The government's initiative regarding the judicial system and the way it has been advanced have already created an unprecedented internal crisis in Israel, which threatens to drag the country into a societal disaster with serious long-term consequences for national security. Unlike natural disasters, this is a man-made disaster that can be prevented, or at least, the severe damage already caused by it can be contained.
Leaving the merits of the initiative itself – or the lack thereof – aside, it seems that it is time to recognize that the urgent primary national effort required now is to curb the crisis and to prevent with all means what appears to be an inevitable slide toward the collapse of the national resilience, structure, and foundations that comprise the government authorities in Israel.
Responsible leadership must recalculate the route. It must take the initiative in the most vital and urgent fashion, in order to prevent a social disaster. First, it must recognize the danger and define new national priorities. This should translate into the immediate suspension of the initiative to change the judicial system, a decision that would make the widespread public protest unnecessary. This is a necessary first step to systematically deal with what is now the uppermost goal: grappling with the terrible rift that is rapidly deepening among us. This means an immediate start of negotiations, designed to outline a strategy and a joint plan for social action, in order to forestall the disaster and rebuild the connections between us and Israeli democracy.
The Prime Minister and the President of Israel have a central role in launching and leading this necessary move. They must act together and mobilize all national, social, political, and public resources, in order to begin immediate action and commit to the success of this supreme national mission. Because of the intensity of the damage already caused, this is indeed a multidimensional social process, necessarily long and unlike any other in its challenge. But there is no escaping it. It justifies bypassing all the political and personal barriers that hinder its realization, and the sooner the better, because the future of the country depends on it.
The government's initiative regarding the judicial system and the way it has been advanced have already created an unprecedented internal crisis in Israel, which threatens to drag the country into a societal disaster with serious long-term consequences for national security. Unlike natural disasters, this is a man-made disaster that can be prevented, or at least, the severe damage already caused by it can be contained.
Leaving the merits of the initiative itself – or the lack thereof – aside, it seems that it is time to recognize that the urgent primary national effort required now is to curb the crisis and to prevent with all means what appears to be an inevitable slide toward the collapse of the national resilience, structure, and foundations that comprise the government authorities in Israel.
Responsible leadership must recalculate the route. It must take the initiative in the most vital and urgent fashion, in order to prevent a social disaster. First, it must recognize the danger and define new national priorities. This should translate into the immediate suspension of the initiative to change the judicial system, a decision that would make the widespread public protest unnecessary. This is a necessary first step to systematically deal with what is now the uppermost goal: grappling with the terrible rift that is rapidly deepening among us. This means an immediate start of negotiations, designed to outline a strategy and a joint plan for social action, in order to forestall the disaster and rebuild the connections between us and Israeli democracy.
The Prime Minister and the President of Israel have a central role in launching and leading this necessary move. They must act together and mobilize all national, social, political, and public resources, in order to begin immediate action and commit to the success of this supreme national mission. Because of the intensity of the damage already caused, this is indeed a multidimensional social process, necessarily long and unlike any other in its challenge. But there is no escaping it. It justifies bypassing all the political and personal barriers that hinder its realization, and the sooner the better, because the future of the country depends on it.