The Knesset Ethics Committee has determined that any Knesset
member who has received money from the Reform movement must
abstain from voting on issues pertinent to this movement. The
ruling was made as a result of MK Rabbi Ravitz's petition to
the Committee concerning this problem.
Rabbi Ravitz had approached the Ethics Committee during the
previous Knesset with this request. He presented newspaper
clippings which stated that the Reform movement in North
America has instructed scores of communities throughout the
United States and Canada not to contribute to politicians and
parties in Israel who do not promise to work for "religious
pluralism" which is a code word that means Reform interests.
He also showed them a transcript of a news item from Kol
Yisrael which reported that the heads of the Reform and
Conservative movements in New York announced that they would
see to it that government ministers and Knesset members who
vote for the Conversion Law do not receive any contributions
from their movements.
At the committee meeting, Rabbi Ravitz claimed, "It is
inconceivable for the Reform movement to control Knesset
members in exchange for money, and to tell Them, `If you
vote, we won't give you money.'"
The Knesset Ethics Committee agreed with Rabbi Ravitz.
