With a coalition government of 94 of the 120 MKs in Knesset, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was under the assumption that there would be coalition stability, a hiatus from the constant mini emergencies that require his immediate attention to prevent the coalition from crumbling. It would appear that in reality this is not so and even with 94 MKs on board, the prime minister faces a possible coalition crisis as the Plesner Committee falls apart.
MK (Yisrael Beitenu) David Rotem announced he is leaving the committee last week. Yisrael Beitenu remained true to its word, insisting “sharing the national burden” must include Jews and Arabs alike, and when the committee decided the Arab draft would not be included in its recommendations, Rotem realized it was time to pack it in and leave. Rotem’s position was clear and there would be no differentiation made between chareidim and Arabs regarding the need to serve in the IDF or an approved national service. Yisrael Beitenu feels all citizens must serve equally.
HaBayit HaYehudi left the committee as well and perhaps the final blow was delivered to the committee on Sunday night, the eve of 11 Tammuz, as attorney Yaakov Weinrot announced he would be leaving as well. Weinrot was the government-appointed representative to the chareidi community as the chareidi parties refused to sit on the committee. Acting on instructions from HaRosh Yeshiva HaGaon HaRav Aaron Yehuda Leib Shteinman Shlita, Degel HaTorah MKs would not take part in the committee. Agudas Yisrael and Shas MKs also boycotted the committee, unwilling to lend it an air of legitimacy in the eyes of the chareidi tzibur. Rav Shteinman refers to the committee’s goal as a “gezeiras shmad” and insists no one lend a hand to its efforts in any way.
Speaking to the media Weinrot explained that the committee was acting “irresponsibly” and appeared to be focused on “short term results”, using “aggressive means to achieve its objective”. Weinrot feels that implementing personal sanctions against chareidim as opposed to sanctions leveled against mosdos only will ultimately be “counter-productive”, and such a move will “destroy the progress achieved” over recent years regarding integration of chareidim into the military and national service programs.
Weinrot feels that following the departure of the representatives of Bayit HaYehudi, Yisrael Beitenu and himself, the committee has lost legitimacy. He accuses the committee of becoming “obsessed with the sanctions”, losing sight of the goal and how to achieve this goal.
“What’s the hurry? After all, if they asked the High Court for an extension, for an additional month, such a request would definitely have been granted. There is no one on the committee representing the chareidim, not event someone to tell them what the reality of the decisions made will be” explained Weinrot.
Weinrot added “it simply cannot work” and that is why he resigned. Weinrot simply stated that the committee has lost direction and members are not addressing the issue but obsessing on the punitive actions to be meted out to those daring enough to refuse to comply.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is concerned over the resignation of Weinrot for the chareidim refused to recognize the legitimacy of the committee’s mandate from the get go, and now, with Weinrot’s resignation, the committee has lost legitimacy in the eyes of many, not just members of the chareidi tzibur.
Netanyahu has been urging the committee to abandon personal sanctions and focus on punitive measures against mosdos, kollelim and yeshivos, but Plesner and his faction insist individuals must pay a high price for their refusal to comply with the new draft law.
This may compel Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz to break away from the coalition since his entire entry into the government was premised on the fact that he will legislate a draft law that will include the chareidim.
Yediot Achronot reports that some are hinting at the possibility that the prime minister instructed Weinrot to resign as he tries to sabotage the committee’s success.
The 10-member committee now numbers 7 participants.
If Plesner and his colleagues do not succeed in passing a new law in Knesset, the approximately 60,000 avreichim currently benefiting from the legal umbrella provided by the Tal Law in batei medrashim nationwide will be officially AWOL from the IDF as of August 1, 2012, the day on which the High Court of Justice ruled the Tal Law is no longer legal.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
13 Responses
Unless the IDF is considering becoming “frum” (meaning running the army as if everyone was hareidi, and the hilonim will be allowed to do their own “thing” only off base when not on duty), the conscription of hareidim, in addition to being suicial for the medinah, is an open declaration of war on Torah and Mitsvos. Hareidim have no more place on the Plesner committee than Jews would have had at the Wannasee conference.
Umm, YWN, you’re a little behind. The Plesner committee was disbanded by Bibi yesterday…
Akuperma — it’s a truism that any debate on the Internet ends with someone likening someone else to the Nazis. But if you’re going to liken the Plesner committee to the Nazis, at least spell Wannsee right. After doing that, please tell us what’s “suicial” for the medinah about conscripting citizens by law, and then enlighten us about which of the 613 Mitsvos is being declared war on if this happens.
Mass conscription of hareidim (initially yeshiva students, women coming next)into a militantly secular army in which anything more than a modest level of observance is treated as insubordination will result either in dragging thousands of Jews away from a hareidi level of observance (their stated goal, similar to the “cantonist” policy of the Russians in the mid-19th century), and/or will undermine the ability of the army to defend the state since it will mean that a considerable percentage of soldiers will be neither loyal nor willing.
Jewish survival was never at stake during the holocaust since most Jews lived in places the Nazis had no chance of conquering, and many yeshivos were able to evacuate. Killing many Jews is a nuisance, but the goyim do that regularly and we have always survived. However destroying the yeshivos of Eretz Yisrael would be a far more serious blow. In terms of quality and quantity, the yeshivos in Eretz Yisrael are the heart of Torah Judaism.
I agree that if there is a war all Jews must fight to the death when attacked. Since the issue is Avodah Zarah, the usual heterim to preserve ones life don’t apply. Thus if the zionists declare war on the Jews, while moderates will work for compromise or prefer exile, many fanatics will resist (note that Neturei Karta is already looking forward to this, having waited a long time for vindication), and that the Jewish resistance will so weaken the zionist state that it will be defeated in its ongoing real estate dispute with the Arabs.
akuperma
According to many rishonim like the Ramban and the Maharam MeRutenberg, among others, if this really is a war on Torah and as dire as your words suggest then our fast days lose their din as minhag and are now me’din.
So as I see it, you have two options.
You can put your mouth were your mouth is and enjoy a nice 25 hour fast this Shivas B’tamuz (Ask your local Torah Authority cause in times of gezerois raos, all fast start the night before) in your crocs (or converse in all likelihood)
Or you can back down and tone down the rhetoric and hyperbole
#5 who said we pasken like that
akuperma:
What are you talking about? You call the IDF a “militantly secular army in which anything more than a modest level of observance is treated as insubordination.” Have you ever served in the IDF? I did. It is certainly not a utopia but it does NOT treat religious soldiers or “modest levels of observance” as insubordination.
In fact, they have many wonderful things for religious soldiers. We have commited, Orthodox rabbonim in the army. We have kosher food (perhaps not kosher enough for your holiness). We have sifrei Torah & shuls. They gave us time to daven & we even had divrei Torah. No one questioned us when we wore a kippah. No one questioned us about wanting to eat kosher. We even went on tiulim around the country and discussed the Torah about what we were defending. I don’t mean just the soldiers – I mean some of the teachers or mefakdim explained the Torah roots of many of the places we were visiting.
Maybe more frum yidden need to join the army and make it a better place! But don’t come in with an air of arogance – at least, not when you have no idea what you’re talking about. You may think you are frummer than the army but they are the ones who protect you and have wonderful neshamas. Many of them are deeply religious. Maybe the frum population needs to work harder on being mekarev them, and spend less time bad mouthing them on YWN.
Akuperma, stop with the propaganda! No state would put up with such a situation!!!
to number7-while i would obviously not debate your personal experiences with you, the fact that you enjoyed your time in the idf doesnt mean that R Shteinman shlita didnt call it a gezeiras shmad. no matter how much you gained from serving israel, the medinas plan is still to uproot torah and mitzvos, as R Shteinamn stated. thats all there is to it.
to lbj
who says we don’t?
“Akuperma” – Possibly on the extreme side but hashkafically in the right direction.
“Y dont u do your research..” -your personal experience is interesting and commendable but is completely subjective and not as you yourself recommend – research. Your statement “perhaps not kosher enough for your holiness” says much about your lack of respect for anyone who has differing standards to that of your own.
– Our Gedolim have made our position clear. It is only their guidance which is relevant. That is the only opinion we will heed.
olamhatorah- you write “our gedolim” – you are welcome to follow any godol or rov you wish but you cannot make soemone the “godol” of klal ysroel.
#3 and #7 have a great deal of tshuva to do.