Israel was created as a country in 1948. Israel by all indicators is a First World country, although not enriched with natural resources like our country or it's neighbours, with whom it has been in a permanent state of conflict and hostilities. The Israeli income per capita is $32,000 in comparison to our $22,000. Israel's system of voting is a proportional one, which consists of one House of Parliament called the Knesset comprising a membership of 120, with a prime minister and a ceremonial president similar to ours.
The threshold to qualify to hold a position in parliament for any party is a minimum of 3.25 per cent of votes cast. Israel, like us, has two main political parties, the Likud (right wing) and the Labour (liberal) with several smaller parties along the spectrum, including conservatives like the ultra Orthodox Jews on one side and more liberal parties on the other. Israel has no term limit and no fixed election date, and no government has finished a full term since the inception of that country.
Never do any of the major parties get an outright victory with the required 61 seats to form a government on its own. So the party receiving the most number of seats will form alliances with the smaller parties closest in political ideology in order to meet the required number to form a government. So if the Likud got the highest number of seats, it's leader will be asked to form the government, and he or she will in turn approach the smaller parties on the right in order to cut a deal in order to form a joint governing body. Almost inconceivably, some years ago, even the two major parties united to form a government. Despite its tumultuous inception and conflict with neighbouring states, the Israeli system of voting forces conversation and negotiation. It is therefore inclusive and creates the environment for agreeing, uniting and co-operating.
Our system is not conducive to conversation between the major parties and therefore creates an adversarial atmosphere and attitude with non-co-operation and exclusivity. When you couple this with our diversity, which the politicians exploit to their own benefit, rather than harness its beauty, it is easy to see how we have landed in the situation we find ourselves in. We have all the potential, the resources, both natural and human, to be a First World country, but we are lagging way behind, with our indicators pointing in the wrong direction. The largest problem that I see facing this country is the dependency syndrome, and I am yet to see any government, bar none, meaningfully address this. The good news is that we can do something about it; we have the power to redirect our arrow.
Ghassan Youseph
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