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News :: Israel / Palestine |
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Labor Party Withdrawing From Israeli Coalition Government |
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by Haaretz via gehrig
(No verified email address) |
30 Oct 2002
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Labor is leaving the "National Unity" coalition, leaving Sharon's coalition hanging by a thread -- unfortunately, a thread of parties to the right of Likud. |
Labor leaves unity gov't; budget passes first reading in Knesset
By Yossi Verter and Gideon Alon, Ha'aretz Correspondents
The Labor Party was on its way out of the national unity government after Defense Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer handed in his letter of resignation Wednesday evening.
A few hours later, the Knesset approved the the first reading of the 2003 state budget, which was at the center of negotiations between Labor and Likud to save the national unity government.
Despite the opposition of all Labor MKs present in the Knesset on Wednesday, the budget passed by a vote of 67 to 45, with two abstentions.
Ben-Eliezer's resignation came as a last-ditch meeting in the Knesset with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon aimed at finalizing a compromise deal to stave off Labor's threatened departure from the government, ended in a shouting match.
During a speech before the Knesset plenum, Ben-Eliezer explained why he decided to vote against the budget. "We have received many promises, but nothing concrete, therefore I recommended that Labor vote against budget."
"We have been quiet until now because we preferred unity, but now there is no choice but to take from settlements," Ben-Eliezer said, referring to his faction's demand to give money allocated for settlements to other sectors such as development towns.
Addressing the Knesset after Ben-Eliezer, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon slammed the Labor Party for resigning from the government over disagreements on the 2003 state budget.
"In this fateful hour the Israeli economy is under scrutiny by the world and all of us in the coalition and the opposition must vote for the budget," Sharon said.
"Over this you are breaking up the national unity government?" the prime minister asked the Labor Party.
Toward afternoon, it appeared that a compromise deal had been worked out over Labor's demand that funding to settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, to the tune of $145 million, be reallocated to the weaker sectors of society. Labor has also been demanding that more funds be allocated to students and pensioners.
While Labor's departure from the national unity government will not topple Sharon immediately, it will force him to rely on the far-right, or ultimately call early elections.
Despite Labor's demands, Cabinet Secretary Gidon Sa'ar, a close aide to Sharon, said earlier Wednesday that the prime minister would brook no changes to the 2003 State Budget until after the Knesset voted on the first reading of the budget proposal.
Earlier Wednesday, Likud and Labor figures had joined forces to delay the vote on the first reading of the budget in the Knesset plenum in the hope that a compromise formula could be found.
Originally scheduled for 11:30 A.M., the vote on the first reading of the budget was pushed back to 4:00 P.M., and then 6:00 P.M., as a result of the behind-the-scenes wrangling aimed at finding a compromise solution to defuse the crisis.
Throughout the day, mediators Ram Caspi and Yaakov Neeman - both lawyers, and the latter a former finance minister - had been in contact with Sharon and Ben-Eliezer in an ultimately vain attempt to head off the coalition break-up.
Interviewed after the talks collapsed, Neeman appeared to pin the blame on Ben-Eliezer, telling Israel Radio that while Foreign Minister Shimon Peres had made a "supreme effort" to keep the government together, the Labor leader "decided he did not want to continue with the national unity government," even though "all his demands were met."
Since the crisis erupted last week, Likud members have blamed Ben-Eliezer of precipitating an artificial crisis in a bid to boost his flagging fortunes ahead of a leadership primary next month. The Labor leader trails his two challengers, MK Haim Ramon and Haifa Mayor Amram Mitzna, in the polls. |
See also:
http://www.haaretzdaily.com
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