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May 30, 2003/Iyar 28 5763, Vol. 55, No. 40
Microloans present alternative to terrorism
RACHEL POMERANCE
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
NEW YORK - A dozen years ago, when Hisham Jabi heard his cousin Lobnia had been shot and killed by Israeli soldiers, he shuddered with anger and vulnerability.
"Why in the hell did they kill her?" Jabi asks, saying Lobnia's only crime was nursing her 13-day-old baby on her balcony after curfew.
"I could have done anything violent against Israelis. I was 20, and I was really angry," says Jabi, now 32. "I could have been a suicide bomber, I swear to God, if Hamas people had come and played on my mind."
In the years since, Jabi's feelings about Israel have changed from hatred to understanding - and he credits his business for the shift.
Through an office equipment distribution company he launched in 1993, Jabi formed rela-tionships with Israelis that showed him the human side of his enemy.
Invited to dinner by Israeli colleagues, he "started to see the beautiful part of Israelis," Jabi says. "They have pro-blems like us, they have feelings like us, they want to have a state for themselves, they want to protect their kids."
The discovery "changed my life," he says.
Jabi's business experience and his change of heart toward Israel is what he and two Jews are counting on in their new enterprise: offering microloans to young Palestinian men in rural areas who want to start businesses.
The project, called Jozoor - which means roots in Arabic - rests on the theory that if Palestinians are invested in promising businesses, they will be less attracted to terrorism.
Buoying the Palestinian economy will boost support for the peace process, he says.
Jozoor has drawn together three idealistic young men, each hoping that a brighter future can overcome a troubled history.
For Uri Pomerantz, 21, an Israeli-born American about to graduate from Stanford University with a bachelor's degree in political science and computer science, it was the murder of his great aunt.
Sarah Hamburger, 80, was standing at a Jerusalem bus stop on Jan. 22, 2002, on her way to meet her sister - Uri's grandmother - when Hamas terrorists opened fire.
For Pomerantz, the attack was "kind of like this call that something needs to be done," he says.
Then there's Berkett, a 22-year-old student graduating from Columbia University this month with a bachelor's degree in English.
The grandson of Holocaust survivors and fervid American patriots, Berkett is imbued with the American dream of conquering one's goals - and the knowledge that the dream of a secure Jewish state helped his grandmother survive Auschwitz.
While studying abroad in Spain last fall, Berkett came up with the concept for Jozoor, emailing his idea to friends around the world.
In California, Pomerantz had a similar idea. A friend who received Berkett's e-mail put the two in touch.
The two decided to submit their plan to the National Social Venture Competition - which is where Jabi comes in.
The prestigious contest awards cash prizes and recognition for social-oriented business plans. But it required one of the applicants to be a business student.
A mass e-mail from Berkett led to a circuitous connection with Jabi.
Jozoor became a finalist in the prestigious competition, winning $1,000 and pushing the trio to continue their efforts.
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