I first met Yuri Stern in 1988 when I chaired the Knesset?s Immigration and Absorption Committee. Avigdor Liberman had asked that I appoint Yuri to serve as a special consultant. It was only a few months before the great wave of immigration from the former Soviet Union and when it began, Yuri was with us day and night.
Together we experienced great days and tremendous struggles; to convince the public that we were on the verge of a great wave of immigration, to prepare the infrastructure, to allocate appropriate resources and then to deal with the process of absorption itself.
Recruiting the Israeli public to volunteer was not a simple task. And of course there were the hardships of absorption vis-?-vis both the authorities and immigrants who were forced to live in temporary housing and work in jobs considered beneath their professional training.
Yuri was with us at all hours, giving advice and working hard to solve problems. He proved to be a devoted, caring and efficient activist.
In the 14th Knesset, Yuri was an MK on behalf of Yisrael B'Aliyah. Against the wishes of party chairman Natan Sharansky, who at that time was moving towards a deal with Opposition Leader Ehud Barak, Yuri accepted my invitation to join the Land of Israel Front. When I asked him to sign our ultimatum to Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu ? warning that if he agreed to relinquish 13% of Yesha in the Wye Agreements, it would cost him his government ? Yuri refused to sign. It was only after some time that I learned to respect his motivation for the refusal. ?The same heads of the Yesha Council who now pressure us to sign,? he said ?will come to us after Bibi gives in to the Americans and beg us not to implement our threat. I knew that if I signed I would go to the end. Therefore I could not sign.?
At that time, I did not like his position but in retrospect he was right. Right after Netanyahu signed the Wye Agreements, the heads of the Yesha Council (with the exception of Uri Ariel) exerted heavy pressure on the signatories to ignore their commitment and support Netanyahu. Although most signatories gave in, four of us (Benny Begin, Rechavam Ze'evi, Rabbi Benny Elon and I) continued the fight to the end. This was Yuri; a man of ideals and principles but also a clever parliamentarian who shrewdly understood the political game.
Some years ago, during the final days of the Barak government, I asked Yuri to join me in a delegation to the United States Congress which had been organized at the behest of Americans For a Safe Israel chairman Herb Zweibon. Yuri stood out as a serious and respectful critic of President Clinton?s plans for the Middle East. He efficiently described to the congressmen the damages caused to both Israel and the United States by the continued attempts to divide the Land of Israel.
Our hosts from AFSI were very impressed by Yuri's initiative at organizing long political meetings in addition to the jam-packed schedule that AFSI had put together. Yuri was an example of responsibility, diligence and dedication to the Jewish people. I was happy that this visit served as a springboard to Yuri?s deep and fruitful involvement with America?s pro-Israel Christian community.
Regretfully, Israel does not have many such leaders today. Yuri?s premature death is a great loss ? not only to his family and friends ? but also to Israel?s national camp and the entire Jewish nation. His example should inspire the next generation of idealistic public servants to give selflessly, and his memory should serve as a blessing for all of Am Yisrael in these difficult times.
Together we experienced great days and tremendous struggles; to convince the public that we were on the verge of a great wave of immigration, to prepare the infrastructure, to allocate appropriate resources and then to deal with the process of absorption itself.
Recruiting the Israeli public to volunteer was not a simple task. And of course there were the hardships of absorption vis-?-vis both the authorities and immigrants who were forced to live in temporary housing and work in jobs considered beneath their professional training.
Yuri was with us at all hours, giving advice and working hard to solve problems. He proved to be a devoted, caring and efficient activist.
In the 14th Knesset, Yuri was an MK on behalf of Yisrael B'Aliyah. Against the wishes of party chairman Natan Sharansky, who at that time was moving towards a deal with Opposition Leader Ehud Barak, Yuri accepted my invitation to join the Land of Israel Front. When I asked him to sign our ultimatum to Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu ? warning that if he agreed to relinquish 13% of Yesha in the Wye Agreements, it would cost him his government ? Yuri refused to sign. It was only after some time that I learned to respect his motivation for the refusal. ?The same heads of the Yesha Council who now pressure us to sign,? he said ?will come to us after Bibi gives in to the Americans and beg us not to implement our threat. I knew that if I signed I would go to the end. Therefore I could not sign.?
At that time, I did not like his position but in retrospect he was right. Right after Netanyahu signed the Wye Agreements, the heads of the Yesha Council (with the exception of Uri Ariel) exerted heavy pressure on the signatories to ignore their commitment and support Netanyahu. Although most signatories gave in, four of us (Benny Begin, Rechavam Ze'evi, Rabbi Benny Elon and I) continued the fight to the end. This was Yuri; a man of ideals and principles but also a clever parliamentarian who shrewdly understood the political game.
Some years ago, during the final days of the Barak government, I asked Yuri to join me in a delegation to the United States Congress which had been organized at the behest of Americans For a Safe Israel chairman Herb Zweibon. Yuri stood out as a serious and respectful critic of President Clinton?s plans for the Middle East. He efficiently described to the congressmen the damages caused to both Israel and the United States by the continued attempts to divide the Land of Israel.
Our hosts from AFSI were very impressed by Yuri's initiative at organizing long political meetings in addition to the jam-packed schedule that AFSI had put together. Yuri was an example of responsibility, diligence and dedication to the Jewish people. I was happy that this visit served as a springboard to Yuri?s deep and fruitful involvement with America?s pro-Israel Christian community.
Regretfully, Israel does not have many such leaders today. Yuri?s premature death is a great loss ? not only to his family and friends ? but also to Israel?s national camp and the entire Jewish nation. His example should inspire the next generation of idealistic public servants to give selflessly, and his memory should serve as a blessing for all of Am Yisrael in these difficult times.