A national union of religious girls' schools filed a petition with the High Court of Justice on Monday seeking a

Holding the march on the Sabbath is contrary to the sensitivity to Jewish culture and unity displayed by Ben-Gurion.

temporary injunction against a march in memory of Israel's first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, on the Sabbath. The petitioners say that the march, to be held this Saturday, is contrary to Ben-Gurion's approach of respecting the holy day in his public roles. They also argue that it is discriminatory because, by necessity, it excludes religious participants.

The annual march is traditionally organized by the Ramat HaNegev Regional Council around the date of Ben-Gurion Memorial Day, the anniversary of the Prime Minister's death on the 6th of Kislev in the Jewish calendar. This year is the 16th time that the Council is holding the Ben-Gurion event, which includes a march that ends with a fair at Sde Boker, Ben-Gurion's Negev home.

According to the David Ben-Gurion Law, 5737-1976, passed "in memory of David Ben-Gurion and his work, and to transmit his heritage to future generations," when Kislev 6 "falls on the eve of Sabbath or on a Sabbath, the memorial day shall be observed on the following Sunday." This year Ben-Gurion Memorial Day falls on Wednesday, December 3.

Ramat HaNegev spokesmen say that the march and fair are not official state-sponsored events and, as such, are not subject to legislated Sabbath restrictions. If the event were held on a weekday, the Council argued, many participants would not be able to come. Saying it was "open and sensitive" to the religious public, the Council noted that two years ago it began holding a parallel Ben-Gurion memorial march on Friday for the religious public.

The petitioner, the Federation of Girls' Schools for Judaism and Land of Israel Studies, said that the Regional Council is obligated to allow Sabbath-observant residents to take part in the Ben-Gurion memorial events. Holding the march on the Sabbath is contrary to the sensitivity to Jewish culture and unity displayed by Ben-Gurion himself, the petitioner noted, as the late Prime Minister carefully avoided public Sabbath desecration in his role as a leader of the Jewish State.

The Federation says that it turned to the High Court only as a last resort, after efforts at dialogue with the Ramat HaNegev Regional Council proved fruitless.