ISRAEL-ELECTION/ARABS REAX Israeli Arabs look for change after 'Joint Arab List' becomes third largest party

Record ID: 399343

  • Title: ISRAEL-ELECTION/ARABS REAX Israeli Arabs look for change after 'Joint Arab List' becomes third largest party
  • Date: 18th March 2015
  • Summary: JAFFA, ISRAEL (MARCH 18, 2015) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF MAN SMOKING SHISHA VARIOUS OF RESTAURANT OWNER MAKING HUMOUS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) RESTAURANT OWNER, YOUSEEF, SAYING: "We hope to see good changes in the future and hope they will do the change as they promised us to do." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE AND VEHICLES IN STREET OF JAFFA (SOUNDBITE) (HEBREW) ISRAELI ARAB RESIDENT OF JAFFA
  • Embargoed: 2nd April 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Israel
  • Country: Israel
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA2TZLY6YLG60U5IQ4HDME0TGOY
  • Story Text: Israeli Arabs in Jaffa on Wednesday (March 18) expressed satisfaction after the 'Joint Arab List' became Israel's third largest party, according to near finalised results of Israel's general election.
    A political sideshow for much of the past six decades, Israel's Arab minority was hoping to gain much-needed muscle in the parliamentary election, with four Arab parties uniting under one banner for the first time.
    The Arab parties have traditionally won around 11 seats in the 120-seat Knesset. As a joint list, according to official results and with nearly all votes counted, they won 14 seats, putting the group a clear third.
    Many in the Arab community, which makes up 20 percent of Israel's eight million population, see the newfound unity as a breakthrough in battling discrimination and gaining recognition. Though they have full and equal rights, Arab Israelis often say they are treated as second-class citizens.
    "We hope to see good changes in the future and hope they will do the change as they promised us to do", said Youseef restaurant owner from Jaffa.
    Israeli Arabs are descendants of residents who stayed put during the 1948 war of Israel's founding, in which hundreds of thousands of fellow Palestinians fled or were forced to leave their homes, ending up in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria as well as in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
    "Listen, it is heart warming, since the foundation of the state, the Arabs living in the state are uniting and act for one common goal. It is really heart warming. It also opens a window of hope for the future. But, despite this optimism, we should always remember that eventually the result is not different, this state is turning to the right", said Khalid Sages from Jaffa.
    Those who remained have long pointed to inferior services and unfair allocations for education, health and housing. More than half of the Arabs in Israel live below the poverty line.
    "Thanks for god that they got a high percent in the Knesset, we are very happy for that. Now they can help the Arabs in Israel," said Saed Kuhail from Jaffa.
    In Israel's parliamentary election system, voters choose parties rather than individual candidates, and the head of the party with the most political allies will usually win a presidential mandate to try to form a government.
    Arab voter turnout in the 2013 election was 57 percent, lower than the 68 percent national average. But the number this year rose to approximately 70 percent, according to Israel Democracy Institute.
    Arab citizens make up about 15 percent of eligible voters, which means they have an electoral potential of 18 seats. Some vote for non-Arab parties.
    Arab parties have never been included in any Israeli government, nor have they sought membership.
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