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22 Av 5760 - August 23, 2000 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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Home and Family
Barak Launches Diversionary Culture War
by Yated Ne'eman Staff

In an obvious attempt to deflect attention from his difficulties in foreign policy and his lack of action to tackle domestic issues, Prime Minister Barak unveiled on motzei Shabbos several legislative initiatives aimed at secularizing Israel. Key points of the program are to implement a full constitution for Israel, to allow some form of civil marriage, to require universal civil service, and to require that all educational institutions that receive government funds must teach a "core curriculum" of English, mathematics and civics. Another point is to dismantle the Religious Affairs Ministry.

The plan drew a sharp reaction from chareidi leaders. MK Rabbi Ravitz said that Barak adopted the platform of his good friend Tomy Lapid of Shinui. MK Rabbi Moshe Gafni said that Barak's proposal was not serious. "It is not even a declaration of war," Gafni said, "since Barak is not serious. He thinks that he is starting his election campaign, the people hold him in contempt and remember well how he worked against yeshiva students before the last elections and everyone saw the recent results of all those declarations. Even the secular community hears these proposals fully aware of the fact that for the past year he personally fought to keep all these proposals off the agenda."

There are some parts of the program that have the support of religious and chareidi leaders. Dismantling the Religious Affairs Ministry, in particular, has been a pet project of Rabbi Gafni for many years. The Chief Rabbis have also voiced support for doing so. The partial dismantling of the ministry is apparently the only plank in Barak's civil reform package that can be implemented right now, as all the other moves require legislation for which Barak cannot secure a majority. Legal experts said that it is possible to transfer departments from one ministry to another without obtaining the Knesset's approval.

Barak denied he would work against religious interests in formulating a constitution and defended the move as a "must" if Israel is to "integrate with the most progressive societies in the world." He warned that, "otherwise, we will have a society divided into ghettos." An official in the Prime Minister's Office said that, in any case, the reforms would require longer to work out than a deal with the Palestinians.

He set up a team, including Ministers Yossi Beilin, Shlomo Ben-Ami, and Michael Melchior, to formulate a working document.

Likud leader Ariel Sharon slammed the initiative as one more example of a bankrupt government. "What we're seeing is a shocked, panicked government," Sharon said. "We need to bring down this government as soon as possible."

The Likud accused Barak of seeking an alternative to the stalemated talks with the Palestinians and said he is not truly interested in the reforms. Even in One Israel there is skepticism that the prime minister has votes in the Knesset to ram the program through.

Senior sources in One Israel said that at most Barak "will go into elections with these reforms and may succeed in bringing back the secular voters who forsook him because of his series of concessions to Shas."

 

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