Instead of patronizing 'foolish' voters and sinking into deep sorrow, left should respect results
Photo: AP
Israeli people's vote must be honored
Op-ed: The internal and external pressure on Prime Minister Netanyahu could lead Israel's citizens to a reality they didn't vote for.
Israeli democracy is allegedly ticking like a clock. The voting stations are wonderfully organized, the public goes out to vote in masses, and President Reuven Rivlin tasks Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with forming a new government
in a festive ceremony. Allegedly, only allegedly.
Legal advice is such a mechanism, for example. So is the Supreme Court sometimes, and mainly the media. These centers of power are still the old elite's stronghold. When it wants to, it will exert moderate physical pressure on Netanyahu and push him to act against the people's will.
The renewed trust that Netanyahu received from the Israeli public does not guarantee that a national policy will be implemented. The State of Israel has other sovereigns apart from the elected government. In a proper reality, these mechanisms are supposed to balance and protect Israeli democracy. In practice, they sometimes turn into mechanisms which bypass the people and castrate the elected echelon's ability to govern.
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The majority of the Israeli public voted against a Palestinian state. So what? A few whines in the media, a bit of admonition from US President Barack Obama – and Netanyahu gives in.
Netanyahu and Rivlin. Renewed trust Netanyahu received from Israeli public doesn't guarantee that a national policy will be implemented (Photo: Amos Ben Gershom, GPO)
The pressure always works through two channels, an internal one and an external one. The more moderate left, which is still ashamed to openly disregard democratic decisions, tries to promote its agenda through internal pressure in the media. The more radical left, unfortunately, has never honored the Israeli voter's decision. After losing the war over the Israeli public's votes, it rushes abroad to get the world to pressure the Israeli government to adopt a dangerous policy.
The combined pressure from the inside and outside could lead Israel's citizens to a reality they didn't vote for. We have already been there: I remember myself running around the streets, driving people to polling stations to cast the ballot with the caption reading, "Ariel Sharon for prime minister." In return for the effort and sweat, we got the destruction of Gush Katif.
As part of the crazy election campaign we have gone through, the differences between the radical left and moderate left have been blurred, and the more responsible left has lost control as well. The Israeli prime minister did not receive the backing of the Zionist Union leaders when he left to address the US Congress. The Zionist Union leaders teamed up with Obama in a bid to humiliate Netanyahu, even when they realized that such a move was against Israel's best interest.
Now that the election chaos is behind us, it's time for the media, legal and political opposition to show more national responsibility – if not inward, then at least outward. A responsible policy should back the elected government's policy vis-à-vis foreign countries, rather than whisper on Obama's ears how to impose on the State of Israel what it does not want.
So what am I asking for? Some space, some respect for the Israeli voter's decision, a bit less patronization and disregard for those "foolish" people who have reelected the hedonist tyrant. Instead of sinking into deep sorrow, the Israeli left should learn how to really honor the election results. Attempting to thoroughly examine their meaning won't do any harm either. I hope it will have four good years to do so.
The right still has a lot to fix and improve, but it mostly needs to finally learn how to govern.
