The extreme rightwing government sworn in on Dec. 29 leaves no doubt about how 2023 will look like. The slew of legislation has already been dubbed a “reality of chaos” by renowned Israeli author David Grossman.
This marks a shift in fundamental legislation and arrangements (like the plan to enact a law that will enable the Knesset to override Supreme Court’s decisions, allow politicians to elect judges etc.) that had dominated the Israeli judiciary system for decades, and is liable to lead to a complete regime change.
The steps being taken by Netanyahu’s sixth government and his partners Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir, are directed at Palestinians in the Occupied territories and Palestinian citizens of Israel. At the same time, the new government is systematically working to interfere with secular education and culture, to replace them with religious edicts and halakha, suppressing free press, the free expression of artists, and the legitimacy of LGBTQ+ communities.
The most important and consequential aspect of this Government’s plans are the steps it is taking to prepare for annexing the West Bank and thus putting an end to the paradigm of Two States Solution. The latter, however, served for over a decade as the best cover for the de-facto apartheid system that Israel imposed over the Palestinians.
These developments are the inevitable fruits of processes that began in Israel many years ago. Israel kept its occupation over millions of Palestinians with no political or civil rights and conducted a regime of institutional discrimination against Palestinian citizens of Israel. It is not by chance that the state refused to draw up a constitution that would anchor fundamental universal principles and human rights.
The success of the extreme right in the last elections is less an expression of its strength, and more an expression of the weakness of the liberal opposition. The heterogenic government of change under Bennet and Lapid, formed in 2021 to oust Netanyahu, proved unable to offer any alternative vision.
The new government will also benefit from the schism among Palestinians, where Fatah’s corrupt Palestinian Authority sits in Ramallah and Hamas’ oppressive religious regime controls the Gaza Strip.
Despite this grim reality MAAN refuses to be despaired. For over twenty years we have stood at the center of the struggle for universal human and workers’ rights. While MAAN unionizes Israelis and Palestinians and represents groups of workers in a range of industries, it also invests great effort and resources in changing the bonding arrangement of hiring Palestinians to the Israeli workforce. As part of this effort we initiated a public campaign that demanded Green Cards for Palestinians, so that they will be allowed to enter and work freely in Israel. A special priority is also given to the struggle of Palestinian women for equality.
Now, to a backdrop of clear plans to make the de facto annexation of the West Bank a fait accompli it is clear that Israel has become an apartheid regime.
We are not looking back with nostalgia to “the good old Israel”. MAAN positions its struggle on the principle of equality for all in the area between the Jordan River and the Sea. On the basis of cooperation between Palestinians and Israelis we call for the joint building of one democratic state that can provide an alternative to the violent and destructive reality that has been feeding from years of occupation and injustice.
