Ramat Gan Mayor Carmel Shama HaCohen does not regret the fact that Otzma Yehudit MK Itamar -Ben Gvir participated in the election panel discussion event at Bleich High School in Ramat Gan.
"The directive we followed was that we respect the right to choose, to be elected, and freedom of speech. These are three values permitted no other conclusion than to let Ben-Gvir speak as long as he does not incite and does not introduce racism. You can criticize Ben-Gvir a lot, but he is talented in certain areas, he is not one you have to convince, he understood the potential. He knew in advance that his opponents would blow up his stage," said Shama in an interview with 103FM with Golan Yochpaz.
"The school is enjoying a celebration of democracy. It's easy to concentrate on those dark seconds when some children shouted terrible screams. No one took pictures before, broadcast, or told the public that the demonstrators across the fence called them Nazis, which is a horrifying statement to call children, even if they support Ben-Gvir. The group demonstrating outside the fence represented all kinds of left-wing organizations, they had no interest in the school.”
“The principal reported this to me online on WhatsApp, I told her it was very serious and she said that at the end of the event they would be dealt with. The chants are unacceptable dark statements against the Arabs of Israel," he added.
According to him, "In every group of people there will always be exceptional cases, certainly in situations that arouse emotions, elections, but to come and tell the students in a democracy class that we do not accept a sitting member of the Knesset, a candidate. I do not doubt that it was right to invite this faction. Our pupils are smart enough and they taught Ben -Gvir something, those who were there heard the questions and saw Ben Gvir change. Do your homework."
Later, Shama declared that "these pupils need to know that these elections go beyond Bibi, not Bibi, they may wake up one morning to find that Ben-Gvir is Education Minister or Defense Minister, because in a moment they will be drafted. I want every young person in the State of Israel to hear Ben-Gvir and to understand the significance of these elections, not only in terms of Bibi, not Bibi, which blurs all the other questions concerning Ben-Gvir."
Shama went on, "Youth become enchanted with extreme ideas that are not applicable, but this is also the lesson they need to learn. We want to increase the voting percentage, to prevent the younger generation from being indifferent to democracy. I fully support the school principal, and my deputy made a serious mistake by confronting her in the media."
"No politician in the city has the authority to confront an educator in the media without the consent of the city administration, and the next time a politician does it, it will result in a resignation from the Ramat Gan Municipality," he added.
"The one who made Ben-Gvir a legitimate candidate is the former prime minister. Netanyahu of 2009 would have fought this phenomenon. But according to the answers that Ben Gvir gave in Bleich High School, no one could say anything to him, his answer to everything they said to him was, 'I did it at the age of 17, I'm sorry for that.' I told the principal that if he brings ‘darkness’ to the event hall, darken the hall. If he does not want to leave, I authorize you to turn off the electricity."
Yochpaz asked the mayor if he had a backup plan. Shama did not deny that possibility, and even explained that "from the moment the event was announced, parents got in touch with us. It’s a ‘celebration’ on social media; those on both sides of the issue are inflaming passions. We were prepared for everything. The instruction was to be vigilant, if Ben-Gvir were to take advantage of his immunity and the stage given to him to bring dark statements into the hall, if there are shouts even from the audience, of God forbid 'death to the Arabs', and he does not silence it or if he responds to it even with just a nod in agreement, to close the event. But in the end, the principal wrote, 'I am proud of my students, Mayor.' We think they are children, we look at them as boys and girls, they are in many ways a step ahead of us."
"Either we are a democracy or not, you cannot pretend to be," Shamma concluded.