Many tens of thousands of Israelis are back on Saturday took to the streets in Tel Aviv and elsewhere to raise their voices against a new attempt by Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government to significantly curtail the powers of the judiciary. The first of three rounds of votes on a bill that seeks to curb the power of judges in favor of the ruling majority is expected to take place this Monday in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament.
The issue has been dividing Israel to the core for months. Critics argue that Israel is “just hours away from a dictatorship.” Others, on the other hand, applaud the reform.
“Now is the time to stop the Netanyahu government,” explained the historian and best-selling author Yuval Noah Harari. If the government stands its ground, he said, “we will resist with all non-violent means at our disposal.” A doctor who also represents many colleagues made it clear that in that case, for example, strikes would follow in the medical sector. “The health system will operate as an emergency – because this is a state of emergency,” said Hagai Levin.
Until now, judges could decide to declare government decisions invalid on the basis of the rather abstract criterion of ‘reasonableness’. That power, with which judges occasionally thwarted the government, would be taken away from them under the current proposals. The government argues that the verdicts of the highest courts are often not representative of the views of the population. That is why, according to her, it is more democratic to give the elected politicians a heavier voice.
Mass strikes
It is the second time that the government has tried to get legislation to this effect through the Knesset, where it has a majority. In March, Netanyahu withdrew such proposals until further notice after massive strikes erupted and hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets. The already massive protests at the time gained momentum after Netanyahu fired his defense minister Yoav Gallant.
The minister had said that the bills should be withdrawn because they posed a threat to the security of the country. Many reservists, especially pilots who are often called up for combat missions, threatened to stop showing up if the proposals were passed. After the protests and strikes, Netanyahu was forced to keep Gallant in his cabinet.
The big question now is whether the reservists will again threaten to stop showing up. Former prime minister and former army chief Ehud Barak pointedly alluded to this last week. Speaking to Israeli television, he said: “I expect the pilots, the Military Intelligence Department and the Special Operations Department, will all repeat their warning: Netanyahu, watch out as soon as you try to turn the first reading of the bill into a real law.” we will not serve a dictatorship. Period.”
The demonstrators realize that Minister Gallant can once again play a central role. Partly for this reason, reservists and veterans who oppose the reforms tried to reach his home in northern Israel. They hope that Gallant will again be prepared to oppose the reforms.
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Dismissed Police Commissioner
The demonstrations have continued at a low ebb since March. This Saturday was the 27th time that the demonstrators took to the streets. This time, however, the turnout was not only greater because the government is again trying to push through legal reforms, albeit in a slightly amended form. They were also the first demonstrations since the resignation of Tel Aviv Police Commissioner Ami Esched last week. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who is in charge of the police, wanted to demote him to a lower position because he was angry that Esched had not toughened up the police against the protesters in recent months.
Esched resigned rather than accepting a new job and then fiercely criticized Ben-Gvir. In Tel Aviv, his resignation already led to a fierce demonstration on Thursday that was intended to show solidarity with Esched. Although the police deployed water cannons in Tel Aviv on Saturday, where some 140,000 demonstrators were on the move, as far as is known there were no serious incidents.