Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called on opposition lawmakers to put forward alternatives to the proposed judicial reform advanced by his government.
"We’ve been asking them to hold a dialogue for eight weeks. We are bringing the reform to the Knesset vote and are committed to listening to other voices," Netanyahu said at the opening of the weekly Cabinet meeting.
"I call on those in the opposition to take action, and present alternatives in an attempt to reach agreements. I am convinced that this will be possible within days."
Netanyahu also directed criticism against opponents of his government's plan who he deemed to have overstepped the freedom of protest.
"I vehemently oppose the attempt to discriminate between Israeli citizens. We are all equal, we must respect the law, once this invalid discrimination is made, everything is allowed provided you belong to the right social caste,” he said.
“And so, in recent days, alongside legitimate protests by people who love Israel, whom I respect, we see a dangerous crossing of lines by a violent and extremist group, which I’m sure doesn’t represent the majority of the protesters."
Meanwhile, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and Knesset’s Constitution, Law, Justice Committee Chair Simcha Rothman called on members of the opposition to meet for dialogue on the reform at President Isaac Herzog’s residence in Jerusalem.
The three called to initiate talks "without preconditions," and stated that, "we said we were in favor of dialogue in an attempt to reach understandings on the reform from day one. We believe the reform is essential for democracy, human rights, and the economy in Israel.”
“We’ll respond to the call for a dialogue without preconditions and call on the responsible parties in the opposition to do the same and meet with us at the President’s Residence on Tuesday," the lawmakers added.
In response, National Unity party leader Benny Gantz, said: "Dear justice minister and Constitution, Law, Justice Committee chair, enough with the political spins. The Constitution, Law, Justice Committee is currently in session and plowing ahead with the reform, and you're asking us to talk? Say you’ll stop the legislation and we’ll hold a joint dialogue today, not on Tuesday.”
Opposition leader Yair Lapid also rebuffed the coalition's overtures, saying that "dialogue will start only after the legislation will be placed on hold.”
Labor party MK Gilad Kariv said that "Levin and Rothman continue their tricks, calling for dialogue while expediting the legislation, refusing to address dozens of proposals that have been proposed in the committee, and refraining from presenting the next stages of the reform in the Knesset.
“Their announcement is intended solely to cool public protest and conceal their intention to complete the legislation by Passover," Kariv added.
Dr. Ron Tomer, president of the Manufacturers Association of Israel, told Ynet that "people are worried, the reform as it currently stands divides the nation. The sides have to talk, it's harder to bring them to hold a dialogue than to agree. The gap isn’t that big.”
“My colleagues and I know how to bridge disagreements. We called for an initiative to bring everyone to the President's Residence on Tuesday before the Knesset goes on a five-day break. During these days it's possible to agree on the reform or at least on a way to hold dialogue," Tomer added.
According to him, "those who refuse to come and talk during these five days have already taken responsibility should things deteriorate further."