Meretz mutiny?
HA'ARETZ 7/5/99: "Against the background of the ardent opposition of the party's
younger members, the Meretz Central Committee, in a stormy session yesterday, voted by a
wide margin in favor of the party's entry into the coalition.
The younger members demonstrated before the assembly entrance holding harshly-worded
signs, waving declarations, and regaling speakers with loud cat-calls. At a certain point,
as MK Haim Oron surrendered his right to speak and called for the others to do likewise so
as to move straight to a vote, the unrest became so great that the ushers had to intervene
and remove some of the younger members from the hall.
None of the speakers there, including opening speaker Yossi Sarid and closing speaker
Shulamit Aloni, were aware of MK Yosef "Tommy" Lapid's call to the younger
Meretz members to leave the party that deceived them and join Shinui.
Most of the party's speakers turned to the young wing who stuck out among the majority
of much older Meretz council members. "Your disappointment is my pain," said
Sarid, "but I remind you that the primary goal of the elections was to topple
Binyamin Netanyahu, and that goal was achieved, so don't wallow in bitterness ..."
Sarid admitted that he had erred in his assessment of the post-election reality.
"There was never a chance to establish a government of 66 MKs," he said.
"It was a deception, a fata morgana. After five weeks of negotiations there was a
real danger that Barak would have to come before the Knesset with empty hands and no hope
left. I'm not ready to take the responsibility for Barak being humiliated before the
Knesset and for Meretz being blamed for it."
Sarid stressed that Meretz's election campaign never called for the dissolution of
Shas, and that therefore "there's absolutely no breach of faith here. Everything we
did was done with clean hands and good intentions and we did the maximum possible with 10
mandates. In defending Barak, Sarid said, "He negotiated with a fairness and honesty
that I have yet to see, and we need to respect him for that."
Norwegian law?
ISRAEL LINE 7/2/99: "Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak voiced his intention to
present a plan for reforming several government ministries shortly after he forms his
government next week, HA'ARETZ reported. Barak reiterated on Thursday that he intends to
grant a "personal appointment" to a ministry who is not a Knesset member,
something he spoke about a few weeks ago.
Barak will also put to the vote the so-called "Norwegian law," under which
ministers resign from the Parliament, thus enabling other members of their parties to
enter the legislature. In the Israeli version, that law will not oblige ministers to
resign their Knesset membership, but will leave the decision in their hands.
YEDIOT AHARONOT reported that one of the ministers will be in charge of keeping in
contact with parties that are not in the coalition, for the purpose of cooperating on key
issues. Other prospective changes include removing the Israel Lands Authority from the
auspices of the National Infrastructure Ministry and transferring it to a new body called
"The National Authority for Planning and Development," as well as transferring
jurisdiction of the Israel Ports and Railway Authority from the Infrastructure Ministry to
the Transport Ministry.
Barak also desires to dispossess the Interior Ministry of its supervision over the
Planning and Building committees, in favor of adding it to the new National Authority for
Planning and Development."
EU conference
ISRAEL LINE 7/2/99: "The European Union proposes to convene an international
conference regarding renewed peace negotiations, HA'ARETZ reported. This initiative was
presented by Miguel Mauratinus who serves as the EU special envoy to the peace process,
during his recent visit to Israel. According to the EU proposal discussed with the
American government, the convention is intended to resume both multilateral and bilateral
negotiations.
The prospective convention's agenda will also encompass a "code of conduct"
agreement that would require all parties to refrain from acting unilaterally. In meetings
with Knesset Member Shimon Peres, Foreign Ministry Deputy-General Eitan Ben-Tzur and
Deputy-General of the President's Office Aryeh Schumer, Mauratinus said that Europe would
like to play a part in the peace process and assist in Israeli negotiations with Syria and
Lebanon."
Arens' fears
HA'ARETZ 7/5/99: "Outgoing Defense Minister Moshe Arens said yesterday at a
farewell press conference for military correspondents that he fears the new government
will concede the Golan Heights to Syria. "The Likud can in no way be party to
that," he said, and added that "The Golan is a strategic asset and I see no
reason to hand it over to Syria. Assad needs to be told straight off: Don't demand the
return to the 4 June, 1967 borders - you won't get them."
Arens told the conference that Syria was in a very critical state: "Their economy
is in tatters and the army's situation isn't good. In the North, Turkey is breathing down
Syria's neck, and Damascus no longer enjoys the protection of the Soviet Union."
Therefore, according to Arens, "there's no reason to fall on our knees before Syria
and surrender to it."
Arens expressed his support for negotiations over the Golan so long as they are
conducted without preconditions, but distanced himself from the acclaim which Prime
Minister-elect Ehud Barak has recently meted out to Syrian President Hafez Assad. "We
know who he is. A cruel and aggressive ruler who has taken part in the attacks on Israel
and caused us great loss in Lebanon," he said.
Arens said that when he arrived at his post, the situation on the northern border was
"intolerable," and added that numerous messages had been transmitted to Syria in
the past months via the United States, requesting them to restrain the Hezbollah. When
none of the requests achieved the desired response, Arens went on, "we had no choice
but to act," and he pointed out that since the Air Force's actions 10 days ago
"the nights have been quieter than we've seen in a long time.
We freed the State of Israel from Syrian extortion." The defense minister went on
to say that the understandings reached after the "Grapes of Wrath" operation
"do not serve our purposes" and that "the Hezbollah's cries of anguish when
I announced our delegation's boycott of the talks testifies to this." Arens expressed
the hope that the understandings were finally at an end, and that Barak would not return
to the talks."
Lifeguards
HA'ARETZ 7/5/99: "Interior Minister Eli Suissa yesterday signed emergency decrees
authorizing municipalities to issue back-to-work orders to the striking lifeguards.
Approximately half the country's lifeguards will be sent back to work by the orders either
today or tomorrow, unless they decide to defy the law and flout the orders. They have been
on strike for 9 weeks.
The decrees were signed by the minister as a last-ditch effort to halt the climbing
death-rate by drowning that has plagued the beaches since the start of the beach season.
Thirty-three people have so far died, nearly five times the number of people who died from
drowning during the same period last year. The last several days have seen a sharp
increase in drownings as children on vacation flocked to the beaches.
Adi Eldar, chairman of the Association of Local Authorities, told mayors whose towns
and cities include public beaches to issue the orders immediately. He said that had the
authorization been given earlier, there would have been significantly less drownings.
Eldar also said that local government authorities were determined not to give in to
what he has called the "extortionist tactics" of the lifeguards, saying they are
already among Israel's highest wage-earners, with average monthly salaries of NIS 14,000,
including the winter months when they do not work. The Mediterranean is deceptively
dangerous. Its surf is relatively low, but the undercurrents close to the shore can be
treacherous."
Sheinbein pleads innocent
AP 7/5/99: "In a surprise plea, a U.S. teen who fled accusations of a grisly
murder to seek shelter in Israel pleaded innocent today to all but a minor charge, setting
the stage for a trans-Atlantic trial likely to embarrass the close U.S.-Israel alliance.
Staring blankly straight ahead, Maryland teen-ager Samuel Sheinbein heard his lawyer tell
a Tel Aviv court today that he is not guilty of the 1997 killing of Alfred Tello Jr.
The plea means a full trial here, and probably additional tension between Israel and
the United States. Sheinbein's lawyer, former Israeli Justice Minister David Libai, had
suggested in earlier court appearances that Sheinbein would admit to the charges, perhaps
claiming "diminished capacity.'' He told the Supreme Court in one hearing that
"not one witness'' would need to appear in Israel.
On another occasion, he told The Associated Press that "we will not contest the
facts of the case.''
Libai's assistant, Eitan Maor, told The Associated Press that the defense accepted some
facts, but decided to contest others. He said the defense sees no need for witnesses to
travel from the United States because "there are no witnesses to the murder.'' Over
American objections, Israel's Supreme Court ruled in February that Sheinbein, 19, could
not be extradited because he is technically an Israeli citizen...
Going through the charges, Libai admitted that Sheinbein was in a car with Tello before
the slaying and took part in burning the body afterward. By entering an innocent plea to
the murder charge itself, Libai challenged the state to prove that Sheinbein took an
active part in the killing, along with his friend, Aaron Needle. That may be complicated
by the fact that Needle committed suicide in prison before his trial was to begin in
Maryland.
The Israeli prosecution admitted that its evidence against Sheinbein is circumstantial.
But prosecutor Haddassah Naor added, "It's very good circumstantial evidence.''...The
trial is to begin Oct. 10. Naor said testimony from police and investigators in the United
States would be necessary, either in court here or by deposition in the United States.
Israel has said it will pay for transporting witnesses and evidence. It was unclear
whether Tello's parents, who have led protests against Israel's decision not to extradite,
would attend the trial. Maryland prosecutors have said they are ready to fly to Israel up
to 80 witnesses and evidence, including the rotary electric saw allegedly used in the
killing..."
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