Thousands of Israelis were expected to join protests across the country on Saturday night as demonstrations against the government’s judicial overhaul plan enter their 28th week.
Anti-government protests have intensified in recent weeks as the coalition moves forward Plan to pass a “rationality” bill Its purpose is to prevent the courts from invalidating or discussing decisions of the government and ministers on the basis of their “reasonableness”. It aims to pass the bill into law by the end of the month.
Saturday’s mass performance comes in addition “Day of Resistance” Called on Tuesday, organizers plan protest actions and road blockades across the country, with more disruptive actions taking place throughout the week. The day of resistance was initially called for Monday but was postponed.
The move is a fresh warning to the Israel Defense Forces reserve – including pilots and specialized commando units – that they will stop reporting to duty if the law goes ahead.
On Friday they were joined by the Israel Medical Association, which warned that hospitals and doctors could strike in protest of the bill.
The association held emergency talks on Thursday to discuss the implications of the law and members agreed that “it will devastate the healthcare system and is not just a theoretical concern,” said IMA president Professor Zion Hage. .
“The members of the executive committee have authorized the leadership to employ all available means, including significant organizational measures,” he added.
More than one thousand doctors on Thursday wrote a letter Hagay to declare a strike until the “overhaul is completely destroyed”, alleging that these plans would “damage the quality of medicine in Israel, harm patients and undermine the great achievements of Israeli medicine”. Will do.”
Professor Hagai Levin, president of the Israeli Association of Public Health Physicians and co-leader of the “White Coats”, a group of doctors opposing the government’s policies, welcomed the call.
Israeli doctors carrying ‘Doctors Fighting for Democracy’ take part in a rally against the government’s judicial overhaul bill, Tel Aviv, February 25, 2023. (Gilli Yaari / Flash 90)
“Abolishing this clause would result in political control over medical professionalism, in other words, politicization of medicine, and damage to public health and medical autonomy. It’s not fair,” Levin said.
“If the government doesn’t stop, the healthcare system will stop,” he said.
The warnings of harm to the medical sector join similar warnings issued by high-tech workers, economists, lawyers and military officials, all warning that the law – if passed – would harm Israel’s democracy, economy and security.
The weekly Saturday night protests have attracted thousands and this week will again focus on Tel Aviv, where at 7pm a protest march will begin from the mall to Kaplan Street in nearby Givatayim, the epicenter of the protests. Point being. ,
Additional large protests are planned in cities across Israel, including Haifa, Jerusalem, Netanya, Herzliya and Ramat Gan.
Also on Saturday, activists set up a camp outside the Herzliya Magistrate’s Court, which they called the “first democracy outpost”. The camp includes a six-metre (18 ft) tower on which hangs a copy of Israel’s Declaration of Independence.
“This week the government is going to pass legislation that will put us on the brink of a dictatorship,” activist Dana Oren-Yania told the Walla news site.
“Our backs are to the wall, so we decided to set up the first democracy outpost in the spirit of ‘the tower and the stockade’,” he said, referring to the settlement method used by Zionist pioneers in British-ruled Palestine.
Dozens of activists from the Herzliya Democratic Struggle Headquarters erected a wall and a tower in front of Herzliya Court this morning. Before dawn, at five in the morning, workers deployed equipment and began construction of the “first democracy outpost”.
The Declaration of Independence was hung on the tower, which is six meters high. Padav invites struggling organizations and activists to organize… pic.twitter.com/SvUcLq89qB
– DemocratTV (@Democrat_TV) 15 July 2023
The coalition has vowed to press ahead on changes to the judiciary despite opposition, including daily rallies outside politicians’ homes and weekly mass action to shut down the country and pressure the government to back down. Critics say the drastic change will weaken the courts and remove checks on government powers, putting the country’s democratic character at risk. Supporters say the changes are needed to rein in an overly active and politically biased judiciary.
Knesset Constitutional Committee Chairman Simcha Rothman will push his “rationality” bill through its Knesset committee next week, with the controversial legislation expected to become law next week.
The legislative effort, which resumed after a hiatus of several weeks to allow talks, is raising tensions between the government and its opponents. A Channel 12 poll on Friday showed a full 67% of Israelis fear a civil war. Another 29% said they didn’t know, while 4% said they didn’t know.
Of those who voted for Netanyahu’s faction in the Knesset, 56% said they expected such an incident, while 41% said they did not. In the opposite camp, the numbers were 85% and 14%, respectively.
