Opposition to head aliyah panel
In an unusual turn of events, the coalition has allowed a situation in which it will only have a minority of seats on the Aliyah, Absorption and Diaspora Affairs Committee. Knesset committees were finally established on Monday after ongoing disputes between the coalition and opposition.
Due to the coalition’s desire to exert strong control over some critical committees, it allocated itself a greater ratio of committee members on some of those panels, such as the crucial Knesset Finance Committee.
To compensate the opposition, it awarded its parties extra seats on some other committees, including the Aliyah, Absorption and Diaspora Affairs Committee. As a result, the coalition will have just five seats on the Aliyah committee compared to eight for the opposition.
Knesset committees prepare legislation for passage into law and provide oversight over the government’s activities and operations.
Although the Aliyah committee rarely deals with legislation, it is nevertheless an important venue in which concerns regarding Jewish communities abroad can be heard, as well as the state’s attitude towards and treatment of immigrants, and how it treats those seeking to make aliyah, particularly more complex cases such as those of the Abayudaya in Uganda, other emerging communities and others facing difficulties coming to the Jewish state.
Opposition MK Simcha Rothman from the Religious Zionist Party panned the decision, saying it showed the coalition did not value the Aliyah committee and its issues were not high on its list of priorities.
“To be honest, this is not surprising. The government has led to a situation that, in its reckless decision last week in relation to the Citizenship (Family Reunification) Law, the percentage increase in the Arab population as a result of immigration will be greater than the percentage increase in the Jewish population as a result of the Return Law,” said Rothman.
Aliyah and Integration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata did not reply to a request for comment.