The Rackman Center participated in an initiative led by the Deborah Forum and Itach Maaki and 56 civil society organizations and 109 former senior women in the civil service and the security service in a request to ensure women’s representation in the Knesset and appointment to central and senior positions in the new government.
In the State of Israel, there are over 4.5 million women – roughly 51% of the population. However, from the results of the last election it appears that the incoming coalition will only include 9 women with an absolute male majority (Likud – 6 women, Religious Zionism – 3 women, ultra-orthodox parties – no women).
This translated into a severe regression for women’s basic right to representation in the Knesset.
At the same time, there is also a real fear that the number of women appointed to serve in decision making positions in the government and its Ministries will also decrease.
In our petition, we requested that:
- The Government, the State Legal Advisor and the State Service Commissioner guarantee that the right to representation is implemented in practice.
- Initiate legislative moves that will regulate mandatory equal representation quotas for women in each and every party as is customary in other western countries.
We hope that the issue will receive appropriate attention in preparation for the formation of the expected government.
