Külügyi Szemle - A Teleki László Intézet Külpolitikai Tanulmányok Központja folyóirata - 2003 (2. évfolyam)
2003 / 1. szám - KÖZEL-KELET - Gazdik Gyula: The evolution of the Israeli party system
The evolution of the Israeli party system for the Zionist parties and in particular for the Labour Party. However, their support also waned during the 1999 elections. With respect to the election of the prime minister, during the three rounds in 1996 and 1999, the majority of Arabs voted for the Labour Party candidates Peres and Barak. In the February 2001 premiership elections - with the smallest voter participation in the history of Israel - only 20 per cent of the Arabs participated in the balloting.26 The reason for this abstention stemmed from the conflict between the prime minister and the Arab community following the second Intifada. All these factors contributed to Barak's demise and the victory of Sharon. While the Arab parties have endured from the creation of the Israeli State, the emergence of Russian immigrant parties occurred as a result of mass immigration from the end of the 1980s. Although the majority consists of Russian Jews, the proportion of non-Jews - through marriage and other relationships - is considerable. The „Russian" label is an over-simplification, since it encompasses all Russian-speaking immigrants from the CIS. While their skills are important with respect to strategy, the lack of appropriate employment opportunities have created other problems. Consequently, the integration of the culturally autonomous „Russians" - despite improved social conditions - progressed at a very slow rate. Whereas the „Russians" had supported the Labour Party coalition at the beginning of the 1990s, they had been dissatisfied with the government's handling of the immigrant „Russian" question. Prior to the 1996 elections - in order to improve their condition - they had established the Yisrael B' Aliya /Israel for Immigration/ under the leadership of Nathan Sharansky. The prominent former Soviet civil rights activist - imprisoned by an autocratic state - focussed on one thing only: social issues. To his great surprise, he had received 7 mandates and thus became a member of the cabinet of his old friend, Benjamin Netanyahu. He had been re-elected for the following term, but had resigned before the July 2000 American-Israeli-Palestinian Camp David Summit. However, this situation did not prevail, as he had been subsequently appointed deputy prime minister, as well as the chief of the Ministry of Housing and Construction in Sharon's national unity cabinet. Apart from the preservation of cultural traditions, he is dedicated to helping immigrants' professional, economic and social acculturation and the creation of appropriate institutions. In his statements he frequently stresses the need to transform the electoral system and the direct election of parliamentary deputies. Sharansky professes liberal economic political tenets, and with respect to the essence of the peace processes, he is in unison with the Likud leaders. He stipulates that concessions given to the Palestinians should be in harmony with the realisation of democratic values. The ,,de-Arafatisation" of Arab society should proceed similarly to the de-Nazification of Germany and the democratisafion of Japan.27 The Yisrael B'Aliya leader supported Sharon's relentless military actions against the Palestinians right from the beginning. 2003. tavasz 51
