Arab Israelis split over campaign against Nationality Law
Following a three-week delay, the Arab-Israeli leadership this week joined the protest against the Nationality Law, appealing to the Supreme Court to overturn it and organizing a large demonstration.
Israel’s Knesset adopted July 19 the controversial Nationality Law, anchoring the Jewish character of the State of Israel. Now, Arab Israelis are divided over the nature of the protest they should mount against the law. Opinions range from exerting pressure on the legislature to amend the law by holding demonstrations and strikes and petitioning the Supreme Court to taking advantage of the bill to show up Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government in front of the world.
Activists in the Arab-Jewish Hadash party told Al-Monitor that the Arab Knesset members and senior community figures such as mayors and members of the High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Citizens of Israel have “fallen asleep on the job.” Although the Arabs are not obliged to serve in the military — unlike the Jews — they pay taxes like other Israelis but get fewer services and budgets from the state, the activists argue. Some think the Arab communities should launch an indefinite general strike, demonstrate and block roads to display their civic power. This way, they would expose Israel’s shame to the world.
Indeed, Israel’s 21% Arab minority have largely been silent. Their low-key reaction — immediately after the law was approved — was drowned out by the protest of Israel’s Druze community, which was given extensive media coverage and supported by former and serving senior security officials. Mobilization for the public Druze protest stemmed from the fact that young Druze men serve in the army, whereas the Arabs supposedly do not do their share.
Now, after delaying for three weeks, the Arab sector’s leadership has joined the active public protest against the law. The Arab Joint List — an umbrella faction of four Arab-Israeli parties — the High Follow-Up Committee that represents Arab Israelis on a national level and the Adalah Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel petitioned the Supreme Court on Aug. 7 against the Nationality Law. The petition follows similar appeals by Druze Knesset members, the left-wing Meretz party and Israeli Bedouins from northern and southern Israel. The head of the Joint List, Knesset member Ayman Odeh, has repeatedly dubbed the bill “the Jewish supremacy law” and has now declared on Twitter that Arab lawmakers were working to overturn it.
