Bartholomew's Notes

Following on from yesterday, here’s another ex-Soviet billionaire dabbling in religion and politics. Haaretz reports:

Billionaire Russian-born Israeli businessman Arkady Gaydamak said Monday that he will run for mayor of Jerusalem, in a bid to replace incumbent Uri Lupolanski.

…Several months ago, Gaydamak was reported to be consulting with friends in Moscow who could assist him in mounting a mayoral campaign.

…The idea initially arose up when Gaydamak became involved in trying to mediate between the warring sides over the holding of the Gay Pride parade in Jerusalem.

(I blogged on that here)

Gaydamak was reported to have been convinced that he would have the support of both the ultra-Orthodox sector and the fans of the Beitar Jerusalem club (which he owns), seen as a key electoral base.

One of the steps he has taken so far in this direction is the strengthening of his ties with the ultra-Orthodox sector in particular.

A second report (which suggests that Gaydamak would rather work behind the scenes than become mayor himself) adds a quote

“I have no doubt that the entire city will vote for me,” the billionaire said in one interview on Monday. “There’s not one person who is not familiar today with Gaydamak and what he is capable of.”

“Jerusalem is a symbol for the Jewish people and I plan to turn it into a symbol for peace and Judaism,” he added.

Like the guys we saw yesterday, Gaydamak is a controversial figure, and just a few weeks ago it was announced that he would be tried in absentia in France over an arms deal with Angola:

The case is one of a series of murky scandals from the Mitterrand era and involves political figures on both the left and right, as well as a colourful associated cast including the thriller writer Paul-Loup Sulitzer.

[Arms traders Pierre] Falcone and Gaydamak bought tanks, helicopters, artillery pieces, mines, flame-throwers and other weapons in eastern Europe and sold them to Angola through a Paris-based company called Brenco and its Slovak subsidiary.

Prosecutors say the deals required official authorisation, a charge rejected by the defence.

The weapons were used by Angolan President Eduardo Dos Santos to fight rebel UNITA forces under Jonas Savimbi.

Gaydamak also has extensive media interests. In 2005 the Committee to Protect Journalists noted that

During the latter part of 2005, companies and businessmen friendly to the Kremlin further restricted the national print media by purchasing three influential newspapers that had remained critical of the government…In October, Moscow-born businessman Arkady Gaidamak purchased the independent Moscow weekly Moskovskiye Novosti. Gaidamak said that media should not criticize the government, The Moscow Times reported.

There was further scrutiny in the British press in 2006, when Arkady’s son Alexandre Gaydamak became involved with purchasing soccer clubs:

Arkady Gaydamak, 53, made his fortune initially in France where he arrived as an apparently penniless, and, according to one account, illegal, immigrant in 1972. Within a few years, he had built a huge fortune and had established connections with the French political and financial lite and at least one part of the French security services.

…Since the Angolan affair broke, he has been the object of a war of words in the French press. Gaydamak angrily denied allegations, based on internal memos by French security services sent to an investigating judge, that he had connections with the Russian Mafia. He begun defamation proceedings against Le Monde and the security services involved.

Other accounts have described him as a friend and benefactor of France. He was awarded a medal, ‘L’Ordre National du Mrite,’ by President Jacques Chirac in 1996 for his part in brokering the release of two French pilots captured by Serbian forces during the Yugoslav civil war.

This is not his only French honour. He is also a ‘Chevalier de l’ordre du mrite agricole’, for his part in French food exports to Russia. A room in the Louvre museum was named after him after he donated a piece of 16th-century furniture, which once belonged to King Franois I.

In Russia itself, in 2005 Gaydamak took control of a Jewish group, as the JTA reported:

Much of KEROOR’s [Congress of Jewish Religious Communities and Organizations of Russia] new budget will come from Gaydamak’s own money, which puts him atop the list of domestic Jewish philanthropists and behind only a few foreign donors who have backed KEROOR’s archrival, the Chabad-led Federation of Jewish Communities, the largest Jewish organization in the region.

The main donor and president of the federation, Israeli diamond mogul Lev Levayev, is believed to have introduced Gaydamak, who at one time owned a share in Levayev’s investment business, to the world of Russian Jewish philanthropy a few years ago.

…Those familiar with the situation said Gaydamak joined KEROOR, a 15-year-old group that includes Orthodox and Reform congregations, because he no longer was satisfied with his secondary role in the federation, which Levayev dominates.

…KEROOR’s chief rabbinical authority is Adolf Shayevich, one of Russia’s two chief rabbis. Shayevich has been at odds with a Kremlin that puts its trust in his main rival, Chief Rabbi Berel Lazar, the federation’s leader.

The report adds the detail that

…He holds several foreign passports, drives around Moscow in a black luxury Bentley with Angolan diplomatic plates and holds a senior adviser’s post with the Angolan government.

There was also a recent profile in Time, which suggested that with a crisis of leadership in Israel, Gaydamak may “be in the position of kingmaker”:

He says [his] Social Justice [organisation] is not a political party. Rather, it was founded “to form a common ground for the non-privileged minorities who are the majority, for the people who were always kept out of power, who have no access to the new wealth, who have no protection, who are not patronized by the establishment.” He styles himself a nagid or gvir, a traditional Jewish philanthropist-leader who uses his wealth for the public good.

…Gaydamak also likes to spread his political affiliations around. Though he has said in the past that he would support Netanyahu for the Prime Minister’s post, Gaydamak nonetheless promotes talks with the Palestinians sooner rather than later (something Netanyahu does not support) and says Israel should be doing more to improve the quality of life for people in the West Bank and Gaza.

Name variations: Arkady Gaydamak, Arkadi Gaydamak, Arkady Gaidamak, Arkadi Gaidamak, Arcadi Gaydamak, Arcadi Gaidamak

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Yet another interfaith conflab involving religious leaders has just taken place, this time in Kiev. MosNews reports:

The Inaugural Summit on Peace and Tolerance devoted to the contemporary state and perspectives of the international inter-confessional dialogue has opened in the Ukrainian capital.

Global Foundation for Democracy headed by Kazakhstan entrepreneur Patokh Chodiev acted as the main organizer of the event.

Participants included Israel Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger, Benazir Bhutto, Tom Ridge, Rev. Robert Schuler II, and a UCLA Muslim scholar named Muzzamil Siddiqi. President Alexander Machkevitch of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress delivered an address on the importance of toleration among religious leaders:

The EAJC President also reminded the summit’s participants about the experience of international dialogue between ethnical entities and religions under the aegis of Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

I blogged on Nazarbayev’s “Second Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions” – which saw religious leaders competing to offer the most lavish praise on the Kazakh leader – here. Machkevitch and Chodiev have good reason to speak well of Nazarbayev, since much of their personal wealth, and that of Alijan Ibragimov, with whom they make up “the Kazakh Trio”, is derived from their purchase from him of privatised state industries. Forbes has explored some of the murkiness:

Regional experts have accused them of orchestrating sweetheart deals with Kazakhstan’s long-serving president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, and getting “special commissions” from steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal. Then there are the money-laundering charges and reams of bad press. The partners scoff at most of these allegations.

…”People have questions about how they became so rich,” says Zeyno Baran, a director at think tank Nixon Center. “They didn’t do business in a way that is competitive or transparent. It’s mainly based on relationships.” Though the details surrounding the early days of Kazakhstan’s privatization efforts are fuzzy, the trio denies receiving special consideration from the government, especially from President Nazarbayev, who is known to keep a tight rein on foreign investors.

“These guys are not Kazakh, yet somehow they got the trust of the president and used their relationship with the president actively,” says Leyla Abdimomunova, a Kazakhstan analyst based in the capital, Astana. Other regional experts agree that the troika received special favors; at least two separate private investigators have looked into the trio’s ties to Nazarbayev, one of which yielded hotel documents that show they traveled together in 1998. Alexander Ignatov, whose company consults in the former Soviet Union states, says rumors are rampant that the three partners were active financiers of Nazarbayev’s latest presidential campaign.

As well as the “Summit on Peace and Tolerance” and Nazarbayev’s congresses, there has recently been a large-scale interfaith meeting in Moscow (blogged here) and a Russian-backed “Dialogue of Civilizations”, which dwelt on religion, in Cyprus (blogged here). The “Trio” also ran a Jewish-Muslim dialogue meeting last year:

The forum entitled “Islam and Judaism: the road to dialogue and cooperation”, organized by the EAJC and the Council of Mufits of Russia received backing of Patokh Chodiev, chairman of the global foundation “For Democracy”, and entrepreneur Alijan Ibragimov.

The event was attended by a delegation of Iranian lawmakers, headed by the leader of Iran’s Jewish community and deputy of the Iranian parliament Morris Motamed, the EAJC said in a statement. Other attendees included chairman of the Russian Council of Muftis Ravil Gainutdin, chief rabbi of Russia Adolf Shayevich, representatives of Muslim and Jewish communities, government officials, diplomats and scholars from the former Soviet republics.

In organising the Summit, it seems that the “Trio” also had dealings with a counterpart in Ukraine; according to the Pak Tribune, it was

…arranged by the Global Capital Associates and the Ukrainian Interfaith Association…

The Ukrainian Interfaith Association – also known as “A Step to Unity” – is headed by another businessman, Vadim Rabinovich. Rabinovich is a controversial character: in 1999 he visited Liberia on a private jet owned by a Ukrainian mafia boss and arms dealer, and in 2002 he was accused by Der Speigel of having sold tanks to the Taliban. In 1995 he had his US visa revoked, and WorldNetDaily hyped links with Clinton and Gore for its own purposes in 2000. Rabinovich, however, maintains that allegations of wrongdoing are politically-motivated. The businessman is also known in Ukraine for his charitable works, such as his funding of Ukraine’s 9/11 memorial monument. His interfaith efforts were recognised in 2002:

The chairman of the Ukrainian Interfaith Association ‘Step to Unity’, Vadim Rabinovich, has been honoured by the Patriarch of Kiev and all Ukraine, Filaret, with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s highest award – the first class order of Holy Apostolic Duke Vladimir in recognition of his ‘achievements in the spiritual revival of the Ukraine’ and the significant role the Association plays in bridging the trust between various secular and religious components of the country.

The Pak Tribune also reported on Bhutto’s speech at the Summit:

“If elections in my country are rigged, we hope to emulate your orange revolution through public demonstrations and people’s power”, she said by adding that the fanatics who exploit the name of Islam do not speak for the Muslim people…

This report also states that President Viktor Yuschenko was the host of the event, but according to a short JTA report he backed out at the last moment.

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