YITZHAK NAVON CENTER FOR A SHARED SOCIETY

INTERNATIONAL STATESMAN, EDUCATOR, MAN OF LETTERS

In the international arena, Navon’s exceptional traits and humanitarian values were appreciated by the likes of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, who remarked that “President Navon . . . captured the heart of the Egyptian nation” with his fluent Arabic and profound knowledge of Egyptian culture reflected in the speech he delivered at the Egyptian Parliament. Following his term as president, Yitzhak Navon made an unprecedented decision to return to political life and served as deputy prime minister and minister of education and culture for six years. In the latter role, he introduced, among other innovations, extended school days in the periphery and a cultural initiative ensuring all school children attend several cultural events every year. He also intensified science and technology studies, added Arabic to the curriculum of all Jewish elementary schools, initiated school trips to the concentration camps in Poland, and created platforms for dialogue between students from different sectors. In addition to his many public roles, Yitzhak Navon was a gifted author, playwright, and educator who contributed significantly to cultural life in Israel, in particular by illuminating the heritage of Sephardi Jewry and the Ladino language. Throughout his life, President Navon was instrumental in defining Israel’s character as a multicultural state, encouraging others to relate, as did he, to all segments of society as being of equal importance and deserving of equal respect. The result is a legacy deeply embedded in Israeli consciousness. A growing network of 30 schools throughout the breadth and length of the country already bear his name and actively promote the values of social cohesion he championed – and this only six years after his passing. No other figure in Israel’s history has been so immortalized.

-11