2023-07-29 21:08:21
Even following the implementation of a core element of the controversial judicial reform in Israel, the massive protests in the country continue. According to Israeli television, around 170,000 people demonstrated for the 30th Saturday evening in a row in the coastal city of Tel Aviv once morest the policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing religious government. In numerous other cities, including Haifa and Jerusalem, people took to the streets once more.
Thousands of protesters waved blue and white national flags, which have become a symbol of the protest movement. “We refuse to serve a dictatorship,” read a poster in Tel Aviv. “We don’t accept any of that,” said 27-year-old Itay Amram, referring to judicial reform. Protester Lotem Pinchover, who attended the Jerusalem rally wrapped in an Israeli flag, said she felt “heartbroken and helpless” following Monday’s parliamentary vote. “I am very scared of what is happening in Israel now and I am very worried regarding my daughter’s future,” added the 40-year-old.
In a speech to the demonstrators in Tel Aviv, the former head of the Israeli central bank, Jaakov Frenkel, warned that the judiciary reform would cause serious economic damage. With the approval of a first law to weaken the judiciary, the Netanyahu government “crossed the Rubicon,” Frenkel said, according to the news site ynet.
Foreign investors are worried regarding the dramatic change in Israel within half a year. “We have never experienced such a great destruction of value in such a short time,” said Frenkel accordingly. “Not by enemies from outside, but by government policy.” The government has broken its promise to push through the reform only on the basis of a broad consensus.
On Monday, 64 out of 120 lawmakers passed legislation that would remove the power of the Supreme Court to crack down on “inappropriate” government decisions. Critics see the government’s actions as a threat to Israel’s democracy and warn that the country is regarding to turn into a dictatorship. Netanyahu’s government, on the other hand, argues that Israel’s Supreme Court is too powerful and interferes too much in political issues. Proponents argue as a result of restoring the balance in the separation of powers.
The judicial reform divides the Israeli population. People from all walks of life have been protesting once morest the project for more than half a year. Opponents of the reform had accompanied the parliamentary vote on Monday with massive protests. Dozens of people were arrested and the police in Tel Aviv used water cannons.
In September, the Supreme Court plans to consider petitions once morest the law. If the court collects it and the government does not accept this, Israel is threatened with a state crisis.
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