The Knesset gets back to work Sunday morning, meaning that the threat posed by proposed legislation is also back. The anti-government protest movement will continue to focus on halting the worst of all of the legislative packages – which would change Israel’s system of government by handing unlimited power to the governing coalition.
But the coalition, the most extreme in the country’s history, will be pushing for passage of other bills aimed at eroding the balance of the country’s values. Some of them will attract less attention than others, so now, at the end of the Knesset’s spring recess, would be a good time to stop and reflect on what exactly the fight is about.
In general, many people would rightly claim that it’s about the country’s democratic character. The coalition wants a country that is more Jewish than democratic. In other words, it wants nationalism to take precedence over liberalism. But what does the opposition want? Does it really support defending liberal democratic values?
The answer – and the problem it raises – can be found in Justice Minister Yariv Levin’s speech Thursday at the pro-government rally at the Knesset. It can also be found in the responses of the (Jewish) leaders of the opposition parties.
Levin lambasted the High Court of Justice, saying: “The time has come for a court that doesn’t provide rights to terrorists’ families, that doesn’t allow fake memorial ceremonies with terror supporters … that punishes rapists and doesn’t try to protect them; a court that looks after the old woman in south Tel Aviv and not the infiltrators harming her; a court that defends the lives of IDF soldiers and not terrorists’ neighbors.”
Levin is mainly attacking the High Court decisions that have protected the rights of non-Jews such as asylum seekers, and he is against defending the rights of Palestinians. The right wing and Levin have not been concealing their motive for their proposed regime coup – an Israel that is a Jewish state and not a democratic one – particularly with regard to the Palestinians.
Across the political spectrum, the opposition mostly responded by claiming Levin is lying and that the High Court does indeed defend IDF soldiers. For instance, National Unity leader Benny Gantz tweeted: “As someone who served as defense minister and IDF chief of staff, the judicial system has been assisting a great deal in putting our defense policy into practice.” Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid tweeted: “Lies and fake [news] just for more headlines.”
In her tweet, Labor Party leader Merav Michaeli responded only to the portion of Levin’s speech directed at her personally, regarding the court’s purported protection of asylum-seeker rapists. But her Labor Party colleague Efrat Rayten stated: “The cabinet ministers are inciting and lying in saying that the High Court is against the soldiers and supports the terrorists, while the truth is the exact opposite. Israel’s independent court, which works impartially, is the Iron Dome of the IDF’s commanders and soldiers.” Labor Party lawmaker Gilad Kariv called Levin’s remarks “a speech full of lies and incitement.”
The opposition has never – and will never – dare tell Levin the simple truth, in the spirit of genuine liberal democratic values: Yes, holding a joint Israeli-Palestinian memorial ceremony is permissible and even desirable. And yes, the Palestinian families and neighbors of those convicted of terrorist acts also have basic human rights. We should not demolish their homes, take away their resident status or expel them as a result of someone else’s crimes. Yes, the High Court also needs to protect the rights of non-Jews, including asylum seekers, and particularly the rights of the largest minority whose lives we control – the Palestinians.
The opposition’s lack of daring is actually not surprising. After all, this is the same opposition that recently overwhelmingly supported legislation that Levin sought in his speech to defend from the High Court – legislation allowing to revoke the residency status of Palestinians with Israeli citizenship who were convicted of terrorism and expelling them. The cowardly Labor Party Knesset faction, including Kariv, was not present to vote on it and supported it on a first vote.
That’s because it’s much easier for the hypocritical Jewish opposition to wave the secular and feminist banner than defending the rights of the true minority – the Palestinians.
The Architect of Israel's Judicial Coup Spoke the Truth, but What About the Opposition?
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01.05.2023
The Knesset gets back to work Sunday morning, meaning that the threat posed by proposed legislation is also back. The anti-government protest movement will continue to focus on halting the worst of all of the legislative packages – which would change Israel’s system of government by handing unlimited power to the governing coalition.
But the coalition, the most extreme in the country’s history, will be pushing for passage of other bills aimed at eroding the balance of the country’s values. Some of them will attract less attention than others, so now, at the end of the Knesset’s spring recess, would be a good time to stop and reflect on what exactly the fight is about.
In general, many people would rightly claim that it’s about the country’s democratic character. The coalition wants a country that is more Jewish than democratic. In other words, it wants nationalism to take precedence over liberalism. But what does the opposition want? Does it really support defending liberal democratic values?
The answer – and the problem it raises – can be found in Justice Minister........
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