January 29, 2003

Balad's new face hopes to solve socioeconomic problems

By David Rudge

Jamal Zahalka, number two on the Knesset list of MK Azmi Bishara's Balad Party, was once a member of the Arab-Jewish Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (Hadash).

Zahalka told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday that he had joined Balad because of its ideological and political platform and the "democratic and political challenge that it promotes." "As a Knesset member, I intend to deal with the socioeconomic problems afflicting the Arab community and in particular those issues relating to unemployment, planning for housing and other development, Arab land, and the rights of farmers," he said.

The 48 year-old father of three, from Kafr Kari in the Triangle Region, became active in politics in the Arab Student Union at the Hebrew University where he studied pharmacy and obtained a Phd.

He joined Balad, which won three mandates in the election, in 1996, shortly after its formation, and has been an active member of the party and its political bureau ever since. Zahalka was the number three candidate on its Knesset list in the 1999 elections.

For two years, he was also director of the "Alaha'ali" society which works for the rights of Arab farmers.

Colleagues described him as a charismatic person highly qualified to represent the party generally and in the Knesset in particular.

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