Avshalom Vilan ( he, אבשלום וילן, born 11 February 1951) is an Israeli politician and economist. He served as a Knesset member for Meretz between 1999 and 2009.

Biography

Avshalom Vilan was born on Kibbutz

Negba Negba ( he, נֶגְבָּה) is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located in the northern Negev desert near the cities of Kiryat Malakhi and Ashkelon, it falls under the jurisdiction of Yoav Regional Council. In it had a population of . The name of ...

. He served in the

IDF IDF or idf may refer to: Defence forces * Irish Defence Forces * Israel Defense Forces *Iceland Defense Force, of the US Armed Forces, 1951-2006 * Indian Defence Force, a part-time force, 1917 Organizations * Israeli Diving Federation * Interac ...

as a Master Sergeant in

Sayeret Matkal General Staff Reconnaissance Unit (formerly Unit 269 or Unit 262), more commonly known as Sayeret Matkal ( he, סיירת מטכ״ל) is the special reconnaissance unit (''sayeret'') of Israel's General Staff (''matkal''). It is the prime special ...

, the General Staff Reconnaissance Unit alongside two future prime ministers of Israel: Ehud Barak and

Benjamin Netanyahu Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...

. Vilan studied Economics and Philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He worked as an economist and agriculturalist before becoming an emissary for HaShomer Hatzair and

Kibbutz Artzi The Kibbutz Movement ( he, התנועה הקיבוצית, ''HaTnu'a HaKibbutzit'') is the largest settlement movement for kibbutzim in Israel. It was formed in 1999 by a partial merger of the United Kibbutz Movement and Kibbutz Artzi and is made ...

in 1993. Upon his return to Israel in 1996 he became secretary of Kibbutz Artzi, a role he held until 1999. Vilan continues to live in Kibbutz Negba. He is married with two children.

Political career

Vilan became involved in politics in the 1970s. In 1978, he was a founding member of

Peace Now Peace Now ( he, שלום עכשיו ''Shalom Achshav'', ) is a non-governmental organization, liberal advocacy and activist group in Israel with the aim of promoting a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Objectives/position ...

. He joined the socialist Mapam, and became party secretary in 1990. When Mapam merged with Ratz and

Shinui Shinui ( he, שִׁינּוּי, lit. ''Change'') was a Zionist, secular, and anti-clerical free market liberal party and political movement in Israel. The party twice became the third-largest in the Knesset, but both occasions were followed by a ...

to form Meretz in 1992, Vilan became a member of the new party. In the 1999 elections Vilan was elected to the Knesset on Meretz's list. During his first term in the Knesset he chaired the Knesset Inquiry Committee on Violence in Sports. Vilan retained his seat in the 2003 elections and chaired the same committee and also the Lobby for Public Persons as Role Models. He again retained his seat in the

2006 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2006. * Elections in 2006 * Electoral calendar 2006 * 2006 Acehnese regional election * 2006 American Samoan legislative election * 2006 Bahraini parliamentary election * 2006 Costa Rican president ...

. For two terms, Vilan chaired the Parliamentary Inquiry Committee on Violence in Sports. Prior to the

2009 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2009. * Electoral calendar 2009 * 2009 United Nations Security Council election Caribbean * 2009 Antiguan general election * 2009 Aruban general election * 2009 Caymanian constitutional referendu ...

he won fifth place on the Meretz list.Meretz primaries: Ilan Gilon takes top spot
Ynetnews, 15 December 2008 However, he lost his seat when the party was reduced to three mandates.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vilan, Avshalom 1951 births Living people Hebrew University of Jerusalem Faculty of Social Sciences alumni Kibbutz Movements secretaries Israeli economists Meretz politicians Members of the 15th Knesset (1999–2003) Members of the 16th Knesset (2003–2006) Members of the 17th Knesset (2006–2009) Peace Now people