Contentious bill defines Israel as Jewish nation- state, stirs row

◗ The government says that the bill will merely enshrine into law Israel’s existing character. But critics say it excludes the 20 percent Arab minority.

Jerusalem, July 16: An Israeli parliamentary committee is deliberating a contentious bill that would define Israel as the nationstate of the Jewish people.

The government says that the bill will merely enshrine into law Israel’s existing character. But critics say it excludes the 20 percent Arab minority population.

Israelis have taken to the streets in protest. Reuven Rivlin, the country’s ceremonial President who rarely delves into domestic politics, warned against clauses that appear to encourage segregation and downgrade the status of the Arabic language.

Last minute deliberations removed some of the more problematic language. But the Israel Democracy Institute, a non- partisan think tank, says the bill still threatens to undermine Israel’s democratic values.

After Monday’s deliberations, a vote could come later this week. If passed, the bill will likely face a Supreme Court challenge.

The legislation has been compared to South African apartheid by Israeli parliamentarians, and several thousand Israelis protested in Tel Aviv on Saturday.

“Our main concern is that it is changing the nature of the state and it changes the balance of Israel as a nation state,” said Amir Fuchs, the head of the defending democratic values programme at the Israel Democracy Institute. “You can be a nation state and still be a democracy as long as you don’t discriminate,” said Fuchs.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has lashed out at domestic and international critics.