Liberalism in Israel
Encyclopedia
Many liberal
political parties
in Israel
's history can claim substantial popular support, mainly proved by having representation in the Knesset
.
Since Israel's founding, liberals have been active in politics. Note that the label "liberal
" was also used by a conservative
party that derived from the liberal current. At the moment Shinui
, meaning "change" in Hebrew
, represents liberalism by being a strongly anti-clerical, pro-free market
liberal party. Shinui is a member of Liberal International
.
While liberalism is usually suspicious of nationalism, Jewish liberals in Israel generally support some form of Zionism
. By contrast, Balad
draws upon liberal values in its aim to eliminate discrimination against Arabs and to redefine Israel as a state for all its citizens rather than a Jewish state, while the party itself is not an Arab liberal party.
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
political parties
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
's history can claim substantial popular support, mainly proved by having representation in the Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
.
Since Israel's founding, liberals have been active in politics. Note that the label "liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
" was also used by a conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
party that derived from the liberal current. At the moment Shinui
Shinui
Shinui is a Zionist, secular and anti-clerical free market liberal party and political movement in Israel. The party twice became the third largest in the Knesset, but both occasions were followed by a split and collapse; in 1977 the party won 15 seats as part of the Democratic Movement for...
, meaning "change" in Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
, represents liberalism by being a strongly anti-clerical, pro-free market
Free market
A free market is a competitive market where prices are determined by supply and demand. However, the term is also commonly used for markets in which economic intervention and regulation by the state is limited to tax collection, and enforcement of private ownership and contracts...
liberal party. Shinui is a member of Liberal International
Liberal International
Liberal International is a political international federation for liberal parties. Its headquarters is located at 1 Whitehall Place, London, SW1A 2HD within the National Liberal Club. It was founded in Oxford in 1947, and has become the pre-eminent network for liberal parties and for the...
.
While liberalism is usually suspicious of nationalism, Jewish liberals in Israel generally support some form of Zionism
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
. By contrast, Balad
Balad (Israel)
Balad is an Israeli Arab political party in Israel led by Jamal Zahalka. It is sometimes called the "National Democratic Alliance".- Ideology :...
draws upon liberal values in its aim to eliminate discrimination against Arabs and to redefine Israel as a state for all its citizens rather than a Jewish state, while the party itself is not an Arab liberal party.
From General Zionists to Liberal Party
- 1922: Centrists in the Zionist Organisation form the Organization of General ZionistsGeneral ZionistsThe General Zionists were centrists within the Zionist movement and a political party in Israel. Their political arm is an ancestor of the modern-day Likud.-History:...
. - 1931-1945 General Zionists split into "Faction A" and "Faction B" over liberal issues such as economicsEconomicsEconomics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
, social issuesSocial issuesSocial issues are controversial issues which relate to people's personal lives and interactions. Social issues are distinguished from economic issues...
and orientation to the HistadrutHistadrutHaHistadrut HaKlalit shel HaOvdim B'Eretz Yisrael , known as the Histadrut, is Israel's organization of trade unions. Established in December 1920 during the British Mandate for Palestine, it became one of the most powerful institutions of the State of Israel.-History:The Histadrut was founded in...
. Factions A and B merge in 1945. - 1961: The party merges with the Progressive PartyProgressive Party (Israel)The Progressive Party was a political party in Israel.-History:The Progressive Party was a liberal party, most of whose founders came from the ranks of the New Aliyah Party and HaOved HaTzioni, which had been active prior to independence...
to become the Liberal PartyLiberal Party (Israel)The Israeli Liberal Party was a political party in Israel and is one of the ancestors of the modern-day Likud.-History:The Liberal Party was formed on 8 May 1961, towards the end of the fourth Knesset, by a merger of the General Zionists and the Progressive Party, with the new party having 14...
. - 1965: The Liberal Party splits up, the conservatives continue as the Liberal Party which joins HerutHerutHerut was the major right-wing political party in Israel from the 1940s until its formal merger into Likud in 1988, and an adherent of Revisionist Zionism.-History:...
to form GahalGahalGahal , lit. Herut-Liberals Bloc) was the major right-wing political faction in Israel led by Menachem Begin from its founding in 1965 until it merged into Likud in 1973.-Background:...
(eventually becoming LikudLikudLikud is the major center-right political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin in an alliance with several right-wing and liberal parties. Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history, marking the first time the left had...
), the liberal faction forms the Independent LiberalsIndependent Liberals (Israel)The Independent Liberals were a political party in Israel between the 1960s and 1980s.-History:The Independent Liberals party was formed during the fifth Knesset in the aftermath of the merger of the Liberal Party and Herut. Seven of the 17 Liberal Party MKs led by former Minister of Justice,...
. - 1988: The Liberal Party and Herut factions formally merge transforming Likud from an electoral coalition to a unitary political party.
From Progressive Party to Independent Liberals
- 1949: Liberals form the Progressive PartyProgressive Party (Israel)The Progressive Party was a political party in Israel.-History:The Progressive Party was a liberal party, most of whose founders came from the ranks of the New Aliyah Party and HaOved HaTzioni, which had been active prior to independence...
- 1961: The party merges with the General ZionistsGeneral ZionistsThe General Zionists were centrists within the Zionist movement and a political party in Israel. Their political arm is an ancestor of the modern-day Likud.-History:...
to become the Liberal PartyLiberal Party (Israel)The Israeli Liberal Party was a political party in Israel and is one of the ancestors of the modern-day Likud.-History:The Liberal Party was formed on 8 May 1961, towards the end of the fourth Knesset, by a merger of the General Zionists and the Progressive Party, with the new party having 14... - 1965: The Liberal Party splits up, the conservatives continue as the Liberal Party faction within GahalGahalGahal , lit. Herut-Liberals Bloc) was the major right-wing political faction in Israel led by Menachem Begin from its founding in 1965 until it merged into Likud in 1973.-Background:...
, the liberals forming the Independent LiberalsIndependent Liberals (Israel)The Independent Liberals were a political party in Israel between the 1960s and 1980s.-History:The Independent Liberals party was formed during the fifth Knesset in the aftermath of the merger of the Liberal Party and Herut. Seven of the 17 Liberal Party MKs led by former Minister of Justice,... - 1980s: The Independent Liberals merge into the AlignmentAlignment (political party)The Alignment was an alliance of the major left-wing parties in Israel between the 1960s and 1990s. It was established in 1965 as an alliance of Mapai and Ahdut HaAvoda but was dissolved three years later when the two parties and Rafi formally merged into the Israeli Labor Party...
.
From Shinui to Shinui
- 1973: Amnon RubinsteinAmnon RubinsteinAmnon Rubinstein is an Israeli law scholar, politician, and columnist. A member of the Knesset between 1977 and 2002, he served in several ministerial positions. He is currently dean of the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya and a patron of Liberal International.-Early life:Rubinstein was born...
forms the protest party ShinuiShinuiShinui is a Zionist, secular and anti-clerical free market liberal party and political movement in Israel. The party twice became the third largest in the Knesset, but both occasions were followed by a split and collapse; in 1977 the party won 15 seats as part of the Democratic Movement for... - 1976: Shinui merges with the newly founded Democratic Party to become DashDemocratic Movement for ChangeThe Democratic Movement for Change , commonly known by its Hebrew acronym Dash was a short-lived and initially highly-successful centrist political party in Israel...
- 1978: Dash splits up into the Democratic MovementDemocratic Movement (Israel)The Democratic Movement was a short-lived political party in Israel formed in the aftermath of the spectacular breakup of Dash. Founded in 1978, it lasted only until 1981.-Background:...
and the Movement for Change and Initiative - 1981: The Movement for Change and Initiative renames itself Shinui, and in 1988 becomes Shinui-Center Party
- 1992: The party merges with MapamMapamMapam was a political party in Israel and is one of the ancestors of the modern-day Meretz party.-History:Mapam was formed by a January 1948 merger of the Hashomer Hatzair Workers Party and Ahdut HaAvoda Poale Zion Movement. The party was originally Marxist-Zionist in its outlook and represented...
and Ratz to form Meretz, a left wing party with social democrat tendencies. - 1998: Avraham PorazAvraham PorazAvraham Poraz is an Israeli lawyer and former politician.- Biography :Poraz was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1945 and immigrated to Israel in 1950...
splits with Meretz and recreates Shinui as an independent party. - 1999: Yosef "Tommy" LapidYosef LapidYosef "Tommy" Lapid -Biography:Lapid was born in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia to a family of Hungarian Jewish descent. His family was seized by the Nazis and deported to the Budapest ghetto. His father was deported to a concentration camp, where he was murdered. Lapid and his mother survived the war and...
is invited by Poraz to head Shinui. - 2006: Lapid leaves Shinui and Poraz secedes to form HetzHetz (political party)Hetz was a secularist political party in Israel.-Background and ideology:Hetz was formed in the aftermath of the breakup of Shinui towards the end of the 16th Knesset...
.
Hetz
- 2006: Avraham PorazAvraham PorazAvraham Poraz is an Israeli lawyer and former politician.- Biography :Poraz was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1945 and immigrated to Israel in 1950...
leaves ShinuiShinuiShinui is a Zionist, secular and anti-clerical free market liberal party and political movement in Israel. The party twice became the third largest in the Knesset, but both occasions were followed by a split and collapse; in 1977 the party won 15 seats as part of the Democratic Movement for...
to form HetzHetz (political party)Hetz was a secularist political party in Israel.-Background and ideology:Hetz was formed in the aftermath of the breakup of Shinui towards the end of the 16th Knesset...
. - 2006: Both ShinuiShinuiShinui is a Zionist, secular and anti-clerical free market liberal party and political movement in Israel. The party twice became the third largest in the Knesset, but both occasions were followed by a split and collapse; in 1977 the party won 15 seats as part of the Democratic Movement for...
and HetzHetz (political party)Hetz was a secularist political party in Israel.-Background and ideology:Hetz was formed in the aftermath of the breakup of Shinui towards the end of the 16th Knesset...
fail to win any seats in the 2006 elections.
See also
- History of IsraelHistory of IsraelThe State of Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948 after almost two millennia of Jewish dispersal and persecution around the Mediterranean. From the late 19th century the Zionist movement worked towards the goal of recreating a homeland for the Jewish people...
- Politics of IsraelPolitics of IsraelThe Israeli system of government is based on parliamentary democracy. The Prime Minister of Israel is the head of government and leader of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in the Knesset. The Judiciary is independent of the executive...
- List of political parties in Israel
- List of Knesset members
- List of Likud Knesset Members
- Prime Minister of IsraelPrime Minister of IsraelThe Prime Minister of Israel is the head of the Israeli government and the most powerful political figure in Israel . The prime minister is the country's chief executive. The official residence of the prime minister, Beit Rosh Hamemshala is in Jerusalem...
- Basic Laws of IsraelBasic Laws of IsraelThe Basic Laws of Israel are a key component of Israel's constitutional law. These laws deal with the formation and role of the principal state's institutions, and the relations between the state's authorities. Some of them also protect civil rights...