Netanyahu Pulls Back on Controversial Judicial Reform Plan
The protests sparked by the reforms have been some of the largest in the country’s history, with tens of thousands taking to the streets every week since the plan was announced in January.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced a major shift in his controversial judicial reform plan, which has sparked one of the country’s largest protest movements.
In an interview with the Wall Street Journal published on Thursday, Netanyahu said he was no longer pursuing a clause that would have given politicians a greater say in the selection of judges and curbed the power of the Supreme Court. He also said the idea of a “simple majority override” of the Supreme Court had been “thrown out”.
This comes after Netanyahu announced a “pause” in March, as mass protests were backed by industrial action. The Prime Minister had hoped to reach a “broad consensus” with the opposition on the reforms, but negotiations faltered on June 14 when two main opposition leaders, Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz, pulled out.
The proposed changes to the justice system have been highly controversial in Israel, with Mr. Netanyahu’s government – a coalition between his Likud party and extreme-right and ultra-Orthodox Jewish allies – arguing the changes are needed to rebalance powers between lawmakers and the judiciary. Critics, however, fear it could open the way to a more authoritarian government.
The international community has also expressed their concern, with Israel’s close ally the United States speaking out against the entire programme. U.S. President Joe Biden has said he was “very concerned” over the proposed reforms, and urged Israel “not to continue down this road”.
Despite the shift in stance, Netanyahu has said he still intends to push forward with the reforms. He said he had already changed “a few things” since the original proposal was put forward, but declined to comment further when contacted by the AFP.
The protests sparked by the reforms have been some of the largest in the country’s history, with tens of thousands taking to the streets every week since the plan was announced in January. It remains to be seen whether the Prime Minister’s decision to pull back on some of the more controversial elements of the judicial reform plan will be enough to appease the protesters.
