Unity for all

If one good thing comes out of the coronavirus crisis in Israel, it should be that the country is rallying together to beat this dreadful disease. That’s why this is a unique time in Israel’s history of almost 72 years for the establishment of a broad national-unity government, with all parties invited to participate.

This is the most pressing task facing Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, who was given the mandate on Monday to form a government by President Reuven Rivlin.

We don’t know exactly what was said in the meeting on Sunday night hosted by Rivlin between Gantz and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Likud leader. But it is clear that while there were no actual handshakes because of the virus, Rivlin is doing his best to persuade the two men to put aside their rivalry and bitterness and join hands – figuratively – for the sake of the country.

Sources close to the president told The Jerusalem Post that he was open to both a temporary emergency government and a four-year unity government, led in rotation by Netanyahu and Gantz.

In his meetings with party representatives earlier in the day, Rivlin repeatedly called for national unity. “This is a trying time, not only for the health system and the economy, but for us all as a society,” Rivlin said. “The success of the State of Israel in dealing with this extreme crisis lies in the hands of our civil society…. We need to work to form a government as soon as possible.”

Just as the virus now called COVID-19 doesn’t discriminate against Jews or Arabs, so the new government – the 35th in Israel’s history – should not discriminate against any political parties. It should represent all parties in the 23rd Knesset and all Israelis. And yes, that includes Arab-Israelis and the Joint List, which won a record 15 seats in the last election.

Rather than blasting Blue and White for garnering Arab support, as many right-wingers have done on social media, this should be seen as a historic opportunity to fortify Israeli democracy and resilience by standing together – Right, Left and Center, Jews and Arabs.

Imagine this: instead of fighting each other, Gantz and Netanyahu could rotate and find a way to share the premiership, and issue official invitations to all parties to join their emergency cabinet – from LaborGesher-Meretz on the Left to Yamina on the Right, with Shas, United Torah Judaism, Yisrael Beytenu and the Joint List sitting together.

The cabinet would then represent all 120 members of Knesset, and literally be, in Abraham Lincoln’s famous words, “a government of the people, by the people, for the people.”

Both Netanyahu and Gantz expressed the desire for unity immediately after the March 2 election. “Israel needs to heal,” Gantz declared. “It needs unity. It needs reconciliation and leadership, and we will continue to offer this to the public.”

Netanyahu, for his part, said, “It is time to mend the gaps. It is time for reconciliation.”

Well, the time is now. This is the time to heal and make peace at home. First and foremost, to destroy the disease that has resulted in a shutdown of educational institutions, workplaces, restaurants and places of entertainment across the country.

Secondly, to pass critical budgets and legislation to enable the country to function optimally under these exceptional circumstances. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, it is time to give the people of this country a genuine sense of security under a powerful unity government that is working on behalf of all of Israel’s citizens.

When Israel emerges from this national emergency after it has conquered the virus, as it hopefully will, perhaps we will look back at this difficult time and reflect that, if nothing else, it brought the nation together. That is our fervent hope and prayer as the political parties enter negotiations for the new coalition. This is what is needed when the adversary we currently face – the coronavirus – does not differentiate between sex, ethnicity, religion or color.

Israel needs to be a light unto the nations by showing the world how its people can unite against a virus threatening us all.