Herzog Suggests Method Toward Compromise on Judicial Reform

Channel 12, the leading TV station in Israel, reports that President Isaac Herzog, grandson of former Chief Rabbi of Israel, has suggested a plan to reach a compromise regarding judicial reforms.

According to the plan, the legislation will be frozen for 14 days.  During this time, both sides will negotiate with no preconditions and representatives of all parties.  Two options were proposed 1]One would be discussion through an agreed-upon team 2] the other is establishing a joint committee to move forward.

The idea behind the proposal is that if the efforts go well it will be possible to promote legislation in the spirit of the agreements reached, and if not – the current legislation can advance, since the Knesset’s winter conference ends in exactly two months.

In a response to the report, the President’s Residence responded:

“The President of the State has been working for many weeks in an attempt to prevent a constitutional crisis and to lessen the deepening of the nation’s divisions. The President’s Residence is currently used as a dialogue center that succeeds in preserving the trust of the parties as a protected shelter for discussions in the midst of the controversy while maintaining the discretion of the participants.”

“As part of this, meetings have been held at the President’s Residence, including by the President, every day for the past few weeks – meetings with all sides of the political map, including research institutes and various organizations, with the aim of establishing a negotiated mechanism that will allow an exit from the crisis while adhering to the fundamental values of the State of Israel as both a Jewish and democratic state, while maintaining the unity of the people. The call that emerges and resonates from the meetings and discussions held by the President’s Residence is that there must be negotiations. The President of the State is devoting his time and energy to the establishment of a negotiated mechanism that will lead to a resolution.”