The sixth Netanyahu government was formed just a month ago, and its leaders have already made it clear, without any cover or disguise, their intention to establish an authoritarian, fundamentalist, and discriminatory regime. As a social organization committed to democracy, equality, and progress, Ma’an operates against the government’s plans and encourages its members to act within the legal framework in any protest or possible form of struggle for the sake of freedom and democracy.
The changes pursued by the government openly include annexing parts of the West Bank and displacing Palestinian residents, expanding Jewish settlements in the Negev and Galilee, affecting Arab residents of these areas; undermining the legal system, especially the Supreme Court; establishing discriminatory militias with government support; closing the public broadcasting corporation; silencing the voices of creators; imposing religious values on the education system; undermining welfare services and the right to strike led by Finance Minister Smotrich, who promotes a neo-liberal agenda, and more.
All these changes are inspired and guided by the Trumpist right-wing American ideology, exemplified by leaders like Levin, Smotrich, and Benjamin Netanyahu. The model they look up to is the authoritarian regime of Orban in Hungary, where the judiciary is subjugated, free press is suppressed, and the nationalist-authoritarian majority enforces its racist and homophobic views on academia, discourse, and culture.
Ma’an – an organization of workers that brings together Jewish and Arab workers in industries, education, services, and social organizations – stands clearly against the new government that threatens human rights and the citizenship of each and every one of us, as well as the workers’ right to unionize and protest. We join our voice to the protest against the government’s plans and mobilize against it.
The important democratic struggle against the extreme and adventurous right-wing government must be based on the principle of the equal value of every human being, the right of every man and woman in the country to live with dignity, and the freedom of movement, thought, and belief. Although we share the concern of protest leaders about the dangers posed by the government and its plans, we cannot be satisfied with the aspiration to restore the existing system and ignore the fact that under Israeli rule, five million Palestinians are held without human and civil rights.
Ma’an calls for the creation of a broad common denominator that reflects the fact that two peoples live in this land between the Jordan River and the sea. The democracy we are fighting for includes Palestinian workers who have been subjected for decades to restrictions and oppression. Our duty is to promote the idea of a pluralistic and open society that will be created through a creative and mutual encounter between the daughters and sons of both peoples, based on the understanding that all human beings are equal.
Ma’an’s grassroots work expresses collaboration without boundaries. We call on workers who share our vision to join the struggle against the dangerous government and build with us a unique social organization that serves as a lever for promoting a future of peace and social, environmental, and cultural progress.
