It’s election season in Israel, which means that Charedim are again a target by many major parties using them as a scapegoat, but the new rising Tnufa party, led by Ofer Shelach, took the opposite approach and launched a new campaign today entitled “The Courage Not to Boycott Charedim.”
“The anger against the ultra-Orthodox is at its peak, and one can understand why: they do not serve in the army, work at a much lower rate than the general public, and hold unprecedented political power.” the former co-founder of the anti-Charedi Yesh Atid party writes in a lengthy Facebook post.
“It is easy and politically lucrative to get at them. It is easy and comforting to see them as a uniform black bunch that threatens our lives. It is even easier to do it the Bibi way and entirely surrender to their political demands. But easy is not necessarily right.” he continues as he lays out a vision of mutual respect with Charedim over contentious issues.
At the launch of the party, Shelach said that “I believe that in the state of the Jewish people it is obligatory to maintain full civic equality, that every vote is equally legitimate and that those who incite against a minority divide everyone. The days of disqualification of entire populations, ultra-Orthodox, Arabs, and people from the periphery are over”
He then added “The ultra-Orthodox public is 15% of the population in Israel. We have serious disagreements about the future of the state, but they are a partner in our future, and nothing good will come out from incitement. The ultra-Orthodox know I am an ideological opponent, A dialogue will lead to the restoration of cooperation between them and our bloc” he concluded.
