑pete with other similar interna‑tional schools and attract more students from elsewhere.

wanted the right educational philosophy in place as soon as possible to provide our stu‑dents the opportunity to access the top universities worldwide. Moreover, the IB philosophy reflects our Jewish ethos of high educational standards, care for and development of the ‘whole’ student,” Fried‑mann commented.

Rachel Friedmann

Chief Rabbi of the UK and Commonwealth, Lord Sachs, together with his wife Lady Sachs joined the Ohel Leah Community in Hong Kong for a special Shabbat weekend during 14-15 January.

Lord and Lady Sachs are regular visitors to Hong Kong, warmly invited by the Trustees of Ohel Leah Synagogue. The Chief Rabbi gave a Shabbat morning sermon and shuir on Shabbat afternoon.

During their stay the Chief Rabbi and his wife, made an official visit to Car‑mel School and Elsa High and spoke to the students.

Chief Rabbi Sachs met the new Rabbi of Ohel Leah synagogue Rabbi Asher Oser and congratulated him on his appointment and wished him much success for the future.

An Israeli tourist was at the centre of a major in-cident in December on a ferry in New Zealand after the captain reported him to the police.

The ferry boat captain was unfamiliar with the religious wearing of tefillin (phylacteries) as boxes and wires were taped to his fore‑head and arms. New Zealand TV reported a “suspicious article was being carried by the passenger which very much looked like explo‑sives.”

Jewish websi tes de‑scribed the man as having worn his tefillin (phylacter‑ies) on the morning ferry voyage.

He was stopped by po‑lice at the ferry’s destination after it finished crossing the Cook Strait and was released by the police without being charged.

Chief Rabbi Sachs in Hong Kong

Wearing Tefillin on ferry creates panic

Mar 3,4,5,6,7Grand Theatre, HK Cultural Centre

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“Exhilaratingly physical” The Guardian

“High-energy classicism”

The New York Times

5 Mar evening performance is part of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series, funded by Offical Tour Sponsor

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Jewish Times Asia February 20114

Regional News

JWA bazaar brings much needed income

Rabbi Steinsaltz spends time with theHong Kong communityRabbi Steinsaltz visited Hong Kong this past December as part of the siyyum celebration in honour of the completion of his Hebrew translation and commentary, the Steinsaltz Talmud. Rabbi Steinsaltz’s monumental work, just com-pleted, over the past 45 years in 45 volumes.

His itinerary was to teach and study Talmud with students and he spent Thursday through Shabbat doing just that with the various communities including the orthodox Ohel Leah and UJC, the reform community.

Since learning Talmud means studying together with someone, Rabbi Steinsaltz chose to study with children at the Elsa High School, with students together with their parents, with the “Lunch and Learning Programme,” with Jewish educators and teachers and with private individuals in a family environment. His motto for this visit was “Teach and not Preach.”

Rabbi Steinsaltz has stated that no Jewish community can survive or has survived without Jewish learning.

Rabbi Steinsaltz appreciates the Hong Kong Jewish com‑munity, even though it is small in number, and not quite the

main centre of Jewish knowl‑edge and learning. Because, in spite of this, it is the only time given to promote Jewish learn‑ing, though Jews from different backgrounds and all ages are actually learning throughout the different sectors of the commu‑nity.

Here the rabbi sees that his life’s goal of making Jewish learning accessible to all Jews and inspiring Jewish learning for every Jew regardless of age or background will continue to be achieved, even after 45 years of his life’s work and 45 vol‑umes of the Steinsaltz Talmud.

In this way, he continues to reach out and inspire Jewish learning wherever he goes.

Rabbi Steinsaltz with Elsa High students

Rabbi Steinsaltz addressing students

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Another successful Jewish Womens Association (JWA) bazaar is over. This years event was held on 12 Decem-ber at the Island School.

The Hong Kong community was united again for the yearly event. Bigger than ever with more than 1100 boxes of items from brand clothes to brand shoes, electric goods, high qual‑ity toys and house ware. The bazaar was operated by more than 100 volunteers.

D a p h n a P e y s e r , J WA chairperson says that the total income of the bazaar was 5% higher than last year reaching a figure close to HK$600,000.

“The JWA is already working on next year’s bazaar with the intention of making it bigger and more welcoming to people from every corner of Hong Kong.”

The food section provided the biggest news this year, pro‑viding hot food on Saturday night for the set up and pre‑sale volunteers, and with the offer‑ing of kosher falafel and hot food section which was organ‑ised by Goldie Avtzon and some orthodox community members.

A Carmel Fire Emergency Fund stall operated as well, re‑ceiving donations which will go directly to fire victims.

Shoppers searching for bargains

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Regional News

India and Israel open centre of agriculture excellence

UN Holocaust Day remembered

Hong Kong’s Jewish com-munity gathered for the UN International Holocaust Re-membrance Day Ceremony on 26 January at the Jewish Community Centre.

The event was very well at‑tended with over 300 members and invited guests packing the Garden Room. Keynote speak‑er was Father Patrick Desbois who told his amazing story on his dedication to find the mass gravesites of 1.5 million Jews exterminated by the Nazi’s in

Ukraine during WW11.

A special photograph ex‑hibition was on display inside The Garden Room showing many of the witnesses who came forward from Ukraine.

The evening included a short video of the work carried out by Father Desbois during his time spent in the Ukraine.

Other participants during

the programme included the Sh-ema recital by Barbie Goldfoot, the Lighting of the Memorial Candles by Elsa High School students. Kel Maleh Rachamim, was recited by Rabbi Morde‑chai Avtzon, a testimonial was given by local Hong Kong resi‑dent and Holocaust survivor, Sylvain Gilbert and an address was given by Amikam Levy, Is‑rael’s Consul General to Hong Kong.

Student enjoys Israeli hospitality

Agricultural cooperation be-tween India and Israel is mov-ing forward. Union Agricul-ture Minister Sharad Pawar, Chief Minister of Haryana Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Isreal’s Ambassador to In-dia, Mark Sofer, inaugurated last month the first Centre of Excellence of Vegetables at Gharaunda in district Karnal, Haryana. Over 3,000 farmers attended the ceremony.

While addressing the audi‑ence during the ceremony, Mr Pawar said “Indo‑Israel rela‑tions are historical. Israel is a world leader in developing ag‑riculture techniques, of which this centre is a living example.”

Bhupinder Singh Hooda said, “India and Israel share common problems of scarcity of irrigation water for crops and this centre of excellence will be a great source for teaching the Indian farmers how to combat the problems of scarcities of land and water supply. The cen‑tre aims at increasing the pro‑

duction of vegetables in India by using the Israeli expertise of minimum water usage.”

Israel’s Ambassador, Mark Sofer, stressed during his ad‑dress that “the results of this Centre of Excellence in Hary‑ana will not only benefit the farmers of India, introduce them to new technologies and improve their world, but also, this cooperation will work to strengthen this great country of India as a whole and will place it at the forefront of world ag‑riculture and food supply, not as a recipient, but as a supplier and a donor.”

The initiative is part of a series of agricultural proj‑ects across India, which were launched following an agricul‑tural cooperation agreement signed between Israel and In‑dia in 2007. According to the agreement, Israel will supply the knowledge and India will fi‑nance the projects that will help rural farmers make the transi‑tion into modern agriculture.

A Taiwanese student shared her experiences in Israel on the sideline of a ceremony in which officials represent-ing Taiwan and Israel signed a memorandum of under-standing on youth affairs be-tween the two countries.

Ms Tang said she would never forget Israeli shop own‑ers who, after being told by her host family that she was from Taiwan, enthusiastically introduced local food to her and invited her to taste.

Tang, a student of Yang Ming Senior High School in Taipei, said she found that “the Israeli people are warm and hospital like us.”

She and Lin Yun, of Na‑tional Taiwan University, were among 10 Taiwanese students who were part of two groups invited in the past two years to visit Israel.

Simona Halperin, repre‑sentative of the Israel Eco‑

nomic and Cultural Office in Taipei, signed the MOU on behalf of the Israeli govern‑ment.

Israel began hosting an annual International Youth Environmental Leadership Conference last year to which students from Taiwan, Germa‑ny and the Netherlands were invited.

National Youth Commis‑sion Minister Wang Yu‑ting, who was also present to wit‑ness the signing of the MOU, said the pact turned a new page in youth exchanges be‑tween the two countries.

In conjunction with the government’s plan to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of China, she said her commis‑sion will invite Israeli youth to experience Taiwan’s cul‑ture and share with Taiwan’s people their love of peace, freedom and democracy.

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Father Patrick Desbois Sylvain Gilbert

Rabbi Mordechai Avtzon

The opening ceremony

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Students signing a thank you card

Goldie and Rabbi Avtzon

Regional News

Yad Vashem pays tribute to Aboriginal activist William Cooper

Chabad of Asia’s 25th Anniversary Dinner

Keynote address by Rabbi Mordechai Avtzon

Shluchim on their feet!!

Attendees at the dinner

member of the Hong Kong Jewish community, charmed attendees as Master of Ceremo‑nies. Rabbi Yosef Chaim Kan‑tor, Head Shliach to Thailand, delivered greetings and com‑municated the span of Chabad’s reach and affect in the region to an applauding crowd that hon‑oured Asia’s 30 plus Shluchim, many of whom attended the Gala. Rabbi Kantor made spe‑cial mention of the Shluchot for their role in Chabad’s expan‑sion.

Headlining the evening were Shmuli and Eli Marcus of 8th Day – a new Chassidic Rock Band from the West Coast of the USA. As they played Kol Haolam Kulo the band led the crowd in an inspired role call.

“If anyone here has been to Chabad of Cambodia please rise and remain standing,” be‑gan Shmuli Marcus, the band’s lead singer. He then continued naming countries and cities in Asia which have a permanent Chabad presence, motivating thunderous applause. Conclud‑ing with Hong Kong’s three centres in “Lantau, Kowloon and Hong Kong Island,” the band carried their hundreds of

listeners into joyous singing and dancing.

Before he could deliver his keynote speech, Rabbi Avtzon was recognised with an extend‑ed standing ovation which gave introduction to his deliverance of standing orders.

Dur ing h i s pass iona te speech, Rabbi Avtzon recog‑nised all the lay leaders and community members who had partnered with Chabad over the past 25 years. Drawing on the weekly portion that related the Revelation at Sinai, Rabbi Avt‑zon suggested that this event, too, had a purpose for the pres‑ent and a mandate for the future.

While Chabad’s 26 centres were making a huge difference to Jews throughout Asia, there was still much more to be done. Further expansion was needed so that Chabad could be true to its mission ‑ For Every Jew: Everywhere.

Concluding his remarks, Rabbi Avtzon invited everyone to meet some of the “Faces of Chabad,” referring to the name of a new film which highlights Chabad of Asia’s new motto.

Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd visited Yad Vash-em in December to participate in an event marking establish-ment of Chair for the Study of Resistance during the Ho-locaust, in tribute to William Cooper.

The Chair was established with the support of Australia Israel Cultural Exchange group, which wanted to express ap‑preciation of William Cooper, leader of the Australian Aborig‑ines League protest against the Nazi German government in the wake of the Kristallnacht po‑grom against Germany’s Jews in 1938.

Cooper, led a rare individual protest against the Nazis in Australia. He died in 1941 at the age of 81. It marked the first time that Israel’s national memorial to the Holocaust hon‑oured an indigenous Australian.

Cooper, the head of the Australian Aborigines League and an elder of the Yorta Yorta tribe, himself had no rights in his homeland in December 1938 when he marched to the German Consulate to deliver a petition protesting the “cruel persecution” of the Jews.

Although he was denied en‑try to the consulate, his march is believed to be the only private protest against the Kristallnacht pogroms.

Israeli Education Minister Gideon Sa’ar at the ceremony said Cooper’s “extraordinary act... reminds us that human compassion can transcend bor‑ders, oceans and cultures.”

Unveiling the plaque in honour of Cooper, Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd lamented Australia’s inaction at the Evian Conference on Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution.

“Australia, like so many countries, closed our hearts,” he said. “What we did then as a nation was wrong, just plain wrong.”

Fifteen members of Coo‑per’s family traveled to Jerusa‑lem for the ceremony.

Cooper’s grandson, Alfred Turner, said, “We’ve always known about his story [and] we’ve always wanted other people to know about it.”

Hundreds of members, ad-mirers, and supporters of the combined Jewish communi-ties of Asia joined together to celebrate Chabad of Asia’s sil-ver anniversary on Tu B’shvat Day which this year fell on 21 January.

The event was held in Hong Kong, where Chabad first planted its seeds in the Orient 25 years ago with the arrival of Rabbi Mordechai and Goldie Avtzon. Today, over 26 Chabad Houses comprise the fabric of Jewish life in the Far‑East.

The gala dinner which was held at the Aberdeen Marina Club, is the second of four cel‑ebrations planned to mark this milestone.

Ari Mervis, a respected

Kosher Burns Night offeringA Burns Night without the traditional haggis was held on 25 January at the King David Room, Hong Kong Jewish Community Centre.

The event was organised and hosted by resident Richard Winston. The star attractions was the whisky tasting, and the delicious specially prepared Scottish dinner. The five Scot‑tish whiskies selected were: Aberlour, Glen Ord, Caol Ila,

Auchentoshan and Glen Scotia.

The evening was piped in by a Scottish bagpipe player which truly set the tone. All the men wore special Scottish tartan kip-pot, in all 28 attendees.

Other notable events during the evening included poems re‑cited from Robert Burns works and the evening ended with the traditional rendition of Auld Lang Syne.

Rabbi Einhorn receives a multi thank you from studentsTaipei’s Rabbi Ephraim Ein-horn received acclamation for a speech he delivered recently at the National Taiwan Uni-versity in Taipei, one of most prestigious university’s in Tai-wan.

Rabbi Einhorn spoke on Judaism for about 90 minutes, followed by a Q&A session. About 150 students were pres‑ent. This is the fifth time he has addressed students at the uni‑versity.

After the event many of the

students decided to thank Rabbi Einhorn personally and pre‑

pared a special signed “Thank You” card to give to him.

Mar 3 (thu) 4 (fri)

Concert Hall, Hong Kong Cultural Centre | 8:00pm | $240 - $780©

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Sir Mark Elder

Programme details and artists are subject to change.

Follow the HKArtsFestival onwww.hk.artsfestival.org

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Mar 3 Adès Dances from Powder Her FaceElgar Cello Concerto in E minor, Op 85

Alban Gerhardt (Cello)Vaughan Williams Symphony No 2, A London Symphony

Mar 4 Bax TintagelBritten Four Sea Interludes and Passacaglia

from Peter Grimes, Op 33Sibelius Symphony No 1 in E minor, Op 39

On Alban Gerhardt’s performance of Elgar’s Cello Concerto:

“Celestial performance leaves audience in heaven”Express and Star

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Britain’s Oldest Professional Orchestra

Programme opening performance sponsored by

William Cooper

110214_Final(dtp1).indd 6 15/02/2011 11:58 AM


Mar 3 (thu) 4 (fri)

Concert Hall, Hong Kong Cultural Centre | 8:00pm | $240 - $780

© J

oel C

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er F

ildes

, Sim

on D

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Conductor

Sir Mark Elder

Programme details and artists are subject to change.

Follow the HKArtsFestival onwww.hk.artsfestival.org


Mar 3 Adès Dances from Powder Her FaceElgar Cello Concerto in E minor, Op 85

Alban Gerhardt (Cello)Vaughan Williams Symphony No 2, A London Symphony

Mar 4 Bax TintagelBritten Four Sea Interludes and Passacaglia

from Peter Grimes, Op 33Sibelius Symphony No 1 in E minor, Op 39

On Alban Gerhardt’s performance of Elgar’s Cello Concerto:

“Celestial performance leaves audience in heaven”Express and Star

© Th

omas

Rab

sch

Limited

Tickets

Britain’s Oldest Professional Orchestra

Programme opening performance sponsored by

110214_Final(dtp1).indd 7 15/02/2011 11:58 AM


known as pipino, are grown for its immature fruits, which are used in salads (slicing type) or are soaked in brine for pickles.

Philippine farmer learns from Israels agriculture technics

Business News

Bangalore and Israel expected to sign a MOULocal newspapers in India are reporting the Indian State of Bangalore has chalked out ambitious plans for promot-ing its semiconductor indus-tries, and is expected to sign a Memorandum of Under-standing (MoU) with Israel’s Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS) of the Ministry of In-dustry, Trade and Labour.

Israel’s OCS oversees gov‑ernment sponsored support of R&D catalysing development of innovative state‑of‑the‑art technologies. The MoU, which is in its final stages, will see two‑way transfer of technology in the semiconductor space be‑tween Israel and Karnataka.

The move follows the recent visit of a high‑profile delegation from Israel to scout for tie‑ups with the semiconductor indus‑tries in that country.

India is recognised for its design capabilities and chip manufacturing, but has been restricted to captive centres for

Zvi A. Vapni

Pipinos

Avi Paz

Paz named advisor to Diamond Administration of China

Avi Paz, President of the Is-rael Diamond Exchange and World Federation of Diamond Bourses, as well as founder and CEO of Avi Paz Group, has been appointed, on a three-year term as advisor to the Diamond Administration of China (DAC).

Established in 2000, the DAC is a government organi‑sation charged with supervis‑ing the Shanghai Diamond Ex‑change and overseeing China’s diamond imports and exports.

Paz was appointed, along with fellow Israelis WDC Presi‑dent Eli Izhakoff; WFDB Hon‑orary Life President Shmuel Schnitzer; and IDMA President Moti Ganz, at the 2010 China Diamond Conference in Shang‑hai. Paz called the number of Is‑raelis named DAC advisors “an

honour” for Israel’s diamond industry.

The new DAC advisors held their first meeting at the conference itself and discussed aspects of China’s diamond in‑dustry that could be improved. They also shared ideas on how to increase the country’s dia‑mond trade and put together a three‑year forecast for China’s diamond industry.

defence and aerospace, while Asian counterparts have pre‑ferred outsourced partners for chip fabrication, assembly, test and packing.

This is because these coun‑tries have national agendas to promote semiconductor indus‑try through proactive policies. In fact, sources said, Karnataka is also keen to take a delegation to China and enter into an MoU with that country. Currently, this

is in an exploratory state, the source added.

According to India Semi‑conductor Association‑Frost & Sullivan Report, the Indian electronics total market and to‑tal available market is expected to grow at around 19.8% and 21.4%, respectively to reach US$58.4 billion and US$37.1 billion in 2011 as against US$40.7 billion and US$25.4 billion respectively in 2009.

Israel and Philippines expect strong trade

Bioview signs Japanese deal

Yulon to set up battery-exchange stations with Better Place

During a recent meeting of the Israeli Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, members were very optimistic and posi-tive that Israel trade with and investments in the Philippines will grow this year, even as instability in nearby Egypt could make for more caution, officials said.

“I think [trade and invest‑ments] will continue growing. Israel was not affected by the recession because of its robust banking sector,” Israel Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines President Isidor C. Gilan said on the sidelines of the group’s membership meeting.

Bioview Limited, a leading equipment maker for labo-ratory's, has sold a cancer screening system to a Japa-nese laboratory. The company announced the deal on 30 Jan-uary. The new order is worth around NIS 1 million.

This is the second to the laboratory and the third such system to a Japanese client. The product for cancer screening, monitors automating microsco‑

Yulon Group, a major car-maker in Taiwan, reportedly signed a cooperation agree-ment with Better Place of Is-rael, an electric vehicle (EV) battery-exchange solution provider, and plans to set up many battery-exchange sta-tions in Taiwan, This accord-ing to the Chinese-language economic daily newspaper Economic Daily News.

Better Place has been ac‑tively trying to develop battery‑exchange systems in different markets, including a sample in Kanagawa Prefecture of Japan. Industry insiders say that the most expensive part of an EV

battery‑exchange project is the cost for battery logistics and stock, which might cost about NT$10 billion (US$333.3 mil‑lion) when the domestic market is mature.

The battery‑recharging and ‑exchange infrastructure is one of the most important parts of a successful EV‑operation plan, besides vehicle safety and pric‑es.

Taiwan’s Environmen‑tal Protection Administration (EPA) has agreed to subsidise private companies in Taiwan to set up recharging or battery‑exchange stations throughout the island.

And while “business and the lack of stability don’t go well together,” ventures between the Philippines and Israel are still expected to increase due to po‑tential for tie‑ups in agriculture

py testing, increasing laboratory productivity, reducing the rate of false‑positive results, and en‑abling physicians and research‑ers to make more accurate and earlier patient assessments.

Bioview also has developed blood, urine, bone marrow and amniotic fluid tests. Headquar‑tered in Rehovat, Israel it has operations in Europe, US and the Far East.

and IT, Israeli Ambassador Zvi A. Vapni commented.

“Our expertise in agriculture could come in handy for the people in the Philippines,” Vap‑ni said. “I do believe that even if the development has been slow, the potential for business is there and it exists,” Mr Vapni said.

Israel’s edge in IT could also complement the skills of the la‑bour force and the electronics industry here, Mr Vapni added.

Gilan went on to note that opportunities for tie‑ups also ex‑ist in outsourcing and the trade in chemicals and cosmetics.

Crop farmer Reynaldo Hilar-io from Nueva Ecija, who lost all his seasonal tomato crops last year due to the flooding saw a window of opportunity by shifting to special Philip-pine cucumber production.

Learning from a two‑week training on vegetable production at the Center for International Agricultural Development Co‑operation, Ministry of Agricul‑ture and Rural Development in Israel, he decided to plant cu‑cumber instead.

This way, he could still

make use of his remaining to‑mato trellises. The provincial government fully supported his new venture, with the Provin‑cial Agriculture Office of Nueva Ecija providing him with two green houses which he now uses for cucumber and onion seed‑ling production.

During a recent open day event, Hilario showcased his 3,000‑square metre cucumber production area and his tomato trellis, which he recycled for growing cucumber.

Philippine cucumbers, also

110214_Final(dtp1).indd 8 15/02/2011 11:58 AM


Business News

Israel to circulate new coin and bank notes

Israel to collaborate with India and China and approves Green Energy Plan In a report published by The Israel Project (TIP), a non-profit educational organi-sation, Israel has approved a national plan to develop technologies to reduce the global use of oil in transpor-tation.

The plan encourages in‑vestment and technological innovation in fields that are cleaner and smarter and do not harm the environment, or emit pollutants and greenhouse gases.

According to the report, Israel will invest US$ 408 mil‑lion (1.5 billion shekels) over the coming decade in a joint formula that includes both Is‑raeli and foreign governmen‑tal and non‑governmental in‑stitutions.

The plan aims to identify technologies and innovation, mostly in liquid fuels, that can curb the world’s growing oil demand for transportation. Collaboration with India and China, leading emerging mar‑ket economies, is a large part of the plan.

The plan is a strategic goal of the Israeli government. “Oil addiction has led to the Western world’s dependence on the oil countries and significantly dam‑ages the environment,” Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Ne‑tanyahu told the Cabinet.

“Therefore, the intention is to harness strong research, sci‑entific and technological forces and link them with other bod‑ies,” he added.

“While the Middle East, home to three quarters of the world’s oil, is growing disturb‑ingly unstable, Israel has made a historical decision to take a lead in ushering the world into the post oil era,” one of the ar‑chitects of the plan, Gal Luft, told The Israel Project.

“Israel’s ambition is not only to wean itself from oil but to be a force of change for the entire world, leading techno‑logical innovation in alternative fuel technologies,” Luft added.

Israeli companies have teamed with China and India to push alternative energy projects.

A new coin has been minted by Israel’s central bank to honour the late prime minis-ter Manachem Begin for the Nobel Peace Prize.

This is the second time a Nobel Prize winner was hon‑oured with a coin, the first was for Shmuel Yosef Agnon who was awarded the prize for Lit‑erature in 1966.

The coin was sculpted by Tidhar Dagan based on a de‑sign by Meir Eshel. The leg‑end “Menachem Begin, Nobel Peace Prize” is engraved around the perimeter in English and Hebrew with the date “1978” in between. The side bearing the face value was designed by Gideon Keich and shows a

faithful recreation of one of the most memorable handshakes in history – that between President Sadat, President Jimmy Carter and Begin on the lawn of the White House after they signed the peace treaty. The portrait of “White House handshake’ is the first appearance of a US presi‑dent on an Israeli coin.

Israel’s central bank says it will also issue new Israeli bank notes in 2012 in denominations of 20, 50, 100 and 200 shekels. The bills will also feature the images of Nobel‑winning au‑thor Shai Agnon and poet Ra‑chel.

The bank said it chose to focus on two aspects of Israel’s history — politics and culture.

Rabin, Begin, Rachel and Agnon (illustration)

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China has become the world’s largest manufacturer of solar panels. Its State Coun‑cil announced in 2009 that it will reduce the intensity of carbon dioxide emissions (per unit of GDP) in 2020 by 40 % compared with its 2005 level, China’s Xinhua News report‑ed.

Yet, China’s economy is heavily reliant on coal, which is still expected to account for two‑thirds of its electricity generation capacity in 2020.

To meet its growing de‑mand for electricity, China will need to add nearly nine times as much electricity‑gen‑eration capacity in the coming decade. It is aiming to develop renewable and nuclear ener‑gies.

India is also aiming to im‑prove energy standards over the coming years. It is expect‑ed to release “energy efficien‑cy targets for eight industrial sectors” in a move that may save 10 million tons of energy by 2013‑14.Je

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110214_Final(dtp1).indd 9 15/02/2011 11:58 AM


Art and Culture

Israeli Film Festival - an inspiring cinematic tour - ended with successThe Israeli Film Festival 2011 in Hong Kong was success-fully held from 11-23 January 2011 with a total ticket sale of 91.56%. Thanks to public sup-port, 10 of all the 13 screen-ings were full houses.

Jointly presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) of the Hong Kong SAR Government and the Consulate General of Israel, the festival showcased nine films at the Lecture Halls of Hong Kong Space Museum, Hong Kong Science Museum and the Cinema of Hong Kong Film Archive.

Officiating at the opening ceremony were the Consul General of Israel, Ambassador Amikam Levy, the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mrs Rita Lau and the Assistant Director (Heri‑tage and Museums) of LCSD, Dr Louis Ng. Other guests included Deputy Secretary for Home Affairs, Ms Salina Yan, the Director of Protocol, Mr Tony Nguyen, director Johnnie

To Kei‑fung, local film and art celebrity Lau Siu‑ming.

Addressing the guests and media at the ceremony, Ambas‑sador Levy said, “Israel is not only about high‑tech, energy, health care and agriculture, in which we had proven our inno‑vation abilities, it is also about the movie industry ‑ which has become very impressive and unique especially in the past 10 years.” He believes it would be right to bring Israeli films to the Hong Kong people, for the exchanges of informa‑tion and experiences, since the Hong Kong film industry is considered to be very developed and very successful.

Secretary Lau mentioned the Memorandum of Under‑standing on cultural exchange that Hong Kong and Israel signed in June last year, an ex‑citing step forward and certainly there will be more such col‑laboration in the pipeline. She welcomes overseas film makers to capitalise on the experience,

the contacts and the know‑how that Hong Kong’s film industry has to make the most out of the new opportunities emerging in Mainland China.

Dr Ng noted that Israeli films have gained wide recogni‑tion in world cinema, winning numerous awards at various film festivals in recent years. He said that the films selected for the Festival would show the rapid development and achievements of Israel’s dynamic and growing film industry.

The opening film was the espionage thriller The Debt (2007), which recently under‑went an acclaimed English language makeover by director John Madden.

Other films shown included the bittersweet comedy Five Hours from Paris, the touch‑ing Eli & Ben and Out of Sight. Spring 1941 focuses on a war‑

time love triangle, The Assas-sin Next Door stars new Bond femme fatale Olga Kurylenko and Maya, to Touch the Soul takes a look at the pursuit of art and love. There are also two

documentaries ‑ Ida’s Dance Club and Ladino - 500 Years Young.

English subtitles were avail‑able for all the films shown and some had Chinese subtitles.

Internationally acclaimed Is-raeli pianist Michael Tsalka performed with the Filhar-monika orchestra conducted by Gerald Selonga. The event took place on 18 January at the Philam Life Theatre.

The programme included re‑citals from Rossini, Mozart and

Beethoven. Tsalka also gave a Masterclass on 19 January.

Tsalka, has won numerous prizes, awards and fellowships in various places in Asia, Eu‑rope, Canada and USA.

Born in Tel‑Aviv, he gradu‑ated from Tel‑Aviv University and continued his studies in Germany, Italy and Philadel‑phia. He holds various degrees including a doctorate in piano performance. Being a versatile musician, he performs solo and chamber music repertoire from the Baroque to the Contem‑porary periods on the modern piano, harpsichord, fortepiano, clavichord and positive organ.

The Filharmonika is also quickly gaining recognition as a formidable classical ensembles in the country and very much in demand.

The ribbon cutting ceremony

(From left) Dr Louis Ng, Ms Salina Yan and Amikam Levy

Michael Tsalka

Tsalka performs in the Philippines

110214_Final(dtp1).indd 10 15/02/2011 11:59 AM


Art and Culture

Pianist Victor Goldberg takes on Hong Kong

Jewish Times Asia has been covering Victor Goldberg’s Asian tour over the years and we caught up with the gifted pianist in Hong Kong. The Ukrainian born artist made aliah to Israel in 1991 at age of 13. Goldberg’s father was a published professor of mathematics and his mother a linguist. Though the family was somewhat musical, Gold-berg says, “I always felt that I didn’t choose music; music chose me.”

Much has been written about Goldberg’s musical edu‑cation. “Throughout my life I had amazing teachers. I’m lucky that I had good training, but in the end I feel that an art‑ist must be his own teacher. He has to be able to find his own personal approach, his own personal voice, because without it there is no point in playing piano, at least for the public.”

Goldberg wants the audi‑ence to get something out of his performances. He sees each concert as an opportunity not only to entertain, but also to create an experience for those who attend. His goal is for the audience to sense the same state of awe as he feels when he plays the music.

“When people go to a con‑cert they are not expecting the same interpretation of a piece, they want to hear a new ap‑proach.” The pianist brings to life the music and the music is “a creation of both composer and performer. You hear both of their personalities,” he adds.

“You never know what to expect because it is a creation

New exhibit chronicles the story of the Bnei Menashe

Hong Kong Ballet’s Artistic Director visits IsraelAs the guest of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms Mad-eleine Onne, Artistic Direc-tor of The Hong Kong Ballet, visited Israel during 7-12 De-cember 2010. To participate in the project “International Dance Exposure” – the Is-raeli dance platform for the world, taking place at The Suzanne Dellal Centre for Dance and Theatre in Tel Aviv, Israel.

The international exposure event is a significant breaking border factor to the unique‑ness of the Israeli dancing cre‑ativity, which the professional guests get to experience.

While in Israel, Onne was exposed to a large variety of dancers and performers, and presented to the leading cho‑

awarded The Royal Swedish Opera’s Gold Medal of Hon‑our in April 2009.

The Hong Kong Ballet is one of the leading classical ballet companies in Asia and is becoming internationally recognised as a world‑class institution with an identity that fully reflects the unique vitality of Hong Kong.

The signing of a Memo‑randum of Understanding on Cultural Co‑operation be‑tween the governments of Is‑rael and the Hong Kong SAR last June, will strengthen co‑operation in the fields of cul‑ture, the arts and sport. This trip was organised within the framework of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to promote cultural exchanges.

the Royal Swedish Ballet from 1984 to 2002, and is renowned for her engaging style and dra‑matic talent.

In 1996, she founded an off‑shoot of the main company, Stockholm 59 Degrees North. The company presented Swed‑ish and international contem‑porary choreography, featuring 15 of the best soloists. It has garnered critical acclaim ever since their spectacular debut at the prestigious Pillow Festival in New York in 1997.

Onne has received a long list of honours. She is one of only five women to have re‑ceived the title of ‘Royal Court Dancer’ from HRH King Carl XVI Gustaf, as well as the pres‑tigious Royal medal Litteris et Artibus. She was most recently

Madeleine Onne

that happens in the moment.” Goldberg researches, prac‑tices and works, sometimes for years, on his chosen pieces of music. He says, “Some pieces mature over years; like a good wine.”

When performing, he does so with his entire body. “I feel the music very deeply and I want to express and deliver to people what I have to say. In this way the music captures me so much that sometimes I can‑not sit still,” he jokes.

He believes that in order for the audience to be involved at 100%, the performer has to be giving 400% himself. At his concerts the energy doesn’t flow only from the stage and the artist to the audience, the audience is clearly inspiring the artist as well.

Goldberg has an incredible gift and people are finding out

just how brilliantly talented he is.

Since July 2010, audiences in the Philippines, Myanmar, Thailand, Taiwan, China and now Hong Kong have had an opportunity to see him live. While in Hong Kong he per‑formed a number of private concerts, including one at the newly opened Helis & Tang store. At Discovery College in Discovery Bay he offered a family concert and he also taught numerous master classes at various educational institu‑tions.

Goldberg is now heading to Washington D.C. to per‑form at the National Gallery of Art, then to the University of California in Fresno to judge a piano competition and finally to Virginia for other concerts. Goldberg was hoping to get a short break sometime in March.

An exhibition created by Shavei Israel (Isreal Re-turns), an organisation that reaches out to ancestry roots of Jewish people in the world, showed the modern day Bnei Menasha community in a new exhibition that was held in Is-rael in December.

Minister of Immigrant Absorption Sofa Landver, un‑veiled the new exhibition de‑picting the story of this unique community and chronicles in recognition of the Bnei Me-nashe’s successful absorption in Israel.

Also attending the cer‑emony was Shavei Israel Founder and Chairman Mi‑chael Freund; Kiryat Arab Municipality Head Malachi Levinger; and Bnei Menashe community leaders.

The Bnei Menashe (He‑brew for “sons of Manasseh”) claim descent from one of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel, who were sent into exile by the As‑syrian Empire more than 27 centuries ago.

They live in India’s north‑eastern border states of Mani‑pur and Mizoram.

Throughout their exile, the Bnei Menashe nonetheless continued to practice Juda‑ism just as their ancestors did, including observing Shabbat, keeping kosher, celebrating the festivals and following the laws of family purity.

And they continued to nourish the dream of one day returning to the land of their ancestors, the Land of Israel.

In recent years, Shavei Israel has brought some 1,700 Bnei Menashe to Israel. Another 7,200 still remain in India, waiting for the day when they too will be able to return to Israel and the Jewish people.

Shavei Israel has the sup‑port of different rabbinical au‑thorities in Israel and the US.

Jewish Times Asia covered a story on China's Kaifeng descendants making aliyah to Israel organised by Shavei Israel in December 2009.

Community’s daily life

reographers and ballet groups in Israel. She would examine possibilities of future coopera‑tion between Israeli dancers and The Hong Kong Ballet.

Born in Stockholm, Onne has established herself as a formidable artistic force to be

reckoned with in the interna‑tional dance world. One of Sweden’s leading ballerinas, she was Artistic Director of the Royal Swedish Ballet from 2002‑ 2008, the worlds fourth oldest ballet company.

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110214_Final(dtp1).indd 11 15/02/2011 11:59 AM


Israel hotel hosting renowned Japanese chef

Art and Culture

Braginsky collection of rare manuscripts and books premieres at Israel Museum

master in Australia, specialised in Western cooking at the Aqua‑vit restaurant in New York, and joined Ramsay’s chain of restaurants about five years ago when he moved to London. About three years ago, Ramsay made him in charge of his only restaurant in Asia – Gordon Ramsay at Conrad Tokyo.

Within a year, the restau‑rant was awarded a start by the prestigious Michelin guide, after Maeda combined classic European cuisine with Japanese techniques.

Last year, Maeda arrived for a private visit in Israel, and re‑turned again recently, this time as Brueh’s guest. “I was in‑trigued by Tel Aviv and thought that it would be a great oppor‑tunity to present my culinary skills there,” he said.

Together with the Hilton chef, he came up with a West‑ern kosher menu, which will be offered to the wide audience at the hotel’s King Solomon res‑taurant.

The meals will also be served with wines from the Go‑lan Heights region.

For next three months, the Tel Aviv Hilton will be serving meals planned by Chef Shinya Maeda from Gordon Ram-say’s restaurant in Tokyo.

This is part of a farewell ini‑tiative planned by fellow chefs from all around the world, as Chef Avigdor Brueh of the Tel Aviv Hilton Hotel is planning to retire in the coming year. Until he does he will be visited by famous chefs from different places across the globe.

Maeda, 38, was once a sushi

Tel Aviv beach

Bouton Haggadah

Charlotte von Rothschild Haggadah

Tel Aviv, Israel’s leisure, en-tertainment and cultural center, continues to win ac-colades and prizes, with this week’s announcement by the Lonely Planet Guide naming the coastal metropolis third in their list of the world’s top 10 cities.

Coming in behind New York City and Tangier, Tel Aviv is hailed for its art and music scenes and its relaxed liberal culture.

“Tel Aviv is the total flipside of Jerusalem, a modern Sin City on the sea rather than an ancient Holy City on a hill,” the publisher of the popular travel guides said on its website. “He‑donism is the one religion that unites its inhabitants. There are more bars than synagogues, God is a DJ and everyone’s body is a temple.”

According to Lonely Planet, Tel Aviv, which is “by far the most international city in Isra‑el,” is also “a truly diverse 21st‑century Mediterranean hub. Thanks to its university and mu‑seums, it is also the greenhouse for Israel’s growing art, film and music scenes.”

Earlier last year, the pres‑tigious National Geographic Magazine named Tel Aviv as one of the world’s top ten beach cities, dubbing it “Miami Beach on the Med.”

It was also voted the third best city in Africa and the Mid‑dle East by the New York‑based Travel + Leisure Magazine; one of the world’s top “Party Cit‑ies” by Forbes Magazine and the Lonely Planet Travel Guide and was included in the Louis Vuitton 2010 European Cities Guide.

Tel Aviv named as the third best city in the world by Lonely Planet Travel Guide

Chef Shinya Maeda

The Israel Museum, Jerusa-lem, will present one of the most important private col-lections of illuminated He-brew manuscripts and printed books in the exhibition, A Jour-ney through Jewish Worlds, highlights from the Braginsky Collection of Hebrew Manu-scripts and Printed Books, on view from 1 December 2010 through 30 April 2011.

The exhibition marks the first opportunity in Israel to ex‑perience examples from the no‑table library of Swiss collector René Braginsky. The collection comes to Israel following an in‑ternational tour, which included Amsterdam and New York.

Its presentation at the Israel Museum will be complemented by related objects from the Mu‑seum’s own Jewish Art and Life holdings, providing insight into a vibrant and artistic Jewish culture around the world.

“The Braginsky Collection highlights the artistic merits of the illuminated Hebrew manu‑script, throughout its history and in parallel with its literary sig‑nificance to the Jewish people,” said James S. Snyder, Anne and Jerome Fisher Director of the Museum. “We are pleased to have the opportunity to pres‑ent these extraordinary works together with objects from our own collections, bringing to life the rich heritage of the world Jewish community throughout the ages.”

Collector Rene Braginsky states, “I am pleased that the tour of my collection brings it now to Jerusalem—in a sense, its spiritual home—and that it will be seen in the rich context of the Israel Museum’s own holdings of important Jewish manuscripts. This is also a rare opportunity for a new gen‑eration of Israelis to enjoy this legacy of the traditions of Euro‑pean Jewry.”

A Journey through Jew-ish Worlds features 120 works spanning more than 2,000 years from Germany, Holland, Italy, Spain and Israel. The exhibition will also broaden the audience’s knowledge of important Jewish artists, scribes and illuminators, many of whom are unknown in the public sphere.

Some of the highlights on display include; The Shema Yisrael traveller’s amulet, dat‑ing from the 6th – 7th century CE, inscribed with an early and unusual combination of biblical verses.

It is presented alongside two singularly important items

from the Israel Museum collec‑tion: a passage from the book of Isaiah from the Dead Sea Scrolls, which dates to the first century BCE and is among the oldest known Biblical texts; and a page from the Aleppo Codex, the earliest known Biblical Hebrew manuscript, from the Middle Ages.

The amulet offers important rare testimony to the existence of Hebrew Biblical text during the “silent” period between the time of the Dead Sea Scrolls and the oldest surviving Medi‑eval manuscripts.

Several late 19th‑century works connected to the Roth‑schild Family, including an especially fine Haggadah illus‑trated by Charlotte von Roth‑

schild in Vienna in 1842, under the guidance of the German‑Jewish artist Moritz Daniel Op‑penheim, and intended as a gift to her uncle, Amschel Mayer Rothschild.

One of the most unusual manuscripts of the late 19th century—the Bouton Haggadah, copied and decorated by the artist Victor Bouton in France. Every page is illuminated with geometric designs in blue and gold, closely emulating works from a school of 16th‑century Persian manuscript illumina‑tion.

Also an extremely rare Ke-tubbah from Gibraltar (1830‑1840) that depicts a symbolic marriage between the People of Israel and God, created for the festival of Shavuot and a 16th‑century Italian Esther Scroll, unusual because it was illumi‑nated by a female scribe.

A book launch was held in December 2010, at the Li-brary of the Hong Kong Jewish Community Centre.The book titled, Return Mi-gration and Identity A Global Phenomenon, A Hong Kong Case, is written by Dr Nan M. Sussman.

In the pas t 20 years , Hong Kong has experienced an unprecedented migration and return migration. Dr Nan Sussman, City University of New York, examines the ex‑periences of returned migrants and their successful adapta‑tions in her new book. Suss‑man returned to Hong Kong to launch its publication. In her book, She shares some of the startling findings and several remigrants.

S u s s m a n e f f e c t i v e l y weaves together themes about migration and remigration

Library book launch in Hong Kongfrom such diverse sources as arts and literature, history, sociology, and her own dis‑cipline of psychology. This book will make an excellent contribution to research on ac‑culturation, cross‑cultural tran‑sition and adaptation, identity and migration.” Commented Colleen Ward, Professor of Psychology, Victoria Univer‑sity of Wellington.

110214_Final(dtp1).indd 12 15/02/2011 11:59 AM


An exhibition took place in Israel on 7 November at the M a m i l l a H o t e l ,

Jerusalem, where a multitude of precious and historical photos were exhibited.

The event was especially attended by representatives from Tianjin. It was opened by Zhang Gaoli, Tianjin Municipal Committee, Politburo Standing Committee and Isaac Herzog, Israel Minister of Welfare and Social Affairs.

The ceremony was also at‑tended by Zhao Jun, Chinese Ambassador to Israel and Li Wenxi, Ruth Kahanov from the Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry and hosted by Tian Guiming, Tianjin Municipal Government, Foreign Affairs Office.

Benjamin Kabuliansky tells Jewish Times Asia, how the ex‑hibition came about:

This exhibition was based on two previous publications of Anna Song, a prominent Tian‑jin journalist and writer. The first is a picture book, The Jews in Tianjin (2004). The second is, The Heavenly Ford, a book recording the one‑hundred year history of Jews’ in Tianjin (2010).

Anna Song

The city was bestowed with the name “Tianjin” six hundred years ago literally meaning “The Heavenly Ford.” It is also widely recognised by Jews now as the very ford which shielded from massacres and persecution by the Nazis…. It is more than a historical story; it is an inter‑national legacy of glorious hu‑manitarian aid, presenting “the Tianjin experience” for mutual aid and cultural harmony be‑tween different races.

The experience mentioned above covers 4 periods; 1860‑1906, 1906‑1931, 1931‑1945, 1945‑1955.

Song and her colleagues in their photo exhibition chose to highlight the second and third period covering the formation of the Jewish community in Tientsin, (the preferred former name of Tianjin) and its growth.

Here are some main features of the Tientsin Jewish Commu‑nity and several interesting and outstanding personalities that Benjamin recalls:

Israel EpsteinIzzy or Eppie, as he was called by his pals, became the most outstanding Chinese Jew. He came to Tientsin with his fam‑ily in 1920. In 1937 he took part in the War of Resistance against Japan.

After becoming a citizen of China in 1957 he went through rough times together with the Chinese People and was a member of the Standing Com‑mittee of the Chinese People’s

Jewish doctor who fought on the battlefield of the anti‑Japa‑nese war. Frey’s Chinese name was “Fu Lai.”

He left Tientsin to join the Eighth Route Army. Serving as a military doctor, he saved many injured Chinese soldiers. Richard worked with enthusi‑asm and was always happy to learn.

He learnt traditional Chi‑nese medicine and found a way to cure malaria with acupunc‑ture. Frey, the international communist soldier, went back to the city where his revo‑lutionary career started and fought for it. Under heavy fire, he rescued the dying, contribut‑ing his part to the liberation of Tientsin.

Richard Frey

Samuel MullerBorn in Tientsin, Muller, a businessman, visited the city many times. On various occa‑sions he met his friends who lived together with him as kids in China, which remains a second home to many of the “Lao Shian.” “For me a trip to Tianjin is always joyful and I enjoyed my last trip tremen‑dously,” wrote Sam to Anna Song. Such nostalgia is com‑mon to many former Jewish residents of Tientsin.

Isabella MaynardAfter fitting into American society as an immigrant and becoming an author and artist, Isabella wrote about her stories in Tientsin. She named her book China Dreams: Growing Up Jewish in Tientsin. The Ameri‑

can critics thought it bridged Jewish, Chinese cultures. Her writing and the shared love for China is a bridge through which we came to know each other and became friends.

The diversity of Jewish community life in Tientsin can be seen from the following ex‑amples. In addition to the Tien‑tsin Jewish school, there were several other schools in which Jewish kids studied.

A summer camp of the Tientsin Grammer School (1934)

And the inscription on the prayer book presented to the leader of the Tientsin Hebrew Association (THA) Leo Ger‑shevich, shows that he was held in the greatest respect.

The seal of the THA and the prayer book have been preserved by his descendants in Haifa, Israel.

Jews in Tianjin Photo Exhibition & The Heavenly Ford

Political Consultative Confer‑ence. He was brought up as an internationalist and became a devoted patriot.

I am proud to say that our families were friends.

The GershevichesThis is one of the families forced to leave Russia seeking refuge in the wake of the Octo‑ber Revolution and rising anti‑Semitism.

A family of six which moved from Lake Baikal, Siberia travelling through Mongolia and settled in Tientsin

Leo was one of those who organised the Jewish commu‑nity and was the president of The Tientsin Hebrew Associa‑tion. After WWII the family left China. During all the years that followed, the seal of this organisation was kept in safety by Richard Frey.

Richard was an Austrian

Izzy with the Bihovskies and Kabulianskies on the hills of Peitaiho. Last row, left to right: Dr Pertzel the renowned family doctor, second Izzy

Supplied by Benjamin KabulianskyBenjamin Kabuliansky grew up in Tientsin in the 1920s and 1930s. He is one of the oldest Jewish residents who lived in Tien-tsin and saw the formation and develop-ment of the Jewish CommunityDuring the last 10 years he is living in Haifa, Israel. He corresponded with Anna Song, and provided articles and photos for her books and helped her show the histori-cal role of China and the native population of Tientsin providing shelter to Jews who fled from oppression in different countries. Kabuliansy was invited by Song to the ex-hibition as a witness of events which oc-curred at the beginning of the 20th century and provide explanations in English to many of the visitors.Jewish Times Asia included an article on the Kabuliansky family in the October 2008 issue, entitled: Growing up in Tien-tsin - from the memoirs of Benjamin Ka-buliansky

Israel as the correspondent of Peking and Tientsin Times

The 3 books that the exhibition is based on; The Jews in TianjinThe Heavenly Ford and The Footsteps of a Century

The Gershevich Family1922, Tientsin

110214_Final(dtp1).indd 13 15/02/2011 11:59 AM



Piano Sergio Ciomei

Sacrificium (Feb 24)

An Asian premiere of some of the most difficultBaroque arias ever written, originally intended forcastrati in the 18th century.


www.hk.artsfestival.orgProgramme details and artists are subject to change

Feb 22 (tue) 24 (thu)

Concert Hall, HK Cultural Centre | 8:00pm | $280 - $1,280

FullLimited

Tickets©

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Festival Opening sponsored by 24 Feb performance is part of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series, funded by

One-to-One Interview

ated a travelling exhibit, which includes pictures and their re‑search, which has been shown in most European cities and New York. And are considering a small exhibit for Asia.

When speaking about the rise of anti‑semitism and our contin‑uous repetition of genocide, Fa‑ther Desbois said that sadly, it is the killers that have learned from genocide and how to improve it. “I think Ahmadinejad is learning a lot about Hitler and so on, but for the rest of the population I’m not so sure.” When he says he wants to destroy Israel “we can’t turn away and say it’s nothing; it is very dangerous because we have to remember he is the presi‑dent of a state.”

In terms of those who deny the Holocaust, Father Desbois expressed that the first to do so were the chiefs of the Nazis, like Heinrich Himmler. At the end of the war they thought they would have a problem and decided to unbury and burn the corpses in secret, however they weren’t finished before the Red Army ar‑rived.

They were the first, “and the followers are only their sons and to deny is a way to continue Nazism. It is not an intellectual position it is an anti‑semitic po‑sition. The problem is that they show themselves as pseudo‑intellectuals and some people believe them. I think we’ll have less witnesses and more deniers; that is why it is so important to bring evidence, then there is no question.”

The goal of Yahad In Unum is to “show that there is no crime without evidence and to teach to the non‑Jews that genocide is a strong disease of humanity that has come back many times. The main challenge now is to net‑work with other organisations to see how we can work to prevent genocide in the future.”

Through the Holocaust we learn that for any genocide to occur those who commit the crime have to abolish the com‑mandment not to kill. Hitler wanted not only to abolish this commandment but he wanted to eliminate all the people who fol‑lowed this commandment ‑ the Jewish people. The larger task is to bring this home to non‑Jews and prevent the next genocide from happening.

Interviewed by Jessica Zwaiman Lerner

In January 2011, The Hong Kong Holocaust and Tolerance Centre (HKHTC) welcomed Father Patrick Desbois, author of the book and documentary film Holocaust by Bullets. Fa-ther Desbois was the keynote speaker for the community’s United Nations Holocaust Day Memorial Ceremony. He also partnered with the HKHTC and spoke to 2000 students at 15 different schools in the area.

Father Desbois is a Catholic Priest living in France, who has dedicated his life, with uncompro‑mising determination, to uncover the truth behind the deaths of over 1.5 million Jews exterminated by Nazi mobile units in the Ukraine, Belarus, Russia and Poland dur‑ing the Second World War.

Often called the ‘memory keeper,’ Father Desbois uses forensic evidence, eyewitness accounts and access to archival material to create the first defini‑tive account of one of history’s forgotten chapters. He has de‑voted his life to combating anti‑semitism, teaching people about genocide and furthering the rela‑tionships between Catholics and Jews.

He is the President of the Yahad In Unum Foundation (it means together in both Hebrew and Latin), the Director of the French Conference of Bishops for Relations with Judaism, Ad‑visor to the Cardinal Archbishop of Paris and Advisor to the Vati‑can on the Jewish religion.

For Father Desbois this line of work began as a private family matter. In July 1942 his grandfa‑ther was deported to a German camp of Soviet prisoners in a small village called Raba Ruska. When his grandfather finally spoke he told Father Desbois “It was awful; no food, no drink, but outside the camp it was worse.” Later Father Desbois went back to Raba Ruska to understand what happened. “I knew they had shot 18,000 Jews in this small village.”

After three years and a new mayor, Father Desbois was fi‑nally introduced to witnesses who gave their testimony. He discovered the Holocaust had been a public event. People had witnessed the crimes and they remembered everything. This re‑alisation became a responsibility to “find these witnesses and to interview them in a professional format, so that we could keep their memory.”

Father Desbois the memory keeper

After this experience Father Desbois “discovered nobody had done this work and it was impossible to do it when it was the Soviet Union because we had no archives.” He and his team started to work with the Holo‑caust Museum in Washington which provided them with access to Soviet and German archives, which sometimes had maps of the graves and other relevant in‑formation.

With this information he and his team would build a file for each village before they went to the location looking for witnesses and in search of the mass graves. They would arrive at a village quietly with two unmarked vans. They would knock on people’s door and ask, “Where you here during the war? And where you present at the shooting? Then if they said yes we began to chat with them. Many of them want‑ed to speak and asked why we hadn’t come earlier.”

During the interviews Father Desbois listened with the sensi‑tivity of a priest and probed with the curiosity of a detective. His aim was to unleash the truth and the truth of those who perished.

“We tend to say Holocaust like we say tsunami, but it is not the same and less so in the Soviet Union because every victim saw the killer and every killer saw the victim. This was a personal crime. There was no machine, no trains and no camp. We want to re‑establish this genocide as per‑sonal with concern for the vic‑tims and not the killers.”

For the team, the real task was to rebuild each crime and to find out how the Germans ran the operation, where were the killers standing, how did the different families arrive, from which di‑rection and finally how were they killed and what was the location of the mass grave.

Once a grave is found, evi‑dence is collected and informa‑tion is then transmitted to the American Jewish Committee and the German government. Because according to Jewish law they cannot unbury people, the challenge is to collect the evi‑dence and then protect the area. On a few occasions they have covered the grave with cement and written that Jews are buried there, the day of the shooting and the number of victims.

To date a team of 22 people work full‑time. Every month a team of 9 people go out for 17 days. The team includes an in‑terpreter, a ballistic expert, a photographer and an archival re‑searcher. So far the team has cov‑ered over 70% of Ukraine; they have combed through 3 regions in Belarus and 2 regions of Rus‑sia. They have interviewed 1,700 witnesses and Father Desbois says, “There is still a lot we have to cover.”

Father Desbois explains they have found most of the graves of the victims of the Einsatzgrup‑pen, however in the next few years those who were witnesses will no longer be around to tell their story, so time is of the es‑sence. He strongly believes that his work will be finished in the

next 5 to 6 years.

Family foundations in the US, Canada and France have supported Father Desbois’ work. The Yahad In Unum is also par‑tially supported by the European Commission and last year they were heavily supported by Ger‑many, but not any more.

They also have the help from the Church. “For example, I was in Poland last year and the Car‑dinal of Paris sent a letter to the Archbishop of Lublin and for the moment they protect us,” he said. In Poland all the informa‑tion they gather is shared with the Chief Rabbi of Poland, Rabbi Schudrich. When explaining the differences between Rabbi Schudrich’s work and his, he said, “The difference is that we don’t only look for the mass graves, we record the testimony. The real challenge is to keep the evidence so that tomorrow nobody will be able to deny the crime.”

Denial is the greatest prob‑lem because Father Desbois feels that “little by little the Holocaust begins to be a belief and so we are afraid that in 10 years people will say ok maybe the Holocaust perhaps existed and in any case the Jews believe in it. But it is not a belief, it is a fact, it is history,” and here is the evidence to prove it. That is why he treats every lo‑cation as a crime scene.

The work Father Desbois and his team have done has been filmed and became a documen‑tary, shown during primetime on French television. They also cre‑

110214_Final(dtp1).indd 14 15/02/2011 11:59 AM



Piano Sergio Ciomei

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The United Jewish Congregation of Hong Kong

PROFESSOR REUVEN FIRESTONE ScholarinResidence March 46, 2011

Friday, 4th March 2011, 8:00am – 10:00am WHOSE JERUSALEM? THE HOLY CITY IN JUDAISM, CHRISTIANITY, AND ISLAM Starbucks Coffee, Shop M2, Mezzanine Floor, Baskerville House, 13 Duddell Street, Central Cost: HK$100 per person for Continental breakfast RSVP Essential Friday, 4th March 2011, 7:00pm JEWS UNDER CHRISTIANITY, JEWS UNDER ISLAM UJC Sanctuary Professor Firestone will speak at Shabbat services Saturday, 5th March 2011, 7:30pm DIVINE AUTHORITY AND MASS VIOLENCE: HOLY WAR IN JUDAISM, CHRISTIANITY, AND ISLAM UJC Sanctuary Havdalah, dessert, and discussion with Professor Firestone Sunday, 6th March 2011, 10:00am WHAT DOES ISLAM REALLY SAY ABOUT JEWS AND JUDAISM: A STUDY OF THE CLASSIC ISLAMIC TEXTS A joint program of the United Jewish Congregation of Hong Kong and the Jewish Community Centre Events Committee Garden Room, Jewish Community Centre A light brunch will be provided.

For all events, please RSVP to the UJC office by Thursday, 3rd March.

Tel: 2523-2985 Fax: 2523-3961 Email: [email protected] Web: www.ujc.org.hk

Reuven Firestone was educated at Antioch College, the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Hebrew Union College where he received his M.A. in Hebrew literature in 1980 and Rabbinic Ordination in 1982, and New York University where he received his Ph.D. in Arabic and Islamic studies in 1988. From 1987 to 1992, he taught at Boston University, and since 1993 he has served as associate and then full professor of Medieval Judaism and Islam at Hebrew Union College in Los Angeles. Professor Firestone is co‐director of the Center for Muslim‐Jewish Engagement (CMJE), a joint program of Hebrew Union College, the Omar Ibn Al‐Khattab Foundation, and the Center for Religion and Civic Culture at the University of Southern California. Professor Firestone is the author of several books including An Introduction to Islam for Jews, Jihad: The Origin of Holy War in Islam, and Who are the Real Chosen People: The Meaning of Chosenness in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, as well as over seventy articles on Judaism, Islam, and comparative studies of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Professor Firestone regularly lectures at colleges and universities throughout the world including Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Oxford, Cambridge, Hebrew University, Tel‐Aviv University, Ben‐Gurion University, Ain Shams University in Cairo, Universität Potsdam, Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, and Max‐Planck‐Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florence. He has also lectured and led workshops in numerous synagogues, mosques, and churches throughout the US and abroad.

El i e z e r “ M o o d i ” Sandberg is the new World Chairman of Keren Hayesod/

United Israel Appeal. He was born in Haifa in 1962. He studied law at Tel Aviv University and was a military prosecutor.

In 1992 he was elected to the Knesset as a member of the Tsomet party. He held numer‑ous posts in the government in the areas of economy, science, technology and education, among others.

From 1999 to 2003 he served as Chairman of the Shinui party in the Knesset. In 2006 he retired from politics and worked as a director, con‑sultant and agent for various Israeli and foreign companies.

He has also held various public positions until 2010, when he took on his role at Keren Hayesod. Sandberg is married to Einat and they have three children.

Sandberg visited Hong Kong in December to attend a

UIA Dinner and to meet with the Jewish community and the leadership of the organisation in this part of the world.

Keren Hayesod is a unique organisation with special legal status in Israel, “because by law we are the official fundraiser for the State of Israel, basically we follow the tasks that the Jewish nation and the government of Israel is giving to us,” Sandberg commented.

“We follow the needs of Israel and we know what those needs are. That is where the dialogue comes in and because we represent the connection and the way for every Jewish person to get involved with Israel.”

Established in 1920 the organisation has three main fo‑cus areas: strengthening Israeli society, facilitating aliyah and absorption and furthering Jew‑ish Zionist education.

During his trip he shared his vision for Keren Hayesod and he spoke of a number of proj‑ects the organisation is focusing on.

different universities.

During the recent Carmel fires, Keren Hayesod launched a campaign and gave their contri‑bution “to save the life of those who were burnt, so they could have artificial skin graphs. We were there to do the immediate stuff, because we could not wait for bureaucracy.” They will now be assisting the effort to rebuild the Yemin Orde village. Keren Hayesod established the village in the 50’s and at the request of the government they are com‑mitted to the area.

“Keren Hayesod is a good, successful and stable organisa‑tion. I didn’t come to change it,” Sandberg says.

His goal is to “make the connection to the future gen‑eration and the relationship they have to Israel through new programmes. We want to strengthen the Jewish nation in the short and long term. It is all about continuum ‑ it is the same organisation with same goals, but with someone new at the helm.”

Eliezer “Moodi” Sandberg takesthe helm at Keren Hayesod

cover and introduce the world to fuel alternatives. Israel is an incubator of new ideas of in‑novation and somehow we feel that there is a need for a policy that will accumulate the ideas and support them in the prelimi‑nary stages and hopefully we’ll have alternatives.”

They want to train a new generation of Israeli scientists and they would like to bring home a number of top scientists that have left Israel to work in

They are going to develop a number of sites in Israel that are considered by the government as Zionistic national heritage locations, where history was made in the last 100 years. We will develop these locations as touristic and educational sites for both Israelis and visitors. “It is important to do something for the future generations to remind them” of the history of Israel.

The second project is “a special effort in order to dis‑

Eliezer Sandberg

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A 1 , 8 0 0 y e a r o l d bathing pool that was probably part of a bathhouse used by

the Tenth Legion – the Roman soldiers who destroyed the Temple – has been exposed in excavations by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) in Jerusalem.

The discovery sheds light on the scope of Aelia Capito‑lina, the city that was founded on the Second Temple period ruins of Jerusalem and that de‑fined the character of ancient Jerusalem as we know it today.

According to IAA excava‑tion director Dr Ofer Sion: “We were surprised to discover an ancient bathhouse structure right below the spot where a ritual bath is about to be built. During the excavation we un‑covered a number of plastered bathtubs in the side of the pool. Incorporated in the side of the pool is a pipe used to fill it with water and on the floor of the pool is a white industrial mosaic pavement. The bath‑house tiles, which are stamped with the symbols of the Tenth

Legion “Fretensis” – LEG X FR, were found in situ and it seems that they were used to cover a rock‑hewn water chan‑nel located at the bottom of the pool.” He said.

The hundreds of terra cotta roof tiles that were found on the floors of the pool indicated it was a covered structure. The mark of the soldiers of the Tenth Legion, in the form of the stamped impressions on the roof tiles and the in situ mud bricks, bears witness to the fact that they were the builders of the structure.

The bathhouse was used by these soldiers who were gar‑risoned there after suppressing the Bar Kokhba uprising in 135 CE, when the pagan city Aelia Capitolina was established.

Dr Sion adds, “Another interesting discovery is the paw print of a dog that probably belonged to one of the soldiers. The paw print was impressed on the symbol of the legion on one of the roof tiles and it could have happened accidentally or have been intended as a joke.”

small and limited in area. The

new find, together with other discoveries of recent years, shows that the city was con‑siderably larger than what we previously estimated." He com‑mented.

"Information about Aelia Capitolina is extremely valuable and can contribute greatly to research on Jerusalem because it was that city that determined the character and general ap‑pearance of ancient Jerusalem and as we know it today. The shape of the city has determined the outline of its walls and the location of the gates to this very day.” Baruch added.

1,800 year old bathing pool discovered

According to IAA Jerusalem District archaeologist Dr Yuval Baruch: “What we have here is a discovery that is important for the study of Jerusalem. Despite the very extensive archaeologi‑cal excavations that were car‑ried out in the Jewish Quarter, so far not even one building has been discovered there that belonged to the Roman legion. The absence of such a find led to the conclusion that Aelia Capitolina, the Roman city which was established after the destruction of Jerusalem, was

The bathing pool view from above

At the excavation site

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China

Beijing Beijing Chabad: Kings Garden Villa, 18 Xiao Yun Road, F1 Chao Yang District 100016, Beijing, PR China Tel: (86) 13911 650 967 www.chabadbeijing.com

Chabad of Ya Bao Lu: Jian Guo Men Diplomatic Bldg, Building 3,2/F, 223 Chaoyangmennei Street, Beijing, PR ChinaTeL: (86) 1352 2016 427 Email: [email protected]

Kehillat Beijing (Reform): Capital Club athletic Center, 3/F., Ballroom, Capital Mansion, 6 Xinyuan nanlu Chaoyang District, Beijing, PR China Tel: (86) 10 6467 2225 www.sinogogue.org

GuangzhouGuangzhou Chabad: 31 he Ping Lu, Overseas Village, Guangzhou, China Tel: (86) 137 1050 5049 www.chabadgz.org

ShanghaiShanghai Chabad (Shanghai Jewish Center): Shang-Mira Garden Villa #1, 1720 hong Qiao Road, Shanghai, 200336, PR ChinaTel: (86) 21 6278 0225 www.chinajewish.org

Chabad of Pudong: Vila # 69, 2255 Luoshan Road,Shanghai, 200135, PR China Tel: (86) 21 5878 2008 www.chinajewish.org

ShenzhenShenzhen Chabad: no.4, Block a, Guishan Xiaozhu Yanshan Road, indus-trial area, Shekou nanshan District, Shenzhen, PR ChinaTel: (86) 755 8207 0712 www.chabadshenzhen.org

hOnG KOnG Jewish Community Centre: One Robinson Place, 70 Robinson Road, Mid-Levels, hong Kong Tel: (852) 2801 5440 www.jcc.org.hk

Chabad hong Kong: 1/F hoover Court, 7-9 Macdonell Road, Mid-Levels, hong Kong Tel: (852) 2523 9770 www.chabadhk.org

Ohel Leah Synagogue: 70 Robinson Road, Mid-Levels, hong Kong Tel: (852) 2589 2621 www.ohelleah.org

United Jewish Congregation (Reform): Jewish Community Centre, One Robinson Place, 70 Robinson Road, Mid-Levels, hong Kong Tel: (852) 2523 2985 www.ujc.org.hk

Shuva israel (Orthodox): 2/F Fortune house, 61 Connaught Road, Central, hong Kong Tel: (852) 2851 6300 www.shuva-israel.com

KowloonKehilat Zion (Orthodox): Unit 105, 1/F, Wing on Plaza, 62 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui East, Kowloon Tel: (852) 2368 0061 www.kehilat-zion.org

Chabad of Kowloon: 11 hart avenue, 2/F, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon Tel: (852) 2366 5770 Email: [email protected]

inDia (MUMBai) Magen David Synagogue: 340 Sir J.J. Rd, Byculla, MumbaiTel: (91) 22 23006675

Kenesseth Eliyahoo Synagogue, 43 Dr V.B. Gandhi Marg, Fort, MumbaiTel: (91) 22 22831502 / 22839617

Kurla Bene israel: 275 C.S.T. Rd, Jewish Colony, Kurla (W) Mumbai, indiaTel: (91) 22 511-2132

JaPan KobeOhel Shelomoh Synagogue and Community Center: 4-12-12, Kitano-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe 650, Japan Tel: (81) 78 221 7236 www.jcckobe.org

TokyoTokyo Chabad: 1-5-23 Takanawa, Minato-ku, Tokyo Japan 108-0073 Tel: (813) 5789 2846 www.chabad.jp

JCC Japan (Reform): Tokyo Jewish Community Centre, 8-8 hiroo 3-Chome, Shibuya-Ku, Tokyo 150 0012, Japan Tel: (813) 3400 2559 www.jccjapan.or.jp

LaOS Chabad: Ban Pakham, Unit 03, 46 Soulignavongsa Rd, Luangprabang, LaosTel: (856) 20 508 2014

nEPaL Chabad house: Gha-2-516-4 Thamel, Kathmandu, nepal Tel: (977) 980 324 1294 [email protected]

PhiLiPPinES Beth Yaacov Synagogue: 110 h.V. de la Costa cnr, Tordesillas West, Salcedo Village, Makati City, Metro Manila 1227, The Philippines Tel: (632) 815 0265 www.jewishphilippines.org

SinGaPORE Chesed-El Synagogue: 2 Oxley Rise, Singapore 238693

Jacob Ballas Community Centre & Maghain aboth Synagogue: 24-26 Waterloo Street, Singapore 187950Tel: (65) 6337 2189 www.singaporejews.org

United hebrew Congregation (Reform): email:[email protected]

SOUTh KOREaChabad: 744-18 hannam-Dong, Yongsan, Seoul 140-893, South KoreaTel: (82) 107 730 3770 www.jewish.kr

TaiWan Taipei Jewish Community: 16 Min Tsu East Road, Second Floor, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC Tel: (886) 2 2591 3565 email:[email protected]

ThaiLanD Jewish association of Thailand: 121 Soi Sai nam Thip 2, Sukhumvit Soi 22, Bangkok, Thailand Tel: (662) 663 0244 www.jewishthailand.com

Chabad of Thailand: 96 Rambutttri St. Banglamphu, 102000 Bangkok, Thailand Tel: (662) 629 2770 www.chabadthailand.com

Bet Sefer Chabad: 221 Sukhumvit Soi 20, Bangkok, 10110 ThailandTel: (662) 258 3434

ViETnaM Chabad: 5a (villa) nguyen Dinh Chieu St., Dakao ward, District 1,ho Chi Minh, Vietnam Tel: (84) 90 9166770 www.JewishVietnam.com

JEWISH COMMUNITIES IN ASIA

Candlelighting times are taken from Chabad.org.Candlelighting times are taken from Chabad.org.

Countries 4 February 11 February 18 February 25 February

Bangkok 6:01 6:04 6:06 6:07Beijing 5:18 5:26 5:34 5:42Guangzhou 5:58 6:02 6:06 6:10hong Kong 5:55 6:00 6:03 6:07Katmandu 5:28 5:33 5:38 5:43Kobe 5:13 5:20 5:26 5:33Manila 5:38 5:41 5:43 5:45Mumbai 6:15 6:19 6:22 6:25Perth 6:59 6:54 6:47 6:39Shanghai 5:13 5:19 5:25 5:30Singapore 7:03 7:03 7:03 7:02Seoul 5:40 5:48 5:55 6:03Taipei 5:22 5:27 5:31 5:35Tokyo 4:52 5:00 5:07 5:13

Candle Lighting Times

Rosh Chodesh:

4 February 2011 (30 Shevat 5771)5 February 2011 (1 adar 5771)

HOLIDAYS/ FASTS/ ROSH CHODESH/ SPECIAL DAYS

February Parashas

5 February 2011 / 1 Adar 5771: TERUMAGod commands Moses to take a contribution from the Children of Israel to build the Mishkan, the tented Tabernacle. The Mishkan was to house the Ten Command‑ments in the Aron HaKodesh ‑ Holy Ark (which was at the heart of the Mishkan), and act as a physical sign of God’s presence. The word “take” is used rather than “give” to show that the giving of such contributions and of charity is beneficial to the donor.The parasha includes each of the different materials used in the construction of the Mishkan is described in details as are its different parts. The Mishkan was a portable structure and therefore had to be built to accompany the Children of Israel in their journey through the wilderness. The main parts of the Mishkan were: The Aron HaKodesh, the Table, the Menorah, the Tent of Meeting, the Copper Alter that was placed in the courtyard, and the Courtyard itself.

12 February 2011 / 8 Adar 5771: TETZAVEHTetzaveh continues the description of the building of the Mishkan, and especially concentrates on the special priestly garments worn by the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) and the ordinary Kohanim. It then gives instruction for the consecration of the Kohanim and the Outer Altar and instructions for constructing the Incense Altar.The Parasha begins with describing the making of the pure olive oil that was used

in the lighting of the Menorah in the Tent of Meeting. The Parasha also describes in detail the eight garments of the Kohen Gadol. They were: The Ephod (a special type of apron); The Ketonet (Tunic); The Me’il (Robe); The Choshen (Breastplate); Mitznefet (Turban like head covering); Avnet (Sash); The Tztz (Headplate) and breeches.

19 February 2011 / 15 Adar 5771: KI TISAA census was conducted by every male over the age of 20 to give half a shekel. This was collected annually during the month of Adar for the communal daily sacrifices. The Parasha also includes instructions to make the washstand, anointing oil, and the incense for the Mishkan. And the appointing of Betzalel and Oholiab to head up the architects and craftsmen for the Mishkan.The portion continues with the infamous story of the Golden Calf. The people wrongly calculated that Moses was late in coming down from Mount Sinai and the people were already seeking a replacement for him by making the Golden Calf Mo‑ses sees them dancing around the calf and in anger breaks the Two Tablets; he then punishes the 3,000 wrongdoers (less than 0.1% of the 3 million people), pleads to God not to wipe out the people, requests to see the Divine Glory, and receives the second set of Tablets of the Ten Commandments.

26 February 2011 / 22 Adar 5771: VEYEKHELThe commandment to keep Shabbat is given by refraining from work. The thirty‑nine catagories of work (malachah) that are prohibited on Shabbat are derived from the catagories of work that went into the building of the Mishkan. The description of the building of the Mishkan is virtually a repetition of the in‑structions to build it given in the Parasha of Terumah, except the order. First the Tent was built in order of importance, then the Ark, the Table, the Menorah, and the Altar.

110214_Final(dtp1).indd 19 15/02/2011 12:00 PM


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Documents

February 2011 • Volume 5 • Issue 9 • Shevat / Adar 5771