Negev Coexistence Forum

In 1997, a group of concerned Arab and Jewish residents of the Negev (Israel’s southern desert region) established the Negev Coexistence Forum for Civil Equality (NCF) to provide a framework for Jewish-Arab collaborative efforts in the struggle for civil equality and the advancement of mutual tolerance and coexistence. NCF, also known as “Dukium” in Hebrew, is unique in being the only Arab-Jewish organization that remains focused solely on the specific problems confronting the Negev. NCF considers that the State of Israel fails to respect, protect and fulfill its human rights obligations, without discrimination, towards the Arab-Bedouin citizens in the Negev. As a result, the Forum has set out as one of its goals to achieve full civil rights and equality for all those living Negev. The Forum’s activities and projects are based on the principle of Arab-Jewish cooperation and as such, among our members are leaders and academics from the Negev Arab community. As a joint Jewish-Arab group, we maintain a balance and equal partnership in all bodies of the organization, as well as in the decision-making processes. NCF is engaged in a wide range of grassroots activities. Haia Noach, NCF Co-Founder and Executive Director: Haia Noach is a vocal Israeli human rights activist and author who has relentlessly advocated for the rights of the indigenous Bedouin in the southern Negev desert for almost two decades. Haia was born and grew up in the Negev (Naqab) and became intensely involved in these issues after learning that her Bedouin neighbors were forced to relocate from their homes and villages. She holds a Master’s degree in Geography from Ben Gurion University of the Negev. Haia is also the among the initiators of the Recognition Forum (a coalition of NGOs fighting for recognition of Bedouin villages in the Negev), and the Social Coalition Against Unemployment and Privatization.