Coalition trouble ahead? Head of Kulanu faction says he will not support bill that defines Israel as a Jewish state.
Finance Minister and Kulanu party head Moshe Kahlon announced at Sunday’s coalition meeting that he will oppose the Nationality Law due to what he said was its discrimination towards Israel’s non-Jewish citizens.
The proposal anchors the fact that the State of Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish people and states that Hebrew is the official language of the state, while the Arabic language is granted “special status”. The city of Jerusalem is affirmed as the capital of the State of Israel.
A special ministerial committee made up of Tourism Minister Yariv Levin (Likud), Justice Ayelet Shaked (Jewish Home), Economy Minister Eli Cohen (Kulanu) and MK Avi Dichter (Likud) recently completed most of its draft on the Basic Law: Israel as the State for the Jewish People.
The original version of the bill, which was written by Dichter, defined Israel as a Jewish State with a democratic form of government. The bill was then modified due to Kahlon’s insistence that the legislation define Israel as both Jewish and democratic, which Kahlon said would ensure that Israel’s non-Jewish citizens do not face discrimination.
Last week, however, Levin announced the Dichter’s original version of the bill would advance to the Knesset, which prompted Kahlon to oppose the bill’s advancement.
The Likud denied that Kahlon opposed the bill and claimed in a statement that Kahlon had put the brakes on its advancement for procedural reasons.
This is not the first time that the Kulanu faction has delayed the bill from advancing. In May Kahlon vowed to oppose the bill unless the committee removed a hotly contested amendment to the bill that instructed courts to rule according to Jewish civil law in issues which Israeli law does not address.
Netanyahu has promised to pass the bill during the Knesset’s winter session and last week stressed to incoming Coalition Chairman MK David Amsalem (Likud) that his first task will be to pass the measure, which he called “one of the most important laws to enter the history pages of the State of Israel”.
The Israeli government has been attempting to pass the proposal for years. In 2015, Prime Minister Netanyahu shelved a similar iteration of the bill after then-Justice Minister Tzipi Livni vehemently opposed the bill and threatened a coalition crisis.
Edgar G. Said:
So, would it be safe to say you began the begin? How’s it goin’?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYHXTJxoZqo
I recall reading that Kahlon was also instrumental in blocking the Knesset’s last attempt to bring the Supreme Court properly to heel. Bennet and Shaked are trying again.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/239654
@ Sebastien Zorn:
I think that Begin, after his unbelievable, tough political and Jewish life, was gratified and felt vindicated after all the bad years, and became over magnanimous with Sadat. After all he, little Manny Begin, had done a completely unheard of thing, to destroy the Egyptians that they HAD to come to Jerusalem to sue for mercy and forgiveness. He forgot that “never trust an Arab” watchword. He could have apportioned up Sinai in any way he wanted, To destroy Yamit was unforgivable.
As soon as Sadat saw what an impression he was making on the Jews, (I even remember Golda Meir at the table smiling unwillingly when Sadat brought her into the conversation.) he became the shuk haggler and wouldn’t accept anything but every grain of holy sand. etc.etc you know how it goes. And Begin didn’t see this.
I was inspired by Begin all my life, and immigrated to Israel because of him.
@ Edgar G.:
Yes, he is of Libyan Jewish descent and was Likud.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshe_Kahlon
So, It makes no sense at all unless it’s because he is worried that the liberals in the criminal justice apparatus will go after him the way they’ve gone after everybody else, and thinks he can appease them with a left-ward turn, as mistakenly as everybody else who tried that. Though, as far as I know, that wasn’t Begin’s story. I wonder what his excuse was, just bamboozled by Sadat and intimidated by the US? If so, that’s pretty pathetic, considering his past and his image.
Kahlon is some sort of imbecile. The Bill in no way discriminates against non Jews, and even if it does, isn’t the whole world discriminating against Jews for thousands of years, in a lot worse ways than this piddling little nothing.
As for using Jewish Law where Israel Law dosn’t cover the matter at hand, what law does he want, Turkish Law, British Law any law but Jewish Law. Is he a member of the government or not…Is he even a Jew..???? He’s making it seem very doubtful.