What can Israelis and the Palestinians learn from the South African experience?

no, its not the same situation, you cant compare apples with pears.Even before the State of Israel was established, Jewish leaders consciously sought to avoid the situation that prevailed in South Africa. As David Ben-Gurion told Palestinian nationalist Musa Alami in 1934:

We do not want to create a situation like that which exists in South Africa, where the whites are the owners and rulers, and the blacks are the workers. If we do not do all kinds of work, easy and hard, skilled and unskilled, if we become merely landlords, then this will not be our homeland.6

Today, within Israel, Jews are a majority, but the Arab minority are full citizens who enjoy equal rights. Arabs are represented in the Knesset, and have served in the Cabinet, high-level foreign ministry posts (e.g., Ambassador to Finland) and on the Supreme Court. Under apartheid, black South Africans could not vote and were not citizens of the country in which they formed the overwhelming majority of the population. Laws dictated where they could live, work and travel. And, in South Africa, the government killed blacks who protested against its policies. By contrast, Israel allows freedom of movement, assembly and speech. Some of the government's harshest critics are Israeli Arabs who are members of the Knesset.

The situation of Palestinians in the territories is different. The security requirements of the nation, and a violent insurrection in the territories, forced Israel to impose restrictions on Arab residents of the West Bank and Gaza Strip that are not necessary inside Israel's pre-1967 borders. The Palestinians in the territories, typically, dispute Israel's right to exist whereas blacks did not seek the destruction of South Africa, only the apartheid regime.

If Israel were to give Palestinians full citizenship, it would mean the territories had been annexed. No Israeli government has been prepared to take that step. Instead, through negotiations, Israel agreed to give the Palestinians increasing authority over their own affairs. It is likely that a final settlement will allow most Palestinians to become citizens of their own state. The principal impediment to Palestinian independence is not Israeli policy, it is the unwillingness of the Palestinian leadership to give up terrorism and agree to live in peace beside the State of Israel.

Despite all their criticism, when asked what governments they admire most, more than 80 percent of Palestinians consistently choose Israel because they can see up close the thriving democracy in Israel, and the rights the Arab citizens enjoy there. By contrast, Palstinians place Arab regimes far down the list, and their own Palestinian Authority at the bottom with only 20 percent saying they admire the corrupt Arafat regime in 2003.

Nothing- in South Africa those opposing the government renounced violence and accepted that only talking would achieve peace. Until the terrorists in Hamas and other Palsetinian terrorists learn the lesson, that swearing genocide and stating that any agreements are worthless don't work, there will be a problem in the Middle east. You need two parties for peace- currently the terrorists in Hamas and the other terrorist organisations are ensuring there will not be peace.

This is good question, it makes me think. I always like Dandyl's and many other peoples answers on these intellectual questions too.

Gurion was mostly perceived as a secularist. Israel is only modern era 60 years old and his vision doesn't mean it pertains beyond his timeframe and for all of eternity. Israel is going to have to go thru another growing pain to evolve out of its fledgling state. I never liked this secularism in place of a semi-theocracy anyways. :)

The South African model also shows fledgling in an incomplete society, with the tenant/landlord analogy that Dandyl brought up in Gurion's quote. That's pretty much only thing I see in common.

No nation on this planet can consider ourselves "complete" until Moshiach comes. People willfully beating swords into plowshares is the goal. So we continue to strive for that goal.

People of this planet wonder about the existance of higher power, it is what we all have in common.

Anti-Israel people, do not construe my next statement to twist at Israel. Israel is, and will continue to remain, a Jewish state.

What is going to have to occur is this. I prefer a Ronald Reagan quote:

"...there is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he doesn't mind who gets the credit."

- January 21, 1981

People rally behind one cause is what needs to be done. If both peoples profess to be believers in the One True G-d, then why not work to benefit of Him?

Israel has every right to be landlord, it is their G-d given right and they don't have to give that right up in appeasement. Gurion was right but Israel has already established itself as landlord. Israel has already taken the higher responsiblity to even care for what happens to these disenfranchised people. We have the higher burden. The rest of the world has not taken these people in and will not. It is time to move on to a theocratic state. So absorb the disenchfranchised people and give them the "good government" that they deserve.

Within this theocratic state you will see the commonality of the two religions, the two peoples. They have more in common with each other than they have differences.

This effort requires as much work on the part of the palestinians as it would from the secularists within Israel. both people would kick and scream I tell you.

There is no reason to stay labor or likud and not go more religious. It would benefit us all. Baby steps, I know you can do it.

Forgiving each others' past wrongdoings and move on with their life in peace.

Whites have never prayed towards South Africa.

Jews have prayed towards Jerusalem for 2000 years.

Whites conquered South Africa, and enslaved its people.

Jews came back to the land that they feel belongs to them.

They paid cash-money for over 70% of it, and annexed the rest in wars that they (Jews) didn't start.

Arabs have only themselves to blame, but it is a tradition to blame everyone(Jews first) and not themselves. I understand. After all, it doesn't require thinking.

There is no comparing the two.

The answer is nothing,

South africa has went from a first world nation with very little crime,a high standard of living...yes the blacks too,to a third world hellhole "Rainbow Nation" HAH thats why everyone with the means to do so is leaving.

They should both learn that at the end they will live together in one viable constitutional democracy like South Africa.

Edit: dandy: Israel is a colonial democracy without a written constitution..

to keep black people out of their country?

one thing , good always wins .

Palestinians have learned that the invaders of their lands should be forced out, not appeased.