It isn’t quite as far as Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman wanted to go, but Israel’s new electoral reform law is still expected to mean the end of all Arab MPs in the Israeli Knesset.
The deal raises the vote threshold needed to get seats in the Knesset to 3.25% from 2%, meaning any faction with three seats or less would get no seats at all under the new system.
In the most recent election, this would oust Hadash and Balad, two parties with Arab MPs, as well as Kadima. The United Arab List had 3.65% this time, and so long as they could repeat this, they’d retain seats.
That appears to have been part of the argument for reform, with Lieberman pushing for a 4% threshold that would’ve covered UAL as well. This wasn’t sitting well with other smallish parties and they forced a compromise. Others argue that expelling the small parties is just about “stability.”
Israel has been trending this way for several elections, with the ruling parties trying to secure their own positions by cutting out smaller blocs entirely and dividing their seats.
Further Proof of Israeli apartheid! Contrary to what Israel spouts to the World it is not the only Democracy in the Middle East in fact it is not a democracy at all, It is a Theocracy, if you are not a Jew you are treated as a second class citizen, soon to be without a vote based solely on your RELIGION! Even Iran has seats for Jews in their Parliament!
But the one J-w in the Iranian parliament is loyal to Iran. He doesn't spend every day trying to fundamentally alter or destroy his own country. And hey, tell me again about all those J-wish leaders in Saudi Arabia, Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan… oh wait. I forgot. No J-ws allowed. Kicked out in 1948.
The Israeli electoral system has always been about marginalizing Christian and Muslims. It was designed to be Racist. This was openly discussed at the founding.
First past the post was specifically rejected, not because if would return more Arab members than proportional representation, but because members would have had Palestinian constituents. In first past the post at election time candidates might address the interests of Arabs in their districts.
Proportional representation allows governments to be formed without a single member answering to a single Arab voter. All Jewish parties can caucus and ignore the Arabs. Jim Crow Mississippi gave a better deal to the Negroes.
If the so-called reforms pass it is likely that nothing will change. The Arabs will be forced to run a unity ticket and divvy up their seats by allocating ballot placement. But nothing will change because they will be excluded from any voice whatsoever, just as they always have been in the alleged democracy of thoroughly Racist Israel.
A very sick bunch of Zionist whose actions to date will eventually dismantle their little bastion on occupied Palestinian lands.
The next step will be to declare and codify that if you are not Jewish, you will not be able to vote. The same thing is being attempted in the Republican state legislatures in the US by trying to restrict black and other minority's votes. If the blacks and other minorities can't vote because they don't have the kind of identification deemed appropriate then there is less chance the Republicans will be defeated by Democrats.
They may as well. Arab members are effectively excluded from all functions anyway. They merely give cover to the reality of Israeli government. The only surprise is that Lieberman is in favor of giving up the thing he has hidden behind. This must mean he no longer cares to hide it.
Oh, this is so silly. Why are they jeopardizing the rights of all those Hasidim and other legitimate minorities? Why don't they just require circumcision as a prerequisite for participation in Israeli politics?
Oops! Them pesky Muslims are circumcised! How very sneaky. That's how they're taking over the world with Shariah law, being so sneaky like that. Well, let's throw in a requirement for a Bar Mitzvah or a Bat Mitzvah too. That should do the trick fairly well.
Oh, this is so silly. Why are they jeopardizing the rights of all those Hasidim and other legitimate minorities? Why don't they just require circumcision as a prerequisite for participation in Israeli politics?
Oops! Them pesky Muslims are circumcised! How very sneaky. That's how they're taking over the world with Shariah law, being so sneaky like that. Well, let's throw in a requirement for a Bar Mitzvah or a Bat Mitzvah too. That should do the trick fairly well.
The difference between Germany for Germans and only racially pure Germans in Germany, and Israel for Israeli's and only racially pure Isreali's in Israel is what?