Note: The translations of articles from the Hebrew press
are prepared by the Government Press Office
as a service to foreign journalists in Israel.
They express the views of the authors.
To Heal the Rift
(Commentary by Ofer Shelah, "Ma'ariv", May 18, 1999, p. A5)
The 1999 elections were one of the most important in Israel's history. The
people spoke, in a loud voice: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is no
longer acceptable to us. The sweeping punishment inflicted upon Netanyahu
and his party should serve as a lesson to the next prime minister.
Ehud Barak conducted a good and tight campaign, and his is a worthy
candidate, but Barak would not have won by such a margin -- the likes of
which has not been seen for decades -- had the entire country, from the
political establishment to the Likud legends not stood against Netanyahu's
divisiveness and rivalry, his lying and lack of any standards, his failed
administration and his intentional confrontationalism.
Netanyahu turned Shas into the second strongest party in Israel.
Opposition to Shas transformed Meretz and Shinui into a bloc of similar
size, spanning one of the central rifts tearing Israeli society apart. The
fall of the Likud is a dangerous landmark in Israeli history -- a strong,
central opposition party is vital. It will be difficult to form a
government with only one side of the wound; it would be wrong to bring
only one side into the government, but to leave the Likud out.
The conclusion is obvious. Barak must not build a coalition of fractured
parties, some extremist; rather, he must form a government with the Likud
-- now that Netanyahu has left. The almost one-time coalition that brought
Barak to power became satisfied as soon as Netanyahu went home. The needs
of the State of Israel demand that Barak embrace the same party that
Netanyahu set back by thirty years.
It will be interesting to see how history judges Netanyahu. In retrospect,
it appears that he played his role perfectly. The Wye accord gave the
final seal of approval to the Oslo process, while, on the other hand,
Netanyahu's character and performance prevented him from picking the
fruits -- bringing about his succession by someone capable of healing the
wounds he caused. Israel returned to itself yesterday, evicting the man
who threw down the gauntlet in its face. The healing will start with the
formation of a broad-based government, with the Likud and without
Netanyahu.