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Taking the battle into 2021
Your support for Hiddush’s work is especially important to enable us to maximize the exposure of the battle for freedom of religion and equality of civic burden and to emphasize their implications for the future of the state and the Jewish people.
Uri Regev 24/12/2020 19:39
Tags: Legal advocacy · elections · politics
Legal Advocacy
This week it became clear that Israel is going to elections for the fourth time in two years! The reality poses difficult challenges for Israel and the world, but the politicians leading Israel have failed to rise to these challenges and lead Israel out of the medical economic, social and educational crises that COVID-19 has forced upon us. Instead, we witnessed almost every day the deterioration of the political system, until the disintegration of the government was expected and the question was only: how fast would it happen? Today we know that in March, Israeli citizens will march to the polls in another attempt to reshape the political landscape in an effort to enable the formation of a more stable coalition, which will focus on the key national challenges and not let other considerations distract it.
About a year ago, the Blue-and-White party emerged as a meteoric star and almost completely changed the political map… Sadly, the greater the expectations, the greater the disappointment. However, ahead of the upcoming election we are facing further surprises, as anyone who follows the Israeli political arena knows. It is difficult to evaluate the potential election results, because it is still not clear exactly which parties will compete. There are too many moving parts in the political puzzle at this point. This will have far-reaching implications, although one thing can be said with near certainty - most Israelis will vote for parties representing the political right in its various shades. This is the DNA of the current majority of voters in Israel, as we mentioned in the 2020 Israel Religion and State Index. This is also clear from the election polls that have been conducted for some time, And reaffirmed by more recent polls.
Yet, unlike the division between the political right, center and left, the division among the Jewish Israeli public on religion-state relations is completely different. A large majority wants a revolution in these matters. From left to right there is majority support for promoting religious freedom and equality In the spirit of the Declaration of Independence, and it is clear that these issues will be significant in the upcoming elections. Still, it is not yet known exactly what weight will be given to them. This largely depends on the degree of initiative taken by parties in raising the banner of freedom of religion and equality, as well as the degree of determination with which take their stances. The potential is great! How much things still hang in the air can be seen, for example, in two statements heard today, when going to another election became a fact:
God forbid we are allowed to enter into dangerous complacency. Unfortunately, in this election campaign, the fear of forming a secular government is growing stronger and stronger.
On the one hand, Shas party leader Rabbi Aryeh Deri, was quoted in an interview published today in his party newspaper:
“... God forbid we are allowed to enter into dangerous complacency. Unfortunately, in this election campaign, the fear of forming a secular government is growing stronger and stronger. The main thing will be the dissolution of the status quo and harm to the Jewish character of the state, to the world of Torah, to the yeshivas, to the students and the weak... In the current power relations in the political system, there are many actors that have set themselves a goal to form a government without the ultra-Orthodox, without a true Jewish identity, without worrying about the world of Torah...”
On the other hand, a senior political commentator [Dafna Liel from Channel 12TV] announced today that
“I am sure that the ultra-Orthodox will be the kingmakers in the upcoming elections, and they will also decide who will be the prime minister here.”
The future, then, is open to change, and as you can read in this newsletter, the general public is becoming increasingly critical of the ultra-Orthodox public. The pandemic has only increased the antagonism that already existed from their refusal to shoulder the civic defense burden and that of the economic existence of the State, as well as from their increasing demands for state funding and various privileges, and no less - the political price the ultra-Orthodox parties charge for selling their votes to the various coalitions: to dictate the lifestyles of the general public in key areas of life that impact civil rights and human dignity, such as marriage, divorce and Shabbat.
In this reality, your support for Hiddush’s work is especially important to enable us to maximize the exposure of the battle for freedom of religion and equality of civic burden and to emphasize their implications for the future of the state and the Jewish people. In the legal battle to advance these values, Hiddush will be able to reach out to victims of religious coercion and discrimination and to advance our joint vision of a democratic and Jewish State of Israel. Please donate generously to Hiddush now, at the end of the 2020 year, to ensure that 2021 will be better.