On Thursday, July 20th 2023, Zulat Institute conducted a webinar called “July August Law: Webinar on the next round in the fight for democracy,” discussing the topic of the fight, in which members of Zulat’s Steering Committee participated. The webinar was hosted by former MK and journalist Daniel Ben Simon, a Zulat Steering Committee member.
Zulat President Zehava Galon opened and said: “The coalition has a different vision from us. They promote Jewish supremacy regime, work towards annexation, and deprive women of their rights. We cannot compromise democracy”.
Here is an overview of the key points raised by the participants during the discussion:
Dr. Meital Pinto: “Restricting the usage of reasonableness standard opens the possibility to intervene in the appointments. It paves the way to remove the legal advisor from her duty and cancel the assembly of the Judicial Selection Committee. Now is the time to escalate the protest and continue pushing forward with determination. I do not support violent actions; however, civilians should disobey wherever they can. Until now, all the delays and setbacks we have achieved are due to our active protest and persistence. The Israeli public has woken up; dividing our country into Israel and Judah is not what I hope for. Despite the profound rifts, I would still prefer to remain in the Israel I am familiar with. Finding common ground deserves more of our effort. Although quite challenging, it is not entirely beyond reach”.
Prof. Adam Shenar: “The amendment to the bill, restricting the usage of reasonableness, approved by Law and Justice Committee, protecting the Prime Minister and the Ministers from judicial review, is very extreme. The protesters are highly perspective regarding what lies ahead. They are keenly aware that the change will occur in small increments, taking one step at a time. [MK Simcha] Rothman and [Minister of Justice MK Yariv] Levin (Likud) said this is only the beginning, and we have all the reasons to believe they will continue.”
Dr. Maha Sabbah Karkabi: “Arab leaders are conscious of the grave repercussions their society may face. However, they perceive the protest as being driven primarily by Jewish Liberals. Nevertheless, the protest will challenge the balance on multiple fronts, presenting a potentially historic opportunity for action, which Arab communities are acutely aware of.”
Alon Pinkas, former Consul General of Israel in New York: “We have an army which is the People’s Army, and it is genuinely a melting pot. Unlike other protest movements, our protest has a direct connection to maintaining the GDP and national security; the socioeconomic military profile of the protesters is closely intertwined with the existence of the Israeli country. We all did our military service.”
(Translation from Hebrew: Moran Yellin)
Watch (Hebrew, no subtitles):