Women wonder why Ehud Barak broke his promise to raise their political standing.
LARRY DERFNER
Israel Correspondent
hen Public Security
Minister Shlomo Ben-
-\ w Ami recently said the
,------
new Israeli cabinet had a
"Third World" level of women's repre-
sentation, he was being generous.
With just one woman —
Environment Minister Dalia Itzik —
in the projected cabinet of 32 minis-
ters and deputy ministers, Israel has
half as many women in government,
proportionally, as does Syria. The
Egyptian cabinet has three times as
many women, proportionally; so does
Bangladesh.
Mind you,
Prime Minister
Ehud Barak isn't
worse than his
predecessors.
There have been
/ only six women
ministers in
Israel's history,
according to the
Israel Women's
Network. Only
Yitzhak Rabin's
cabinet had as
many as two.
Before his
election, Barak
had pledged to
initiate a little
affirmative
action and
appoint an unprecedented total of
three women to his cabinet. When he
didn't, Israel's feminists protested
loudly last week outside the Prime
/-' Minister's Office, then challenged him
face-to-face inside.
Barak's office tried to put a good
face on the situation, saying the leader
acknowledged "an unpaid debt to the
women of Israel, and that he intends to
address this matter." The statement
went on to credit Barak's "clear com-
mitment" for "putting the issue of
women's representation on the agenda."
Despite the spin, Prof. Alice Shalvi,
founder of Israel's feminist movement,
was furious.
"For someone to say, `I know I
made a promise, and now I'm break-
ing it' — this is totally unacceptable,"
she said. Feminists at the meeting
demanded that Barak appoint two
ernment, she was the sole woman in
the cabinet.
In the view of many feminists,
the chief reason for the near-exclu-
sion of women at the top is the tow-
ering importance of one's military
background. Many leading politi-
cians go straight from the IDF
General Staff into the Knesset or
even into the cabinet.
"We have an old boy's system from
the IDF. After they get out of the
army, the boys appoint each other,"
said Shalvi.
Added Orit Sulitzeanu, spokes-
woman for the Israel Women's
Network: "Barak is a general, and gen-
erals tend to think of women as
clerics."
The Prime
Minister's Office
said these
charges didn't
merit a reply.
Another key
reason is that
about one-quarter
of the Knesset is
• made up of reli-
• gious parties.
Because of their
• patriarchal tradi-
• tion, the parties
have no women
• Knesset members.
52.
And Israeli
politics has a dis-
tinctly Type A
Male style — a
lot of back-slapping, earthy clubhouse
politics. She says that Meir's elevation
humor, shouting and laughing at ear-
to minister was indicative of nothing
splitting volume, and forays into the
more than fortunate political position.
markets to press a lot of sweaty flesh
To Aloni, as to other feminists,
and
stuff one's face with shwarma
Golda was the exception that proves
meat.
Is it that women aren't cut out
the rule.
for that kind of life?
On the right, Geula Cohen, a long-
"No, that's not it," insists Aloni.
time Knesset member, is the flag bear-
"Limor Livnat can curse as well as
er for women, according to Knesset
any man in politics, and Dalia Itzik
Member Yael Dayan.
can open up a mouth that'll scare
"Aloni got where she did only after
the life out of you."
she started her own party," noted
In the meantime, feminists want to
Dayan, who at No. 15 is the Labor
push Barak to act on his promises.
Party coalition's ranking woman. "The
They are planning to keep up the
same went for Geula Cohen, who
pressure through demonstrations,
founded [the now-defunct right-wing
faxes, phone calls and generally
party] Tehiya."
spreading the word.
Besides Environment Minister
Until then, Israeli women politi-
Itzik, the only woman in politics
cians aspiring to a seat in the cabinet
today in a top party position is
will continue to envy the opportuni-
Likud's Limor Livnat. As communica-
ties enjoyed by their sisters in Syria. ri
tions minister in the Netanyahu gov-
more women ministers and two as
deputy ministers when he expands his
government, which is expected soon.
But Barak said that because of coali-
tion constraints, he would not do so.
Shalvi noted he did reiterate a public
commitment to include more than
one woman in the cabinet before his
term ends in November 2003.
Some toss in the precedent of
Golda Meir, Israel's prime minister
from 1969-74, to show women's polit-
ical power in the Jewish state. But
feminists scoff at that.
After Meir, Shulamit Aloni, Yitzhak
Rabin's education minister and leader
of the Meretz party, is the second
most successful woman ever in Israeli
Barak's Boys Club
Remember
When
From the pages of the Jewish News
for this week 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50
years ago.
1989
Dr. Leon Warshay was installed as
president of the Detroit Zionist
Federation.
Three Michigan men won medals
at the 13th Maccabiah in Israel. Ben
Braun of Eastern Michigan
University coached the basketball
team to a silver medal. Joel Goldstein
of Flint won a bronze on the bad-
minton team. David Stollman of
Birmingham was a member of the
gold medal-winning fencing team.
1979
Israel formally returned a 6,000-
square-kilometer section of western
Sinai to Egypt in compliance with
the Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty.
At Congregation Beth Achim,
vandals damaged three stained-glass
windows and several other windows.
1989
Crowds of Israelis gathered at the
U.S. Embassy to listen to a descrip-
tion of the launching of the Apollo
spacecraft.
William Haber, dean emeritus of
the College of Literature, Science
and the Arts at the University of
Michigan, was named trustee-elect
of Brandeis University.
1959
Four Detroiters are among the 50-
member U.S. delegation to the
World Jewish Congress meeting in
Stockholm: Rabbi Morris Adler of
Congregation Shaarey Zedek,
Rabbi Leon Fram of Temple Israel,
Morris L. Shaver of the Farband
and Philip Slomovitz, editor and
publisher of the Jewish News.
Mrs. Samuel B. Danto accepted the
post of Jewish co-chairman of the
women's committee of the Detroit
Round/ Table of Catholics, Jews and
Protestants.
Frank L. Weil, president of the
National Jewish Welfare Board and
the National Social Welfare Assembly,
was named head of the program
committee of the National Citizens
Committee for United Nations Day.
7/30
1999
Detroit Jewish News
25