Majadele: State must be loyal to Arabas
Photo: Haim Tzach
MK Avigdor Lieberman
Photo: Avihu Shapira
Majadele: State must close social gaps
In answer to Lieberman's demand for loyalty, Arab minister says state must treat all citizens fairly
Science, Culture and Sport Minister Raleb Majadele (Labor) condemned statements made by MK Avigdor Lieberman, who demanded loyalty from the Israeli Arab population.
"Those who want loyalty from the Arab citizens of Israel should first make sure the state is loyal to them by closing gaps," Majadele said.
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He was referring to the Yisrael Beiteinu Party, whose chairman demanded that loyalty to the State be a condition for citizenship. Majadele made the comments while taking part in a panel on economic and industrial research and development at the annual Herzliya Conference.
"To those demagogues who ask for loyalty, we reply that any state that wants its citizens to respect and love it must treat them accordingly. I hope we go back to being a sane society. The demagogues will not succeed in causing us to despair, because the vast majority of Israeli society is leading towards sanity and pragmatism," he said.
"We are one of the four leading countries in the world in space (research) and among the leading countries in defense research, but we have still not fulfilled our obligations for the good of Israeli society. If we don't start applying science and investments for the good of society in order to minimize the gaps in Israeli society, we are at risk," Majadele concluded.
