November 2005
Dear friends and colleagues,
This has been a fascinating
month. People who appreciate and are interested in politics enjoyed every
minute. Quite a treat. It seems that we will have a good fight, after some
years of boredom.
Sharon, House of Lords for
Israel, Amir Peretz, Elections, Riots in
France, The
Scope of Tolerance,
Right-wing Extremism in Europe, Conference: Freedom of Speech In Light of Prime
Minister Sharon's Disengagement Plan (
On November 7 I wrote:
Knesset members from all the
opposition parties voted against the appointments package, as did former
finance minister
Likud MKs Gilad Erdan, Moshe Kahlon and Yuval Steinitz did not participate in
the vote, while party rebels Michael Gorlovsky, Leah Ness and Yehiel Hazan
voted for the appointments.
***
For the past months there were
many talks about the possibility that he might resign from his party and
establish a new party. I thought the likelihood for such a drastic step was
small.
On November 21, 2005 Prime
Minister
The president said after the meeting that
Katsav said he would make a quick decision on
Katsav said the law gave him 21 days to decide, but that he would do so
quickly. Asked whether the decision would be made within days, he replied,
"less than days."
"Of course, I think we need to dissolve the Knesset and hold elections as
soon as possible," he added. Indeed, the decision came soon enough. Katsav
accepted
Dissolving the Knesset serves
Sharon's new party has attracted 14 Likud MKs, including Finance Minister Ehud
Olmert, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, and Ministers Avraham Hirschson, Meir
Sheetrit and Gideon Ezra. MKs Roni Bar-On, Eli Aflalo, Ruhama Avraham, Zeev Boim,
Yaakov Edrey and Majali Wahabi also joined
Numerous non-Likud personalities were also reportedly planning to stand with
the prime minister, including former Shin Bet chief Avi Dichter, Professor
Uriel Reichman and former minister Dan Meridor, who has expressed a desire to
return to politics.
Vice Premier Shimon Peres, who in long talks with
Likud officials said the new party would be a "true centrist party, from
every perspective: political, economic and social."
Following
The list of leadership contenders includes MK
From the Likud's perspective,
Second,
Third, considering his age,
this new party will stand for election only once. Like many similar parties, it
is quite likely to dissolve after or during one term. For
Time will tell whether this
decision was prudent from
House of Lords for
I have great appreciation for
the British tradition and logic. Luckily, in their brief historical presence in
Some people never retire. No
matter how old they are; no matter what subtle hints, loud signs and bright
signals they receive, they simply are incapable of retiring. I mean: they have
been in a certain sphere all their lives. What else do they know to do?
Moreover, because they do not wish to retire, in their old age it is difficult
to adopt new habits. Human inclinations and fallacies. The fact that they block
and hinder the possibilities of younger people to enter their field, and
replace them means very little to them. This is, for sure, not THEIR problem.
These “tycoons” are, in their own eyes, greater than life, and nobody will ever
be capable to replace them anyway, so why bother? And because they worked all
their lives to gain power, their ability to destroy is very high.
The sensible British recognized
all that and established the House of Lords exactly for these kinds of people –
those who belong to what I call "The anti-retirement Age". They need
not retire. We all can continue to admire them in the House of Lords. They
still gain respect, they do not fade away, they have something to do, and they
are willing to move from one house to another. Some claim that the carpets in
the House of Lords are nicer, the seats are more comfortable, the colours are
more appealing (I subscribe) and your prefix is much more reputable. I mean,
just think that Ms. Thatcher would be still around as a politician. A
frightening possibility. How sensible the British are indeed. I applaud them.
And we, without a House of
Lords, or Sanhedrin, or whatever name you pick for this sensible institution,
are stuck with leaders in their eighties, and boyish leaders who are merely
seventy years old. We did not build another house for them as we should. And we
suffer the consequences. It is not too late: I call for an Israeli House of
Lords Now!!
Amir Peretz
On November 9, 2005 three people competed for the
Labour's leadership: Shimon Peres; Head of the Histadrut Amir Peretz, and Fuad
Ben-Eliezer, a former general that has high esteem for himself. It was clear
that the struggle would be between Peres and Peretz. Peres symbolizes the
status quo. Peretz symbolizes change. The voting result, which came at the
following dawn, followed a tightly-run race between the two opponents, which
initially showed a slight lead for Peres.
Peretz, a fiery union leader, wants to steer the party back to
its socialist roots, pull out of the coalition and force early elections. His
message has resonated with Israelis disenfranchised by government cuts in
social spending and the country's growing gap between rich and poor.
Peretz's personal profile is
almost identical to that of millions of Israelis who immigrated to
Shortly after
This month
"We will not rest until we reach a permanent agreement
(with the Palestinians) that would secure a safe future for our children and
that would provide us with renewed hope to live in a region where people lead a
life of cooperation and not, God forbid, where blood is shed from time to
time," Peretz said.
On November 12, 2005 former president Bill Clinton, in an
emotional address delivered meters from the site where Yitzhak Rabin was slain
10 years ago, urged some 100,000 people gathered in Tel Aviv late Saturday to
take up Rabin's peacemaking and "see it through to the end."After
receiving a last-minute invitation to the rally, newly-elected Labor Party
Chairman Amir Peretz said in his speech that "the path of
The
"Violence is gnawing at the essence of Israeli
democracy," Peretz said. "Violence is not only in the
[Israeli-Palestinian] conflict, it's between us." "Had we stopped the
violence in the territories, we would have stopped violence among us. The
ongoing occupation in the territories is a recipe for the loss of values in
Elections
See the fluidity of Israeli political life. One
significant change and elections become a hot topic yet again. Only hours after
his dramatic victory, newly-elected Labour Party Chairman Peretz said on
November 10, 2005 that he told Prime Minister
Present
polls show in this early stage that Peretz's win is very significant. Labour is
expected to rise to 28 MKs. Sharon receives 33 seats, while Likud 13.
If
this picture remains, Sharon and Labour will be able to comprise a coalition
government alone, with the outside support of Meretz-Yachad, and the Arab
parties. Together they could continue dividing the land and end the occupation.
However, I am worried that corruption will rise. This Knesset is arguably the
most corrupt Knesset in our history. Prime Minister Sharon and his son Omri are
two of eleven MKs who have faced legal investigations for all kinds of
misconduct and criminal activities. Omri already admitted guilt for violating
the election law and the state prosecutor demands to lock him behind bars. Omri
is putting himself on the fence to allow his father to walk over.
Riots in
Beware
The Scope of Tolerance
My newest book was published recently: The Scope of Tolerance: Studies on the Costs
of Free Expression and Freedom of the Press (
The
Scope of Tolerance
The
Scope of Tolerance is an
interdisciplinary study concerned with the limits of tolerance, this
“democratic catch”, and the costs of freedom of expression. Rights are costly, and someone must pay for
them. We can and should ask about the
justification for bearing the costs, weighing them against the harms inflicted
upon society as a result of a wide scope of tolerance. While recognising that we have the need to
express ourselves, we should also inquire about the justifications for
tolerating the damaging speech and whether these are weighty enough.
This
book combines theory and practice, examining issues of contention from
philosophical, legal and media perspectives and covers such issues as:
This
book is essential reading for anyone who has research interests in political
theory, extremism, media ethics, and free speech.
Geoffrey Marshall, former
Provost of Queen's College,
Wide-ranging and provocative,
this work sets out arguments which are of vital importance to policy-makers as
well as to academics.
Roger Eatwell and Cas Mudde
Right-wing Extremism in
The latest Ethical Perspectives
deals with right-wing extremism in
Articles can be accessed
through: http://poj.peeters-leuven.be/content.php?url=issue&journal_code=EP&issue=2&vol=12
The Center
for Democratic Research
Freedom of
Speech In Light of Prime Minister Sharon's Disengagement Plan (
Tuesday, 20
December 2005
The Hecht
Auditorium,
9:00-9:30 Gathering
9:30-9:50 Chairperson: Professor
Greetings:
Professor
Professor Majid Al-Haj, Dean of Research
Professor Arye Rattner, Dean of Faculty of Social Sciences
9:50-11:00 First Session
Chairperson and Respondent: Professor
Opening Lecture
Attorney General, Mr. Eran Shendar
"Law
Enforcement, Freedom of Expression, and its Place in the Realm of Ideological
Crimes during the Disengagement Period"
11:00-12:30 Second Session
Chairperson and Respondent:
Professor Gideon Fishman, Department of Sociology and Anthropology; Research Fellow, Center for Democratic Research, University
of
His
Excellency Ambassador
(ret.)
Gad Yaakobi; Member, Board
of Governors, Center for Democratic Research, University of
"Speech Responsibility and Normative Behavior in Israeli
Democracy"
Professor Naomi Chazan, Truman Institute, The
"Freedom
of Expression and the Limits of Public Debate: What Was Not Discussed During
the
Professor
“Political Extremism, Hate
Speech and Incitement: 1993-1995, 2003-
14:00-15:30 Third Session
Chairperson and Respondent: Professor
Arye Rattner, Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences; Research Fellow, Center for Democratic Research, University
of
"Can Political Expression
Be Considered A Criminal Offence?"
Professor Asa Kasher,
“Our Hands Didn’t Shed This
Blood?”
Professor Yedidia Stern, Faculty of Law,
"Freedom of Expression and Halachic Adjudication in
State Matters"
16:00-17:30 Fourth Session
Chairperson and Respondent: Professor
Menachem Kellner, Department of Jewish Thought; Research Fellow, Center for Democratic Research, University
of
“The Probability that Words Can Kill”
Professor
"Is It Necessary to Mete
Out Justice with Those Who Broke the Disengagement Law?"
Attorney Haim Shibi,
Yedioth Ahronoth
"The Media
17:30-18:45 Round Table
Chair and Discussant: Attorney Moshe Gorali,
Maariv
Professor
Professor Asa Kasher,
You're all invited.
With my very best wishes,
Rafi
My last communications are available on http://almagor.blogspot.com
Earlier posts at my home page: http://lib-stu.haifa.ac.il/staff/rcohen-Almagor
Books archived at http://almagor.fetchauthor.info
Center for Democratic Studies http://hcc.haifa.ac.il/~rca/center/