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July 11, 2003/Tamuz 11 5763, Vol. 55, No.46
Shinui demonstates political staying power
LESLIE SUSSER
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
JERUSALEM - Even after Shinui became the third-largest party in Israel in last January's Knesset elections, shrewd political observers tended to dismiss its electoral success as a flash in the pan.
Not anymore. After months of being derided as a passing fad with little substance, Shinui, whose name means "change," now really does seem to be making a difference.
The leader of the centrist, staunchly secular party, Justice Minister Yosef "Tommy" Lapid, is proving to be an astute politician with major input in the process of reconciliation underway between Israel and the Palestinians.
Lapid's No. 2, Interior Minister Avraham Poraz, is forcing Israelis to think long and hard about fundamental issues of state and religion.
And now Shinui is gearing up to contest municipal elections across the country this fall, hoping to widen its grassroots base and show that it's not the elitist, yuppie, one-time phenomenon its critics claimed.
One small incident this week signaled Shinui's arrival as a major force in Israeli politics: Lapid's single-handed reversal of a government vote against the release of Palestinian prisoners.
Palestinian terrorist groups say that an Israeli refusal to release all Palestinian prisoners - even though it's not part of any peace plan - will void the groups' recent agreement to temporarily halt attacks against Israel.
On July 6, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon presented a list of criteria for prisoner release for his Cabinet's approval. The results - 10-10, with two abstentions - meant that the proposal had failed.
Sharon did nothing to try to change the situation, mut-tering only that he was tired of the games his own Likud Party ministers were playing with him. Nor did any of the recalcitrant ministers move to break the deadlock.
Lapid, however, was quick to recognize the vote's potential consequences.
"If the proposal is voted down, it will ruin Israel's name in the world, and put an end to the peace process," he declared.
Lapid pressured one of the abstainers, Shinui's own Eliezer Sandberg, the science minister, to change his vote. He also added a rider to the proposal, to the effect that the prisoner release would depend on the Palestinians' compliance with their commitments under the "road map" peace plan.
That enabled the other abstainer, Absorption Mini-ster Tzipi Livni of Likud, and one of the nay-sayers, Fin-ance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Likud, to join the supporters.
On a second vote, the proposal passed, 13-9.
Israeli media were unan-imous in hailing Lapid as the man whose judgment and political skills had saved Israel from a step that could have torpedoed the nascent peace process. Among the congratulatory phone calls the Shinui leader received that night was one from Sharon himself.
The incident confirmed what has become increas-ingly evident over the past few weeks: Lapid is a key player in the new peace moves, and one of Sharon's staunchest allies in the government and Knesset.
Lapid is taking initiatives to help create a better climate for peace-making. On July 7, the justice minister met his Palestinian Authority counterpart, Abd al-Karim Salah, and the P.A. minister for prisoner affairs, Hisham abd al-Rizik. At that meeting, Lapid invited Abbas and his security chief, Mohammed Dahlan, to visit the Shinui faction in the Knesset.
Lapid and Shinui are exerting a moderating in-fluence on Sharon's right-wing government. This is doubly significant because without Shinui, Sharon probably would not have been able to carry out his peace policy. In addition, the fact that it is Sharon, with his hawkish reputation, making the peace moves means that most of the country is behind him.
Shinui also seems likely to leave a mark on civil issues such as the criteria for Israeli citizenship. In May, Poraz announced a revolutionary approach: Non-Jews living in Israel who have made a "special contribution" to Israeli society can become citizens, whereas people who convert to Judaism in Israel - even under Orthodox auspices - would no longer automatically be eligible for citizenship.
However, under pressure from the Orthodox estab-lishment, Sharon insisted that Orthodox converts be automatically eligible for citizenship. Poraz then changed his tack. Now, he says, he will back the right of all those who convert in Israel - whether Orthodox, Conservative or Reform - to automatic citizenship.
Leslie Susser is the diplomatic correspondent for the Jerusalem Report.
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