The extreme-right and anti-democratic electoral reform plan passed on Monday in the Knesset’s Law and Constitution committee. Opposition MKs tried in vain to filibuster as committee chairman David Rotem pushed through a marathon voting session, in which in under an hour, some 150 amendments were voted down and the two halves of the bill passed, nearly all by votes of seven to six along coalition-opposition lines.
Hadash demonstration in Tel-Aviv for democracy (Photo: Galit Tub)
“The Knesset members didn’t even know what they were voting on,” Hadash MK Dov Khenin complained. “This is not the way to pass electoral reforms and Basic Laws!” MK Khenin said “The extreme-right found a way to drive the Arab MKs out of the Knesset. It is an unprecedented act in which one of the most dramatic changes in the Israeli system of government will be brought to a committee vote, and without holding a serious debate will be passed for a vote in the full Knesset.” Khenin’s anger, like that of the rest of the members of the opposition, is directed in particular at a central provision of the two bills: Raising the voting threshold for entering the Knesset from 2 percent of all votes cast to 3.25 percent. This would mean that the smallest parties, and in particular the Arab parties, would be forced to merge before the next election or risk missing the electoral threshold. “This law will prevent political representation for a range of minorities in Israel. It says to the Arab parties: ‘Either you unite, since after all you are all Arabs, or you will not be represented anymore in the Knesset,'” Khenin said.
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