Dr. Michael Ben-Ari, a candidate for Knesset on the revamped National Union party list, has written a letter of “congratulations” to left-wing Meretz party head Chaim Oron. The reason: The Supreme Court’s decision on Wednesday to overturn the Central Elections Committee ban on two Arab parties from running in the coming elections.
The parties, Balad and Raam-Taal, had been banned because of their overtly anti-Israel stances. A similar ban was issued before the previous elections. Just as last time, however, the Supreme Court overturned the decision, ruling that democracy demands that the two parties be permitted to express their ideals.
Ben-Ari, the number-four candidate on the National Union list, wrote a letter to MK Chaim Oron, promising to continue the fight against the manner in which the judicial system operates. The letter states:
“The Supreme Court ruling proves, once again, the long reach of Meretz, which holds the steering wheel of power in the State of Israel. The Supreme Court’s stance siding with Israel’s enemies is a decisive victory for the ideals of Meretz, against the Jewish majority in the State of Israel.Dr. Ben-Ari lives with his wife and seven children in Karnei Shomron in western Samaria. He lectures and has written widely on the Temple Mount and Jewish history during the Second Temple period, and co-founded the Yeshiva of the Jewish Idea in Jerusalem.“The Supreme Court has emptied of all content clause 7a of the elections law, which says that those who threaten the existence of the State must be disqualified. The Court has made a mockery of the nearly-unanimous decision of the Jewish majority (except for Meretz) in the Central Elections Committee.
“Instead of just one Bishara [Azmi Bishara, a former Knesset Member and Balad party leader who escaped to an Arab country while being investigated on charges that he had aided Hizbullah – ed.], we will have ten Bisharas, who will help the enemy point their rockets at the heart of our cities and at our families, sheltered by parliamentary immunity and status.
“Given that you have such a long and strong arm in the form of the Supreme Court, why do you need to run for Knesset? Why do you need to waste money, sweat and toil, just to find that the nation doesn’t want you at all. [Meretz is expected to receive only six Knesset seats in the coming election - ed.] Instead, why don’t you just declare: ‘We are running this country, via the State Prosecution and the Supreme Court. We will let the Knesset children play, but if they break our rules, we will show them who’s boss.’
“It has now become even clearer that Justice Minister [Daniel] Friedmann was right in his struggle against judicial activism, against the appointment of new judges based on their [left-wing] outlooks, and in his demand for supervision over Supreme Court rulings. True, Minister Friedmann will not be the next Justice Minister, but I can promise you that his departure will not mean the end of your troubles: I have made myself the goal of continuing the Friedmann legacy in the next Knesset.”