Opinion & Comment
Politica
A Year Best Left Behind

The State of Israel has not seen a year as packed with political developments as 5763 for many years, if ever, and the chareidi sector cannot recall such a wretched year of abuse and cruelty by decision-makers in the political establishment. In heartfelt prayer we ask Borei Olom to end this year's curses, for woe are we if the new year is anything like 5763.

The political event that symbolized the year more than any other was the general elections, which ended with a landslide victory by Sharon and the Likud Party, and the malicious government then set up with Tommy Lapid and the Shinui Party at its center--the event that also marked the beginning of the decrees on the chareidi sector.

Since the State's founding no other prime minister has brought so much suffering upon the chareidi sector despite years of building an image as a friend to the chareidim by regularly appearing in the company of rabbonim and admorim. Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu also proved to be uniquely ruthless, the same Netanyahu who won the prime ministerial elections by a very slight margin 8 years ago in a direct election thanks to the massive chareidi vote.

Will next year be any better? That's a tough question. It seems that things cannot get any worse. But we must not forget there are still several more phases in the planned changes to the Child Support Payments and we cannot forget that as long as Shinui sits behind the wheel and dictates policy to Sharon and Netanyahu, anything could happen. Below is a look at two of the leading figures in 5763 politics.

Ariel Sharon

Sharon began the year with a unity government including Binyamin Ben Eliezer as defense minister and Shimon Peres as foreign minister. United Torah Jewry and Shas were part of the coalition, which numbered only 19 Likud members out of a total of over 80 MKs. Now Labor and the chareidim are out and the coalition numbers 40 Likud mandates of the 68 MKs. Thus the Likud went from controlling one-fourth of the Knesset to controlling an absolute majority of 60 percent.

The meteoric rise of Sharon and the Likud is the story of the year. When the unity government fell last Cheshvan over social issues, the gap between Labor and the Likud remained less than the gap later shown in the election results. The Likud was also worried its voters could get swept away by the Labor Party, which withdrew from the coalition waving the socioeconomic banner. Sharon, however, was unconcerned, remaining decisive and steadfast in pushing for early elections.

Sharon's rise to power was boosted by waves of terror attacks with rivers of spilled blood and the public's desire for a mature leader with experience in the area of national security. The Labor Party estranged voters by conveying the sense they were detached from the reality. The public was tired of the Oslo process and sought somebody to lead the country in a different direction. This is exactly what Sharon had to sell and the public bought his goods lock, stock and barrel.

During the election campaign Sharon had to deal with leaks about deeds allegedly committed by his sons and family members as well as a police investigation against him. According to the surveys at first it seemed the Likud's support base was quickly eroding, but the decision by Central Election Committee Chairman Mishael Cheshin to cut short the live broadcast of a speech Sharon was delivering boomeranged; Sharon's popular support climbed back up to his sweeping victory.

After the elections Sharon held negotiations with the chareidi parties as well, but nothing emerged. Even before the elections he had made a decision to leave the chareidi parties out of the coalition and to set up a government with Shinui, which proceeded to slash the chareidi sector's funding. His major success derived from his ability to forge a bond between Shinui and the Mafdal and Ichud HaLeumi.

Sharon could have set up a secular unity government with Shinui and the Labor Party, but he chose instead to pursue the Mafdal and Ichud HaLeumi for two reasons: to provide a right-wing flank in the government to offset Shinui and to prove he was not anti-religious.

In the end he did very well for himself. He came away with a thoroughly secular government, no less secular than if Labor had been in the coalition, and he was not forced to meet Labor's request during the post-election negotiations to receive top portfolios.

Sharon's current political stature is too solid for any foreseeable political tremor to unseat him, except of course the far-reaching developments in the many police investigations in which Sharon and his sons are involved--or unless the public comes to its senses and takes to the streets over the government's stated policy of reducing social programs, a policy that strikes harsh blows against the weaker elements of society barely scraping by while treating the haves magnanimously.

Binyamin Netanyahu

Netanyahu began the year as a regular citizen, a businessman who spent more time in the US than in Israel. He was planning to return to politics and vie in the primaries for the Likud leadership, but he did not think the return would actually be much swifter. According to his plan the Likud primaries were supposed to be held only at the end of 5763 and the general elections in Cheshvan 5764, but the Labor Party's resignation from the unity government upset the entire political order and led to early elections.

At the beginning of the year Netanyahu was ahead of Sharon in internal Likud polls, but when Labor withdrew, Sharon made an unexpected move by inviting Netanyahu to serve under him as foreign minister. Netanyahu, not anticipating such an offer, withheld his answer for a while. After stipulating a number of conditions, he agreed. Thus Netanyahu was back just three years after he lost to Ehud Barak and dropped out of the political scene.

At first political pundits raised an eyebrow at Sharon's maneuver. They held he had erred by providing his great rival a worthy platform, which would give him the image of a man of state and valuable media exposure. In reality exactly the opposite happened. From the moment Netanyahu entered the government there was a turnaround among Likud voters, who perceived Netanyahu as a Sharon underling and his prestige faded.

Following Netanyahu's honorable loss in the primaries he placed himself at Sharon's side in the election campaign, displaying loyalty and convinced the foreign ministry portfolio would remain in his hands. Then Sharon pulled a fast one. He gave the Foreign Ministry to his associate Silvan Shalom and offered a shocked Netanyahu the Finance Ministry. The meaning of the offer was clear: to dispose of Netanyahu by throwing him directly into the State of Israel's difficult and urgent economic problems.

At first Netanyahu wanted to decline and remain a rank-and- file MK, but after a round of consultations he took up the complicated and difficult task, but not before securing authority not granted to any previous finance minister and bringing in another minister (officially "Minister Without Portfolio in the Finance Ministry"), Meir Shitreet.

As Finance Minister, Netanyahu had to deal with empty state coffers and broken hopes. He slashed away, cutting support payments and anything that moved. The upcoming cut will be his third in less than one year. Netanyahu believes in Reaganism and Thatcherism and has begun to implement this type of capitalism. The primary victims are of course the underclass--especially residents of development towns and problem neighborhoods--which comprises the Likud's traditional and historic support base.

When the government was set up with Shinui, the chareidi sector breathed easy with the knowledge that at least in the Finance Ministry they had a loyal emissary, the kind who would not allow Lapid and his cohorts to make their dreams come true. Yet it quickly became apparent this hope was unfounded. Netanyahu adopted almost all of Lapid's economic program, certainly all of the points affecting the chareidi populace.

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