The Ministerial Committee for Legislation unexpectedly approved Yisrael
Beytenu's alternative to the “Tal Law” on Monday, in a step that will
allow the bill to advance in the Knesset before its expected dissolution
this week.
Its passage by the committee is the first hurdle in
an accelerated legislative process that would allow the bill to be taken
up in its first reading on Monday, the next necessary stop to make it
law by Wednesday.
The Tal Law, which allows haredi
(ultra-Orthodox) men to indefinitely defer IDF service and was recently
invalidated by the High Court of Justice, is set to become the central
issue in the upcoming election. Yisrael Beytenu is recruiting MKs to
support its replacement for the legislation, which would require all
18-year-old men to enlist in the IDF or perform civilian service.
The
proposal allows for 1,000 yeshiva students and the same number of
athletes and artists to receive an exemption from the draft to encourage
those with exceptional talents. Those who do not serve the state may not receive any grants or payments from the government.
Yisrael Beytenu welcomed the decision by the ministerial committee, who the party said "understood well the importance of the bill." The party urged Knesset members from all factions "to take advantage of this opportunity to replace the Tal Law, which perpetuates inequality in Israeli society and uneven distribution of its burden. "
MK David Rotem who initiated the bill said, "I think the law is very important because it recognizes both the importance of military service and the importance of Torah study."
"Every Israeli citizen must to military service and the days when the entire burden is carried on the shoulders of a certain population of people must be a thing of the past," he added.
On
Thursday, MK Einat Wilf (Independence) said that she would bring her
party’s proposed alternative to the Tal Law to a vote in the Ministerial
Committee for Legislation on Sunday.
Independence party chairman
Ehud Barak submitted an identical ministerial bill, which does not
require approval from the committee. Wilf’s move is meant to strengthen
Barak’s measure.
The Independence bill calls for the IDF to
decide which 18-year-olds should serve in the military. Those who are
not recruited by the army would have to perform civilian service for one
year.
According to Wilf, Independence’s bill is the only one “that is based on the IDF’s understanding of security.”
|