Thousands of Israelis protested in the streets of Tel Aviv this Saturday (15), for the 15th consecutive week, against the judicial reform promoted by the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, considered a threat to the country’s democracy.
“Let’s save democracy,” read some banners, amidst a wave of Israeli flags. Some protesters lit flares and smoke canisters, AFP journalists reported.
Other protests, with a smaller number of participants, were also recorded in the cities of Jerusalem, Haifa (north) and Modiin (center), in front of the house of the Minister of Justice, Yariv Levin.
Since the reform was announced in January, tens of thousands of people have demonstrated weekly to denounce it.
On March 27, the government formed in December by Netanyahu announced a legislative “pause” to give a “chance (…) for dialogue”.
“We’re all tired and I didn’t want to come today, but my sister told me, ‘We don’t have a choice,’ and it’s true, we don’t have a choice, we can’t let our guard down, we need to defend our country,” said Karen Baron, a 45-year-old psychiatrist. years.
The Executive believes that the measure will balance power between Parliament and the Supreme Court, considered politicized by the current ruling coalition, one of the most right-wing in Israel’s history. Opponents, on the other hand, consider that the reform could lead the country to an authoritarian model.
Saturday’s protests came a day after US financial ratings agency Moody’s announced it had downgraded Israel’s credit outlook from “positive” to “stable”.
According to the agency, this change reflects “a deterioration in Israel’s management, as shown by recent events due to the government’s proposal to reform the judicial system.”
