After Stormy Debate, Knesset Passes Law Allowing Ouster of MKs

After a lengthy and heated battle in Israel’s parliament, the Knesset approved on Wednesday, July 20, a law that allows 90 of the 120 lawmakers to remove their colleagues from office. MKs can now submit a motion to oust individual members “who back armed struggle against Israel or incite racial hatred.”

King Bibi

King Bibi (Illustration: HaMakom)

The bill passed into law with the support of 62 Knesset members, while 47 voted against it.  Opposition MKs had submitted hundreds of objections to the bill that were set to be discussed into the night, but suddenly withdrew them when it appeared that the coalition, with a majority of 66 MKs, might not have enough lawmakers present in the Knesset on Tuesday night to pass the vote, and therefore demanded that the vote be held immediately. But the coalition successfully stalled the vote until enough of its MKs had arrived to ensure a majority.

According to the final version of the bill, 70 Knesset members – 10 of whom must be from the opposition – may file a complaint with the Knesset speaker against any lawmaker who allegedly supports armed struggle against Israel or incites to racial hatred, thereby kicking off the impeachment process. Following submission of the complaint, the Knesset House Committee must then debate it before granting approval, which requires a three-quarter majority of the committee members. The motion to dismiss the lawmaker would then be sent to the plenum, where, if 90 of the 120 Knesset members vote in favor, the MK would be ousted. The deposed lawmaker could then appeal the decision with the Supreme Court. Netanyahu praised the vote Tuesday night, saying it “put an end to the absurd.”

The chairman of the coalition, MK David Bitan (Likud), also welcomed the passing of the law, saying it would serve as a warning “to those who think they can take advantage of Israeli democracy to undermine the State of Israel.” Former Israeli ambassador in the USA, MK Michael Oren (Kulanu), supported the bill. An example to which Oren said he thinks the law should apply, but in its current version does not, is when, in April, Joint List chairman MK Ayman Odeh sent a letter via the Palestinian delegation to the UN calling on UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to send a fact-finding mission to Israel to investigate its treatment of its Arab-Palestinian national minority and land evictions of the Arab-Bedouin in the Negev. Oren stated: “He [Odeh] circumvented the Foreign Ministry and asked for an investigation against his own state, and he did it through the Palestinian delegation to the UN. In my mind, that’s double treason. But that activity wouldn’t be actionable under the criteria now established.”

The approval of the law was slammed by opposition lawmakers, with Meretz chairwoman Zehava Galon calling the vote “one of the most embarrassing Knesset episodes,” and Labor MK Nachman Shai saying that “history will not forgive those who had a hand in this.” Hadash MK Yousef Jabareen (Joint List) called the bill the “tyranny of the majority,” arguing that it was drafted to target Arab lawmakers. Jabareen sent letters detailing his grievances about the bill to the UN special rapporteur on minority rights in Geneva and the ambassador of the EU in Israel: “The coalition has tabled legislation that would enable the impeachment of duly elected representatives of the Arab Palestinian public… Israel has veered far from acceptable norms of democratic discourse and practice.” According to Jabareen, the bill seeks “to dispose of Arab MKs in order to silence them and the views they find intolerable, which invalidates tens of thousands of legitimately cast votes.” He added “furthermore, the threat of expulsion will serve as a silencing tactic, while also impeding MKs’ ability to faithfully fulfill the mandate they promised to their voters.”

Another Joint List MK, Dov Khenin (Hadash), said the law “directly targets the Arab public’s elected officials, chosen to voice their stances.” According to him the vote was “an anti-democratic move by an anti-democratic government.” Khenin added: “This law is a black page in Israel’s code of laws, which reflects an anti-democratic policy and maneuvers by an anti-democratic government, which will go on to harm more and more populations.”