Tens of thousands of Israeli protesters marched Saturday in Tel Aviv and near Parliament in Jerusalem to hammer home their opposition to a controversial judicial reform that is the subject of a crucial vote in the coming days.
This reform, carried by the government of Benjamin Netanyahu, deeply divides Israel, shaken since January by one of the longest protest movements in its history.
“Democracy or revolution! chanted protesters in Tel Aviv on Saturday, while tens of thousands of others sang pro-democracy slogans for this 29e evening in a row of mobilization, according to an AFP journalist on the spot.
“The government is not listening to us, that means it’s the beginning of a new era, a bad era,” said 55-year-old Idit Dekel to AFP.
According to the government, the reform aims, among other things, to rebalance powers, by reducing the prerogatives of the Supreme Court, which the executive considers politicized, in favor of Parliament. But its detractors believe that it risks opening the way to an anti-liberal or authoritarian drift.
“For me, it’s catastrophic,” summed up Dekel, a protester who works in the high-tech sector.
From Sunday noon in the Knesset (Parliament), debates will be held on a reform measure aimed at canceling the possibility for Israeli justice to rule on the “reasonableness” of government decisions.
This clause will then be voted on in 2e and 3e reading. If passed, it will be the first major component of the proposed judicial reform to become law.
Sit-in in front of the Knesset
To put pressure on the deputies, thousands of demonstrators gathered on Saturday evening outside the Knesset and the Supreme Court, in Jerusalem, after having traveled the approximately 65 kilometers between Tel Aviv and the Holy City.
Armed with umbrellas for protection from the scorching sun, water bottles and Israeli flags, the marchers marched down a stretch of the highway, stopping at noon and at night.
“This government is an extremist, religious government and we hope to bring it down as soon as possible,” explains Guy Maidan, who took part in this multi-day march with his family.
“Many of us will camp here until the vote is overturned,” he promises.
Demonstrations are also taking place in other Israeli cities, such as Beersheva (south), or Kfar Saba and Herzliya, north of Tel Aviv, according to the organizers.
Approved at first reading on the night of July 10 to 11, the clause on “reasonableness” had forced Mr. Netanyahu in January to dismiss the number two in the government, Arié Dery, convicted of tax evasion, following the intervention of the Supreme Court.
Other measures provoke the dissatisfaction of the demonstrators, such as that modifying the process of appointment of judges, already adopted by the deputies at first reading.
Critics of the Prime Minister, on trial for corruption, accuse him of wanting to use this reform to mitigate a possible verdict against him.
Threats from reservists
At least 1,142 Israeli Air Force reservists threatened on Saturday to suspend their voluntary service if the Knesset passes the bill.
Any legislation applied in an “unreasonable” manner, “would compromise my willingness to continue risking my life and compel me, with great sadness, to suspend my voluntary reserve service”, they said in a statement, as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict escalates.
Thursday evening, Mr. Netanyahu, affirmed to remain “open” to negotiations with the opposition, while the project also arouses criticism abroad, in particular in the United States, close allies of Israel.
US President Joe Biden on Wednesday urged the Israeli government not to “rush” its reforms and to proceed with caution, in an unusually direct criticism of Israel’s domestic politics.