Netanyahu's Coalition Seeks Judicial Reform to Pave Way for West Bank Annexation: Academic
“Members of Netanyahu’s coalition, led by Justice Minister Yariv Levin, seek to remove the Supreme Court as a check on their goal of annexing the West Bank with their judicial reform plan,” David Frank, a professor of rhetoric at the University of Oregon, told IQNA in an interview focusing on controversial plans that have sparked protests in occupied territories.
This Saturday, over 100,000 demonstrators congregated in the coastal city of Tel Aviv for the 35th consecutive week, to condemn the extremist policies of Israel's far-right cabinet. At the center of their protests once again was Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's controversial judicial overhaul plan.
Supporters of the plan argue that it serves to rebalance the power dynamics between politicians and the judiciary. Conversely, critics believe Netanyahu is attempting a power consolidation, contending that he is exploiting the scheme to suppress potential legal judgments against him, especially in light of his ongoing corruption trials. These demonstrations have become a recurring event since January, following the announcement by the hard-right cabinet of its intention to institutionalize this scheme into law.
Meanwhile, some observers, including Professor Frank, have linked the cabinet’s efforts to the annexation of the occupied West Bank and the Israeli apartheid.
International human rights organizations are in consensus: Israel is responsible for significant and systematic human rights violations
“International human rights organizations are in consensus: Israel is responsible for significant and systematic human rights violations. These organizations, as well as some Israeli human rights organizations, have concluded Israel supports apartheid,” said Frank, adding, “Annexation would make legal a state of apartheid in the West Bank.”
“Haunted by his indictments and the possibility of imprisonment, Netanyahu needs the support of his coalition partners and has acceded to their religious and maximalist Zionism,” Frank said, noting that the coalition members are “ideological Zionists” who do not have the “pragmaticism that restrains Netanyahu.”
Further explaining the issue, the academic said, “A study of his [Natanyahu’s] career suggests he seeks the annexation of the West Bank, but not at the expense of his hold on power. Throughout his time as Prime Minister, he has ‘zig-zagged’ on the question of a Palestinian state, both supporting and undermining the idea based on his political needs.”
Prospects of ‘civil war’
According to Frank, the controversial plan “invites the specter of a civil war” between what he described as “two Israels … one that is religious and conservative, the other secular and cosmopolitan.”
“As a possible prelude to a civil war, Israel’s police have responded to some of the protesters with violence, which Palestinians under occupation often experience at the hands of the Israeli military. Efforts to find a compromise have, to this point, resulted in serial failures,” noted the analyst.
He also hinted that the anti-cabinet movement could “prompt Israelis to see the folly and the evil of the occupation.”
Movement can be a catalyst for Palestinian democracy
The success of the movement against judicial overhaul can “bolster democratic principles, foster a commitment to political equality, and open up space to challenge the occupation and the violation of Palestinian human rights,” Frank stressed, noting that it can also serve as “a model for a robust Palestinian democracy.”
“Palestinians have some say over their fate. They can resist Israeli violations of their human rights by creating a healthy democracy,” the academic added, lamenting the fact that no election has been held in Palestine since 2006.
A rejuvenated Palestinian leadership could create a coherent and persuasive response to Israeli repression and human rights violations
“A fair election would allow Palestinians to choose leaders and a government that represent the Palestinian people,” he said, referring to polls that indicate more than two-thirds of Palestinians want Mahmoud Abbas to resign. “Palestinian national elections could generate new and better leadership.”
“A new and rejuvenated Palestinian leadership could create a coherent and persuasive response to Israeli repression and human rights violations, set forth an economic policy that will improve the material lives of Palestinian citizens, and unleash the great creativity of a people under occupation and in the open-air prison called Gaza,” he stressed.
Interview by Mohammad Hassan Goudarzi
David Frank is an academic expert in debate, rhetoric, critical reasoning and public address at the University of Oregon. His research explores the role rhetoric and argumentation plays to resolve conflict without violence. He has published on rhetorical history and theory, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the rhetoric of Barack Obama, the use of the Holocaust to portray evil in American film, and on the prevention of mass atrocities and genocide.
The views and opinions expressed in this interview are solely those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect the view of International Quran News Agency.
