Opposition leader MK Yair Lapid sparked a political storm on Sunday evening with remarks about a bill his party intends to submit, under which voting rights would be revoked from those who do not enlist in the IDF, while the law would not apply to the Arab public.
Lapid said, “I don’t know who invented this phrase that the right to vote is sacred. It is not sacred. In a democratic state, there are rights and obligations, and one depends on the other - they cannot be separated.”
He added that his law would target those found fit for service but who choose not to report: “For example, the Arab public in Israel is not summoned to enlist, so it does not apply to them. Or people with mental or physical conditions who cannot enlist - it does not apply to them either. It applies only to those who received a draft order, are healthy, and can report to the induction center but choose not to. They are offenders.”
Lapid added that he also intends to submit a separate bill to revoke voting rights from prisoners: “I also intend to submit, alongside this, a law stating that prisoners will not be able to vote in Israel, as well as those who fail to report to the induction center.”
In response, the Shas party sharply attacked the Yesh Atid chairman, stating: “Yair Lapid, who hastened to clarify that he did not intend to revoke voting rights from Arabs but only from haredim, revealed his true face and the depth of his hatred toward Jews who observe Torah and mitzvot. According to Lapid, Jews who love the land, study Torah, and pray daily for the safety of IDF soldiers are worth less than Arabs, some of whom support Palestinian terror. Shameful and disgraceful.”
MK Meir Porush (United Torah Judaism) also responded harshly to Lapid’s remarks, saying: “Minister for Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Chikli, you need not look abroad for battles against antisemites - Yair Lapid is right here in the Israeli parliament, with ideas that even antisemites abroad would not dare voice today. Will Lapid and Liberman’s next law be a ban on haredim driving on Israeli roads paved with state funds?”
No comments:
Post a Comment