Labor well behind other main parties in creating Web site

By SHELLY PAZ
Readers who enjoy surfing the net may have checked out the impressive Web sites of the US presidential candidates: Barack Obama's site is extraordinary and John McCain's is just a little less impressive but still very good. As for Israel's parties, some have Web sites they can be proud of and some had better get to work as soon as possible. Kadima has an easy to understand Web site that is updated promptly and includes sufficient information on the party's history, agenda and plans for the future. The only minus is that it has no English, Arabic or Russian-language versions. Likud's Web site is also very informative, but it dedicates too much attention to the party's leader, MK Binyamin Netanyahu, and it doesn't keep up with events. Many of the headlines expired long ago. Still, it includes an English version, even if it isn't half as informative as the Hebrew one. The Meretz Web site is noteworthy for its detailed information and the fact that the it has English, Arabic and Russian versions. Of course not all are as up-to-date as the Hebrew version. The Labor Party's Web site is currently under construction, and this important tool for attracting supporters and explaining policies is temporarily out of order. "The Web site is currently partly active and the entire Web site is under construction," party spokesman Lior Rotbert told The Jerusalem Post. "We are currently performing research and of course we didn't know there would be elections, and even if this isn't an excuse, the work of building the new Web site is now in an accelerated mode and it will be up again within a few days." Rotbert said the new site would include an English version that would, however, not be as informative as the Hebrew one. "We also plan [on] advertising in the electronic media in Hebrew, English, Russian and possibly in Arabic, too," he said.