Visit of German Ambassador, H.E. Dr. Susanne Wasum-Rainer

In January, WAS-NS communications and development director Samah Salaime attended a dinner held by the French Ambassador in honor of French-German human rights activist Daniel Cohn Bendit, who was in the country for a new documentary. The German ambassador, H.E. Dr. Susanne Wasum-Rainer was also at the event. Samah introduced herself, gave her a copy of Dr. Nava Sonnenschein’s book and formally invited her to visit the village. She accepted, and in follow-up communications, we set the date of her visit for April 15.

When the day came around, we welcomed her at the Communications and Development Office, then continued to the School of Peace, the Primary School, The Spiritual Center and the Art Gallery, where she met with the directors and some of the staff of each institution. Since so many of these are women, it gave us an opportunity to speak about women’s leadership in the village, in Germany and around the world. Dr. Wasum-Rainer herself is one of 14 women ambassadors currently serving in Israel.

Another subject of our discussion was our German friends association and contacts in Germany, a country from which we have received crucial support over many years. This has been instrumental in establishing the hotel, maintaining the youth encounter workshops of the School for Peace, providing operational expenses for the Primary School and building the volunteer house, among other things.

One of the significant stops on the visit was the International Rescue Garden project. Samah was able to share how some of her relatives in Syria had emigrated to Germany following the civil war there. She thanked the German government for welcoming and supporting Palestinian and Syrian refugees so humanely.

The visit proved to be highly successful and positive. Dr. Wasum-Rainer promised that it would not be her last. She said she would support our endeavours to extend our contacts in Germany, and that she would suggest Wahat al-Salam – Neve Shalom as an important destination for German visitors and fellow members of the diplomatic community. True to her word, since her visit, the German Embassy has remained in friendly contact with the village, alongside the embassies of other countries like Switzerland, France, and Sweden.

At the end of her visit, Her Excellency stated "Surely your village and its work provide hope for peace. Your voice is absent in many places in the region and needs to be heard."