The Israeli government is working on a new version of its controversial judicial reform project

March 19 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The deputy of the Religious Zionism party Simcha Rothman, head of the controversial judicial reform proposal raised by the far-right coalition that supports the Israeli government, has presented this Sunday to his coalition partners a new and softened version of his initiative.

The new proposal gives the government control of the first two Supreme Court appointments during its term, but requires the support of at least one opposition deputy and a Supreme Court judge to make further appointments, reports ‘The Times of Israel’.

The initial proposal, already approved in the first reading in the Knesset or Israeli Parliament, grants the parliamentary majority full control over the appointment of judges without the need for any support from the opposition or from within the Judiciary.

Rothman has explained that this new proposal seeks to “make as many people as possible feel that the Supreme Court is theirs” and that “people can choose their judges” while “preventing a political force from taking control of the Supreme Court” .

The new wording establishes that the Judicial Selection Commission will go from nine to eleven members, including three government ministers from three different parties, three deputies from different parties of the government coalition, two opposition deputies from different parties and three judges. of the Supreme Court, including its president.

Appointments would be made by a simple majority of six votes for the first two appointments during the Knesset term. The following appointments would also be made by a simple majority, but among the six necessary votes there would have to be at least one from an opposition deputy and one of the judges, with which it must be a consensus candidate.

The new wording, however, maintains that the courts cannot veto any type of legislation that is approved by the Knesset, another of the critical points that the opposition rejects.

Leaders of the coalition led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have met this Sunday to examine these changes.

Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets of the main cities of the country every Saturday for eleven consecutive weeks to protest against the judicial reform because they consider that it grants absolute control of the Judiciary to the Government.