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The Executive Council of Aus­trali­an Jewry (ECAJ), the elected peak rep­res­ent­at­ive body of the Aus­trali­an Jewish community, situated at the apex of more than 200 Jewish organ­isa­tions across Australia, has expressed its deep dismay at the announce­ment that two main­stream Jewish political parties in Israel, Jewish Home and the National Union, have agreed to join forces with Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) in Israel’s upcoming national election.

The ECAJ does not ordin­ar­ily comment on Israel’s internal politics taking the view that these are matters for Israel’s citizens, whose rights, interests and security are at stake.

However, we have never hesitated to speak out in support of Israel’s basic right to exist in peace and security, or against attempts to undermine Israel’s found­a­tions as a Jewish and demo­crat­ic State, as these are matters which engage the interests of the Jewish people as a whole. We have condemned attempts from the extreme left of politics to impugn Israel’s legit­im­acy, through the BDS campaign and by other means; fought against Islamist bigotry towards Israel and the Jewish people; and denounced the agenda of the extreme right to convert Israel from a multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-party democracy into an eth­nic­ally or reli­giously exclus­iv­ist society.

We are therefore compelled to express our deep dismay that two main­stream Jewish political parties in Israel, Jewish Home and the National Union, recently announced an agreement encour­aged by the Prime Minister to join forces with Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power), a party which is widely seen as extremist and racist, and the political heir of the Kach Party founded by the late Rabbi Meir Kahane, who was banned from the Knesset in the 1980s under a Basic Law outlawing incite­ment to violence and later exiled entirely from Israel.

The unity ticket announced by the three parties is cynical and oppor­tun­ist­ic, and a betrayal of fun­da­ment­al Jewish and Zionist values. The leaders of Otzma Yehudit are disciples of Kahane, and there is now a pos­sib­il­ity that at least one of them will be elected when Israel goes to the polls on April 9, and Kach’s poisonous ideology will return to the Knesset.

Whilst the presence of one MK from Otzma Yehudit out of a total of 120 MKs would be largely symbolic, this is the kind of symbolism that matters. It will be used with equal cynicism by those who seek to demonise and del­e­git­im­ise Israel.

All of Israel’s citizens equally, regard­less of ethnic back­ground, religious affil­i­ation (or absence of religious affil­i­ation), gender or sexual pref­er­ence, will have the right to vote in the elections. We trust that they will have the good sense to turn their backs on Otzma Yehudit, and treat the recent agreement with the contempt it deserves.

Contact
Peter Wertheim AM | co-CEO
ph: 02 8353 8500 | m: 0408 160 904 | fax 02 9361 5888
e: [email protected] | www.ecaj.org.au