Just before 4 p.m. on Friday, 4 May 1948 David Ben Gurion, then the Leader of the Israel Labour Party ‘Mapai’, and later the first Prime-Minister of Israel, entered an ordinary building located on the Rothschild boulevard in the Centre of Tel-Aviv. With a strike of a ceremonial chestnut hammer he opened the meeting of the National Counsel and read out the Declaration of Independence of Israel. At that moment the Independent Republic of Israel was born.

60 years passed since then. Compared to the existence of the human kind, this is a very short time for a country. Israel is a small country, just 14 thousand square miles, or 22 thousand square kilometres.

Despite its small territory, the significance of it to the human kind is great. Israel is the land of three main world religions. This is the land of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. This was the birth place of people with unique view of the world and where the Five Books known as the Old Testament originated. This is why Jewish people are called the people of the Book. Hundreds of millions of people take advice from, and are guided by the Bible.

Since ancient times Israel was a main trading route. Israel is a country with the largest repatriated population in the world. Its inventions are utilised all around the world. The history of Israel begins in the Bronze era and continues into the age of nanotechnology.

On 29 April 2008 in the exhibition hall of Hesed ‘Polina’ many active participants of Kazakhstan’s science and culture displayed their love of Israel. Svetlana Nezhinskaya set the mood of the conference with her words, “Israel is loved by many, it is impossible not to love and wonder at the country as it is such a unique country with unique people.”

“Israel people believe in their families and in their nation,” said Yosi Lebovich, Kazakhstan’s representative of World Jewish Agency ‘Sohnut’, “This is not hard to believe given that for us the greatest treasure is our family and friends. All our children are ready to take to arms and to defend their country.”

During the conference, Adolf Artsishevskiy, writer, journalist and editor of Olzhas Suleymanov’s book ‘Asia and I’ expressed his feelings towards the coutry in poetic verse.

Tamara Shaikevich-Ilyina, a physician, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor and a passionate traveller, published her emotions and memoirs about the Holy Land in a form of a small book callerd ‘Israel Diary’.

“I did not stop wondering at all I saw,” she said in a conference, remembering her visit to the country in 1990, “People see prestige in serving in the Israel Army. Conscription time is three years for young men and two for young women. The soldiers spend one night a week at home. When looking at the women in uniforms who sometimes were wearing a machine gun, I was surprised by their modern haircuts, rings on their fingers, their earrings and necklaces. The soldiers are respected. If passing a person in military uniform, drivers would always stop to offer a lift.

“Once I visited a small milk shop and felt tears. The shelves were heavy with various types of produce. It seemed that one would not be able to try everything in a lifetime. I only wondered why we never had any of this...”

Tamara received enthusiastic applause. The most cheerful applause was coming from Yuri Reznikov, famous film director and an author of more than 100 movie scripts. As it turned out, Tamara Shaikevich-Ilyina saved his life.

Many more things were said about the literature and life in Israel during the Literary reception. The event lasted for more than an hour. One of the highlights of the event was the comment of Tamara Shaikevich-Ilyina.

“It is wonderful that a new country appeared such an exceptional country, Israel. While on its lands I reminded myself that this is where my ancestors were born and laid to rest. Historically, this is truly my country, about which I knew next to nothing before my visit there. Now I know a lot about it.

“I also learned that the Jewish people of Kazakhstan, need to learn much about our history, tradition and the modern standing of our historic motherland.”

Anna Naumova