Following housing/economic protests among the middle class and students numbering roughly 150,000 across Israel, momentum continues today:
Most municipal authorities have declared a one-day strike scheduled for Monday, in sympathy with popular protests spreading throughout Israel.
Municipalities will not be giving services to government offices or holding public office hours today, streets will not be cleaned and garbage will not be collected.
The Israeli government has been forced to take action (or rather to be seen taking action) to address the growing problems. The Israeli governmental response has matched that of almost every government facing massive social protest.
First, the vague promises.
The “action” by the government so far has generally involved vague housing plans and promises to students particularly to make things more affordable.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Housing Minister Ariel Atias and Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz presented yesterday, at a much heralded press conference in Jerusalem, their plan to provide "affordable housing for young couples, university students, newly discharged soldiers and people without housing."
Student leaders of the protest were harsh in their criticism of the government's proposal, which they said will help building contractors and wealthy businessmen.
Next, the token concession.
The Israeli government followed this up with the most tokenish of token concessions imaginable:
The government also decided yesterday to reduce the tax on gas by 30 agorot per liter for a period of one month, thereby avoiding the price hike of the same amount planned for this morning dictated by the global price rise.
Meanwhile, step up the rhetoric – accusations of anarchy and security threats
Meanwhile, the government has stepped up the rhetoric against the protesters. This rhetoric combines the two classic hot-button issues used against leftist and/or economic protesters, that they are “anarchists,” and that they undermine state “security.”
1) The financial side – accusing the protesters of bringing “anarchy”
Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz, a focus of criticism, warned that reforms demanded by the protesters, who have called for “a welfare state now,” could plunge Israel into a debt crisis similar to those plaguing Spain and Greece.
“As finance minister, I have a responsibility to prevent Israel from reaching a situation of economic anarchy,” he told reporters. “We see the talk about the debt crisis in Europe. We even hear talk of a possible default in the United States. My supreme duty is to see to it that we do not reach such a situation in the state of Israel.”
Steinitz said that while steps would be taken to reduce monopolies and increase competition, “we will not turn the rich and the businesspeople and the investors and industrialists into the enemies of the people, because they are part of a healthy economy.”
2) The military side - accusing the protesters of undermining national security
Israeli military chief Gantz, backed by PM Netanyahu, stated:
IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz acknowledged Sunday that Israel’s defense budget may be cut due to the public demand for increased spending on social services, but warned that a reduced defense budget may compromise Israel's ability to face threats.
Finally, announce “discussions” while ignoring the real problems.
Finally, the government moves forward with token and meaningless discussions. The discussions will either by lead by President Shimon Peres, who has stated he will only engage in “discussion, not negotiation” or possibly by Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz, who as noted above is in the process of accusing the protesters of sowing anarchy and vowing to protect “the rich and the businesspeople.” The Knesset, meanwhile, is not even bothering to cancel its summer break, saying it’s the government’s problem, not theirs.
~~~
In short, the governmental response has been almost entirely meaningless, and sadly in keeping with every other government facing massive social protests. What are the prospects for the protests?
As noted at the top, the protesters continue to gain strength in the middle class, with sympathy strikes among government workers. However, the protesters remain somewhat isolated among the middle class. This is a powerful class, but not all encompassing. Newspapers lobby for the religious sector to join in the protests or argue via headline that the settlers support the protests (though the actual article indicates the opposite). There remains little evidence of the protesters reaching across race (Arab), class (lower classes), religious (Haredi), and cultural (immigrants) lines to expand their base.
On the good side, a major politician, albeit one who is currently not in power, Binyamin Ben-Eliezer finally made the direct link between the Occupation and the Israeli government’s failure to support the middle class:
Former Industry, Trade, and Labor Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer told Ynet in an interview Monday he fears Israel is headed towards the worst disaster since the establishment of the state.
The former minister also suggested that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu solve the crisis himself by transferring funds from settlements to housing projects in cities and towns within the 1967 borders, as well as cutting the defense budget, like his predecessor, Yitzhak Rabin.
"The major thing Rabin did was give an order to freeze construction in settlements and transfer all the funds from the (Palestinian) territories to within Israel. Then he put everything into construction for young couples and infrastructure," he said.
"Billions go into settlements. Billions have gone. If we don't stop this a disaster is imminent. These people have had enough. They have learned that there is no longer an option of a leader saying something and the people following blindly."
It’s a start. And given the paucity of serious response from the Israeli government, the protests are likely to continue.