Hundreds of demonstrators, among them Hadash activists and communists, gathered in central Tel Aviv Tuesday night, blocking a central thoroughfare for over an hour to protest the “Bill to Prevent Infiltration”, passed late Monday night in the Knesset. Police arrested five demonstrators.
Chanting “no concentration camps” and “deport the interior minister” among other slogans, the protesters blocked off Rehov Ibn Gvirol next to the municipality to voice their outrage at the law which will allow for the detention without trial of people who infiltrate Israel’s borders illegally.
Once police cleared the road, a number of the protesters continued to Dizengoff street and attempted to block it as well. The second and third readings of a bill to deter migrant workers from entering Israel continued late into Monday night in the Knesset plenum. The bill would make migrants and asylum seekers liable to jail, without trial or deportation, if caught staying in Israel for long periods. In addition, anyone helping migrants or providing them with shelter could face prison sentences of between five and 15 years. Lawmakers who objected to the bill said it was undemocratic, unconstitutional and ran contrary to Israel’s international obligations and human rights.
Israeli activists block a road in Tel Aviv center, during a protest against the “infiltrator law”, January 10, 2012 (Photo: Activestills)
The bill would amend the Prevention of Infiltration Law of 1954, passed to prevent the entry of Arab-Palestinian refugees as part of emergency legislation. The new bill is expanded to address migrant workers or asylum seekers who enter Israel without posing a threat to Israel’s security.
MK Dov Khenin (Hadash), one of the staunchest objectors to the bill, said “This bill is dangerous, immoral, unconstitutional and contrary to the law of human dignity and freedom. It runs contrary to Israel’s international commitments and the Knesset should reject it out of hand.”
In the southern town Kiryat Malachi, hundreds of demonstrators hit the streets on Tuesday afternoon, protesting the racist discrimination of Ethiopian immigrants. According to Ethiopian residents of Kiryat Malachi, housing committees in the city have been refusing to sell them apartments. The protest was not only attended by Ethiopian immigrants.
“The phenomenon of racism harms us all, and it is impossible to separate the discrimination of Ethiopians in Israel from the discrimination of Arab residents or Russian-speakers,” said Raby’ia Elsagier, a resident of Shfaram and member of The Coalition Against Racism in Israel, who attended the protest with a handful of people from the Arab sector.
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel also condemned the phenomenon, said the government must clearly state that they do not condone racism and discrimination and taking clear and decisive steps to eradicate the phenomena.
