Workers at dozens of hi-tech companies staged a strike today (Tuesday) in protest of the changes in the justice system led by Justice Minister Yariv Levin. Hundreds came to protest demonstrations in the Sharona complex in Tel Aviv and other centers, including Herzliya and Jerusalem, and chanted “No democracy, no hi-tech!”. Following the protest, the police blocked Kaplan Street in Tel Aviv to traffic for a short time.
“If there is no democracy – there is no hi-tech”: hundreds went out to demonstrate in Tel Aviv and blocked roads
“I believe that the legal reform that is on the agenda is destruction for the Israeli court and democracy. On Sunday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu fired Deri due to the ruling of the High Court of Justice. Now, the Prime Minister wants to introduce the superseding clause, which would allow him to enact a law with a majority of 61 members of the Knesset, even if the High Court opposes it,” noted Tom Livna, CEO of Verbit, who added: “We allow all our employees to participate in the high-tech workers’ strike and take part in the protest, each and every one according to the dictates of their conscience.”
However, Yigal Dagan, owner of a financial consulting business, opposes the existence of the strike: “It is not right to shut down the economy even if there is a political dispute, damage to Israel’s national product and its economy will certainly not be added. Companies are not political bodies. Today is a reform of the judicial system, tomorrow is A political process or eviction will return. The right way for citizens to influence is by voting once every four years. The public has had its say and the people’s word must be respected even if it is not in my opinion, this is democracy.”
Sharon Persher, an economist, expressed concern that, according to him, some of the workers will be obliged to demonstrate: “The right to strike is the lifeblood of democracy and in my eyes is no less important than the right to vote. At the same time, I am concerned that a move in which companies decide to strike collectively and as a result force workers who do not support the protest to strike is In my opinion, the exploitation of the power of the heads of the business sector, which forces the workers to strike even though they may not be interested in it, in my view, is tantamount to a dictatorship.”
Yoel Bar-El, chairman and founder of the Trax company, expressed support for the strike and demonstrations against the legal reform: “The emerging legal legislation aims to limit and reduce these universal values by practically eliminating judicial or other criticism of decisions that contradict this liberal worldview We wish to convey a message first and foremost to our employees, that we will not deviate from the principles of morality and values that we have declared, and therefore any employee whose conscience tells him to strike as a protest will receive our full backing.’
Ben Rabinovich, founder and co-director of the venture capital fund Amiti: “Companies need a stable and consistent rule of law. The P&S rating agency has already announced that Israel’s credit rating will be damaged if there is no independent judicial authority in Israel. These are things that are important to the economic base. Companies and investors care if The country supports diversity and inclusion. There are several large investors around the world who have already made it clear that this is part of their condition for investment, so if we go against this trend, it will hurt us. For that matter, the more we integrate more women into key positions and give expression to the Arab and ultra-Orthodox population in the high-tech industry, it will become the Israeli technology to much stronger.
“The Jewish community in the USA, its political leaders and investors, are silent at the moment and it’s a shame. Everyone’s going to complain after it’s over. It is important that they raise their voices now, not later. They should share their point of view and say that they want an Israel that is a democracy, which includes the protection of minority rights, the rule of law and an independent judicial system.”