Hillel Fendel Mass Protest Against Land Reform
A major protest in Jerusalem, and at 50 junctions around the country, is planned for Sunday, against the government’s plan to sell state-owned land to the highest bidder.The initiative is scheduled for Sunday afternoon, just a day before the Knesset is to vote on the plan. A protest march will begin at 4 PM at Mt. Herzl and wind its way towards the Knesset, while at the same time, protest vigils will be held at major intersections around the country. A demonstration will be held at 5:30 PM at the Rose Garden outside the Knesset.
The bill is supported by the government coalition, and it appears that it will be passed by majority vote. However, several MKs in some of the coalition parties are adamantly against it, and the Labor Party as a whole might abstain or vote against. The Jewish Home, too, is against.
Wall-to-Wall Opposition
A broad coalition of left-wing and nationalist organizations is behind the opposition to the plan. Under the banner, “Reforms to the Israel Land Administration – Yes! Privatization of State Lands – No!” the groups wish to prevail upon the Knesset Members at the last minute not to vote away the nation’s ownership of its lands.
The Knesset is set to vote on Monday for a land-reform package that includes the privatization and sale of up to 800,000 dunams (800 square kilometers) of land in Israel. Half this amount is built-up land that will go to those living in the apartments built there, while the rest could come from almost anywhere else around the country. Land to be sold must have an existing building/zoning plan, cannot be sold in parcels larger than 16 dunams (4 acres), and cannot be sold to foreign residents.
Easily-Detourable Obstacles
Opponents say that foreigners, real estate tycoons and others can easily get around the above restrictions. In addition, they say, the fact that the sale has been restricted to the specified amounts is merely temporary, and the moment the State decides it must sell more, it will simply pass another law.
Jewish Law
Former Chief Rabbi Ovadia Yosef has ruled that since the Jubilee year laws are not in force, neither is the ban on sales. Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger, however, says the plan is forbidden by Jewish Law for a different reason: the Biblical ban on selling the land to foreigners.
Proponents of the bill say it will bring down apartment prices for young couples, while opponents say it will drive prices up.
The opposition campaign is entitled with the Biblical verse “The Land must not be sold forever,” and in fact concentrates on the fact that national land must not pass into private hands.
The umbrella group running the opposition states, “Our objective is to fight the intention to pass the ownership of lands owned by the State of Israel into private hands… The privatization of our lands has fateful ramifications for the future of the Jewish nation and Israeli society from every standpoint: nationally, socially, economically, and environmentally. This would be the largest privatization revolution since the founding of the State… In the past, in the 50’s, a similar plan was stopped, and we must now do it again.”
Among the groups involved in the protest are: Freedom for Israel, HaShomer HaTza’ir (Young Guard), Immigrants Camps, The Social-Democratic Task Force, Working and Studying Youth, Professors for a Strong Israel, the Movement to Preserve National Lands, the Legal Forum for the Land of Israel, Bina Educational Institute for Jewish Identity and Israeli Culture, Im Tirtzu, and Hebrew Nature. .
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