The statements made by the Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni last Thursday caused controversy among intellectuals. He said the ministry will start translating books written by Israeli novelists through their French. Some intellectuals approved, while others considered it an act to please Israel and a step towards normalizing relations with it. Experts said translation from Hebrew started years ago. After the defeat of June 1967, such translation began under the slogan of 'Know Your Enemy', as it was believed that we were defeated because we knew little about Israel, and not only because the Israelis were more advanced militarily. Novelist Youssef el-Qa'id says an Israeli book entitled 'The October War Lie' was translated into Arabic in 2006, in addition to other books that we do not know of. Also, Dr. Ibrahim el-Bahrawi translated many research studies at that time. Dr. Said el-Lawindi says the reason the Egyptians know nothing about the Hebrew culture is not only their rejection of normalizing relations with Israel, but also because they have isolated themselves in the last half a century, which made them furrther from some Arab cultures, such as the Maghreb countries. Does culture have a nationality? This was a question raised after Farouk Hosni's statements. Many intellectuals say culture has no boundaries, but the problem is with the timing of Hosni's statements, which would have been better if he said them after his selection for UNESCO. Al-Ahram Weekly Chief Editor Assem el-Qirsh says: "Relations between the Egyptians and the Arabs, on the one hand, and Israel, on the other, is like water and oil, which cannot ever melt together. And culture must not be used to suit some agenda of a decision maker." He added: "Amos Oz and David Grossman, whose books are to be translated, belong to the Israeli left-wing ideology. The real challenge is to translate the books of the writers who reflect the real Jewish thought." Amos Oz is a renowned Hebrew author. He studied literature and philosophy at the Hebrew University and graduated in 1964. He received a Master's Degree from Oxford University in 1970. In 1965, he published his first short stories titled 'Where the Jackals Howl'. His first novel was published in 1966 entitled 'Elsewhere'. He has been against the settlements from the beginning, and he supports the Oslo Accord and calls for dialogue with the Palestine Liberation Organization. David Grossman, 54, is also a renowned Hebrew author. His novels won many awards and were translated into many languages. He is also a prominent figure with the Peace Now Movement. His 20-year-old son Uri died when his tank was hit by a rocket in Israel's war with Lebanon in 2006.
