The Quest for Equality of the Beta-Israel: The Legal Perspective of Zegeye's Impossible Return

The Impossible Return is a multidisciplinary book comprehensively addressing the history of the Beta-Israel, including, amongst other things, the cultural, social, economic and political discrimination they faced in Ethiopia and their eventual return to Israel, their promised land. By examining the Beta-Israel's extremely tough historical struggle for their religious and ethnic identity in Ethiopia it further looks into the futile hopes that they had found their place which left them 'orphans of the two countries'. This review tries to set the discussion in context by discussing the Beta-Israel's quest for identity (polyethnic right) in the historical Ethiopia, the still disregarded status of the Beta-Israel and the broken promises in the promised land followed by the possible future of the two countries.

The identification of Beta Israel as violent, primitive and blood thirsty people by the privileged and the common people in historical Ethiopia was nothing less than a reflection of the perilous sufferings inflicted upon them by deteriorating security, famine and a declining economy in the late twenties, especially during that of the Dergue regime. Despite the promises of the Israeli law of return (1950) which gives automatic citizenship exclusively to Jewish immigrants¹ irrespective of the place of emigration, the Beta Israel suffered severe discrimination in Israel. The Beta Israel's parlous position because of their colour in the promised land, in comparison with Russian immigrants, violates the basic laws of Israel concerning human rights.² The book concludes with a discussion of the Beta Israel's tactics in their adaptation to Israel and the increased recognition by Israel of Beta Israel culture. Israel and Ethiopia, it suggests, may benefit from closer ties between the Beta Israel and their undeniable historical home in Ethiopia. The education and training available to Beta Israel in Israeli could contribute to Ethiopia, and in turn would enhance the democratic culture Israel has always claimed to wish for.

The Beta-Israel's Quest for Identity in the Historical Ethiopia Zegeye contrasts views of the Beta-Israel ethnic as static ethnic group deprived of agency on one hand and as a viable, independent and changing community on the other. This latter reality is demonstrated by their resistance to the isolation and oppression they suffered in both countries. Regardless of these views, historically the Beta-Israel experienced disparagement and discrimination in Ethiopia. This denial to the Beta-Israel's of what Will Kymlicka calls a "poly ethnic right³ "is seen by the actions of Ethiopian kings. As cited by the author from Kaplan; "His [King Yeshak's] rule also marked the beginning of the Beta Israel's dislocation and their loss of land rights. Following his victory over the governors of Dambeya and Semien, Yeshak was said to have decreed: 'He who is baptized in the Christian religion may inherit the land of his father, otherwise let him be a falasi' (a landless person or wanderer) (84). The moral, economic, political and cultural predicament in which the Beta-Israel found themselves, however, did not prevent them from expressing their ethnic and religious identity as a Jewish minority in Ethiopia (2). To the contrary, discrimination made their stand for an ethnic and religious Jewish identity even stronger. In Zegeye's words:

… since the rise of Christian rule, the Beta Israel have been under continual persecution of every conceivable kind. They have been 'accused of witchcraft, demonized; they have also been dispossessed of their land and subjected to residential segregation. Their forced dispersal to outlying areas, increasing persecution, repression and negative stereotyping coupled with a dwindling in their population, reinforced their separate identity and deepened their conviction towards religious and ancient Jewish custom (43).

Zegeye also highlights the resistance against the Beta-Israel's political participation by two historical legal (political) and religious documents, Kebre Negest and Feteha Negest which changed religious Judaic identity to racial Judaic identity. The...