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The Upcoming Summer Session of the Knesset Could Be the Last for Democratic Israel

>> Read all messages from Zehava Galon

Independence Day and Memorial Day for Israel’s Fallen Soldiers are behind us. Under the baton of the current Israeli government, these emotional and heartrending anniversaries, too, turned into yet another series of shameful events, a hollow parody of a functioning state. Ignoring warnings about forest fires amid an intense heat wave and accusing Arabs and left-wingers of arson to divert attention from the its failures shows what has become of our country. Memorial Day and Independence Day are central occasions in Israel’s life, and when even these commemorations get such a contemptuous and infuriating treatment, that’s a sign of things to come.

And what’s to come is the Knesset’s summer session. Yet another one with hostages still in Hamas captivity, the war in Gaza still just “a step away” from victory, and the government cutting the salaries of teachers and kindergarten staff while seeking a salary raise for the coalition’s MKs. However, its main obsession remains to solidify the regime revolution, annexing the territories, and dishing out the country’s resources to every politician who threatens its survival. But make no mistake: The upcoming summer session will not be more of the same. It will be crucial. It may be the last session of Israel’s Knesset in a democratic state. The Knesset will continue to exist, but as a hollow body mainly for the sake of appearances.

The regime revolution blitz is still on the table and being implemented in various areas, each one of them critical. The government will choose a new Shin Bet chief, and we already know exactly what Netanyahu demands from the candidates for the position; it will continue its efforts to fire the Attorney General, to separate criminal prosecution from legal counsel to the government, to appoint a government-friendly Judicial Ombudsman, to grant draconian powers to law enforcement agencies to suppress citizen protests, to bring the media under political control and dismantle the Public Broadcasting Corporation, to enact a series of laws that will exclude Arab citizens from participating in elections and suppress any legitimate protest against the government, and of course, it will not draft the Haredim to serve in the army.

All this can be very discouraging, I know. But having said that, I would like to remind you: Were it not for the public, this government would have toppled Israeli democracy long ago. The public’s resolute struggles, the vigilance of a few gatekeepers, and the consistent refusal to give up – they are our best chance.

At Zulat, we intend to use every tool at our disposal to stop the regime revolution and keep the flame of human rights alive in Israel. One of our strongest tools is the parliamentary one: We will present our position at every relevant committee discussion. We will brief MKs and equip them with every possible means to tackle the government’s spins, lies, and deceptions. We will invite experts to relevant committees so that the truth is also represented. And of course, we will continue to make our activity accessible to the public in protests, conferences, webinars, and events.

Despair is not an action plan. Despair is the government’s plan of action. We will continue to raise our heads and act, both independently and in collaboration with civil society organizations, to be a counterforce to the government’s moves. We are not alone, but part of a large camp. And this camp will also win.

Yours,

Zehava Galon

Zulat President

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Dr. Maha Sabbah Karkabi

 

Senior Lecturer in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. She holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from Tel Aviv University (2015), a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Gender Studies, SOAS, University of London (2015-2016), a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Sociology at Tel Aviv University (2016-2017), and a postdoctoral fellowship Ph.D. at the Humphrey Institute for Social Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (2018-2020).
Dr. Maha Karbahi’s areas of interest focus on the connection between social change, family behavior, and gender inequality in societies in the process of change and specifically in Palestinian Arab society in Israel. Her research draws attention to the study of family life and employment, using a combined “ethnic lens” and “gender lens” and paying attention to the perspective of Palestinian Arab women, a group characterized by intersections between multiple marginal locations, which over the years has remained hidden from the research eye. Dr. Karkabi-Sabah’s research is published in professional journals and chapters in scientific books that are considered pioneers in family research, work, and gender equality.

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Prof. Frances Raday

Professor Emeritus in the Lieberman Chair in Labor Law, in the Faculty of Law at the Hebrew University and serves as a full professor in the College of Management’s academic track, where she also serves as chair of the graduate program and as honorary president of the Concord Center for International Law Absorption. Radai was a member of a working group of the UN Human Rights Council on discrimination against women. In addition, she is a prominent and feminist human rights activist.

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Dr. Rawia Aburabia 

Faculty member of Sapir Academic College’s School of Law, received her PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Her research deals with the interface between law, gender, minorities, and human rights. Has published in leading journals on the subject of the matrimonial laws pertaining to Muslim women in Israel. Her book Under the Law, Outside Justice: Polygamy, Gendered Citizenship, and Colonialism in Israeli Law is expected to be published as part of the Gender Series of Kibbutz Meuhad Publishing House.

Dr. Aburabia has extensive experience in international human rights and public law. She has worked as a jurist for the Association for Civil Right and has been invited as a specialist to address such international forums as the United Nations and the European Parliament on the subject of indigenous communities and minority rights. She has interned with Human Rights Watch in Washington DC, and has been a member of the executive board of Amnesty International. In 2018, she was selected by the magazine Globes as one of the 40 most promising young persons in Israel under the age of 40.

 

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Ron Kessler

With over two decades of experience in the field of digital content, Ron has participated in numerous political and social campaigns. He helped run the digital activity of senior public officials, and worked in various NGOs. Ron is a fundamentally optimistic man, who believes that Israel can be changed and so can people. Lives in Tel Aviv.