Thousands of Israelis protested up and down the country on Tuesday marking a “day of resistance” as the Israeli Government advanced it’s much-contested judicial reforms through its first legislative stage in the Knesset.
The so-called ‘reasonableness bill’, which passed its first reading on Monday night by 64 votes to 56, seeks to overhaul judicial powers in Israel.
The bill will prevent the courts from invalidating decisions made by elected officials on the basis of ‘reasonableness’.
Critics of the bill argue that this removes all checks and balances to Government power, whereas supporters argue that the judiciary currently has too broad a scope to intervene with governmental decisions, and this must be balanced.
Protestors filled the streets early in the morning, blocking roads in Israel’s major cities including Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa. Rallies were staged outside the Knesset, outside Government Minister’s homes (including Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana), and by the ports. 10,000 protestors gathered at Ben Gurion airport Tuesday afternoon. A planned ceremony for new Ambassadors handing their credentials to President Herzog was cancelled and rescheduled for a later date.
300 members of the IDF’s elite cyber and technology units signed a letter refusing reserve duty if called. Similar feelings were raised in other units across the IDF where a group of pilots said they “swore to serve the kingdom, not the king”. In response, Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, warned that “refusal harms the IDF. Refusal harms the defence establishment. Refusal harms Israel’s security”.
On the bill, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said that “under court supervision, which will continue, the government will be required to act honestly, in a measured, fair and equitable fashion”.
Additional protests against the government’s judicial shakeup have been called for Monday – with plans to block major roads across the country.
