- Title: ISRAEL: Israeli Arab citizens discuss low turnout in national elections
- Date: 11th February 2013
- Summary: JERUSALEM (FEBRUARY 11, 2013) (REUTERS) ARIK RUDNITZKY, PROJECT MANAGER OF TEL AVIV UNIVERSITY'S KONRAD ADENAUER PROGRAM FOR JEWISH ARAB COOPERATION, TALKING TO REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) ARIK RUDNITZKY, PROJECT MANAGER OF TEL AVIV UNIVERSITY'S KONRAD ADENAUER PROGRAM FOR JEWISH ARAB COOPERATION, SAYING: "I think that one most evident phenomenon that emerged in the re
- Embargoed: 26th February 2013 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Israel
- Country: Israel
- Topics: Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA5ZM5N1D8TWY6W1NN1ZHJ87RT
- Story Text: Disillusioned, disappointed and divided, Israeli Arab voters traipsed to the polls in January in ever dwindling numbers, aware that none of their community will have any say in how the country is run.
According to Tel Aviv University's Konrad Adenauer program for Jewish-Arab cooperation, which based its analysis on official election results, 56% of Israeli Arabs voted on January 22 national elections.
A Haifa University poll predicted in December that around half of the community will vote - down from 75 percent in 1999.
Israeli-Arab citizens expressed on Sunday (February 10) some of the reasons behind the low turnout in national elections.
"Every four years they (referring to Israeli Arab politicians) lie to people, they promise people and then we don't see them until the next four years. People are bored. People stopped believing such governments," said Azzam from the Israeli Arab village of Yarka.
Israeli Arabs, who comprise a fifth of Israel's total population, are descendants of residents who stayed on after the 1948 war of Israel's founding, in which hundreds of thousands of fellow Palestinians fled or were forced to leave their homes.
More than half live below the poverty line, compared with a national average of 20 percent, according to official figures, while some 30 percent are unemployed, five times the national figure, a Tel Aviv University study estimates.
One resident said their representatives in the parliament are not doing enough to help tackle such problems.
"The economic situation is very bad and there is high unemployment. For decades, the government hasn't created job opportunities in this town. And even since the formation of the state it didn't secure work fields for recruiting the residents of the town. So people say it makes no difference whether we vote or not, and so people didn't vote," said Nabil Da'ash from the Israeli Arab town of Maghar.
Arabs complain of rampant discrimination including inferior municipal services, unfair allocation of funds for education, health and housing, and curbs on building permits, leading to illegal construction out of frustration - and demolitions.
Mainstream Jewish politicians say Israeli Arabs have seen their wealth and welfare rise substantially since the founding of the state, but concede that they are marginalised and more should be done to plug them into Israel's thriving economy. They also accuse the Arab parties of being more concerned about "external" issues, such as the peace process, while not doing enough to promote the needs of their own constituents.
According to researcher Arik Rudnitzky from Tel Aviv's university's Konrad Adenauer program for Jewish-Arab cooperation, the low turnout of Israeli Arab voters was mainly due to their representatives lack of action.
"I think that one most evident phenomenon that emerged in the recent election was the boycott (of the elections) on the grounds that well, what did the Arab parties have done so far on the day to day issues of the Arab citizen, Some citizens say that they (referring to Israeli Arab politicians) are much more concentrated on the national agenda or the Palestinian cause, the Palestinian issue, the peace negotiations or even going into a face to face confrontation with state authorities on the nature of the state. Well, they (referring to israeli-Arab voters) say ok, we would like to see actions now, results now. And they don't see that. They would like to see new tools, new ways of how to deal, how to cope with the current situation," Rudnitzky said.
Rudnitzky added that political apathy of Israeli Arabs actually masked deeper will for change.
"I think that on the face of it, it looks as if there's nothing new in Arab politics in Israel. You have three major Arab parties that preserve their powers. But I think that the Arab knesset members, they are very well aware of the fact that beneath the surface there are new trends, there are new currents. They demand change and now. Ok? So I think that this might explain why there are already contacts between the Arab parties to establish one united Arab party or list or parliamentary list inside the knesset," he said.
Some 57 percent of Israeli Arabs polled by the University of Haifa in December said unemployment, housing, health and education were their main concerns. Only eight percent cited the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
Israeli-Arab lawmaker Ahmed Tibi said that criticism against him or his colleagues by their constituents was legitimate, but should not hinder participation in elections.
"There could be criticisms against me and other Arab parties. One can criticise and then vote. There is no ideal party, there is a party close to one's opinions. From this point of view we have to convince the people who chose to stay at home," he said.
Tibi also said that it was his duty to fight for the Palestinian cause.
"I do not apologise for anyone because I fight for the Palestinian people and against the occupation. This is my duty. I won't apologise for it and I won't leave it. But my fighting against the occupation is not at the expense of my fighting for social justice," he said.
The three Arab-led parties - Ra'am-Ta'al, the National Democratic Assembly and Hadash - won just 11 seats in 2009. Some Arab votes also went to mainstream Jewish groups such as the Ultra-Orthodox Shas party, which campaigns openly in Israeli Arab towns, promising ever more generous welfare handouts. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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