The Labor Party’s leadership bureau, in a stunning upset, voted 61-57 Wednesday against joining Likud in a broad-based coalition government.
The outcome of the secret ballot was a surprise, because, with a single exception, every Labor minister in the outgoing unity government had argued in favor of continuing negotiations with Likud.
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, the party leader, and Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin were among the strongest advocates of a new coalition with Likud.
The only sitting minister opposed was Ezer Weizman, who holds no portfolio in the present Cabinet. But powerful circles within Labor, led by the party’s secretary-general, Uzi Baram, argued forcefully that Labor’s role should be that of a strong opposition.
Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir’s office announced after the vote that the prime minister would now push for a swift coalition agreement with the ultra-Orthodox and right-wing parties.
The Labor vote came two days after Peres and Rabin met with Shamir to discuss terms for a broad-based government. One condition rejected by the Laborites Wednesday was a commitment to serve a full four years in a Likud-led government.
Shamir took the initiative to woo Peres and Rabin this week, apparently because of widespread preference for a broad-based government over a Likud-led narrow coalition with the ultra-Orthodox and right-wing parties.
RELIGIOUS PARTIES PULLING BACK
But the majority of Laborites seem to believe they can extract better terms from Likud. Two of the religious parties, Degel Ha Torah and Agudat Yisrael, appear to have had second thoughts about aligning with Likud.
The leadership bureau’s unexpected vote indicated that Labor not only will assume the opposition role in the Knesset, but that it has begun the process of replacing the present party leadership. The vote Wednesday was seen as a blow to Peres’ standing within the party.
Israel’s internal polities were best described late Wednesday as in a state of flux.
As details of the Labor leadership’s meeting emerged, and the religious parties seemed increasingly unwilling to cast their lot with Likud, a variety of new scenarios emerged.
Yossi Beilin, a close confident of Peres and political director general of the Foreign Ministry, suggested that Labor ought to try to form a narrow coalition with the ultra-Orthodox Agudat Yisrael and Shas parties.
A Likud team was to meet with Shas representatives later Wednesday.
But Agudat Yisrael appeared to be wavering. After a seven-hour meeting of its Council of Sages Tuesday night, Agudah Knesset members renewed their contacts with Labor.
Rabin accused them Wednesday of “using Labor to squeeze Likud,” but the Agudah members assured him they were in earnest.
Earlier, the two-man Degel Ha Torah Knesset faction announced its support for a broad coalition and specifically rejected a narrow government with Shamir.
LABOR MAY BLOCK SHAMIR
Political observers predict an effort to put together a Labor-Orthodox-Communist bloc in the Knesset to stymie Shamir’s efforts to form a narrow government.
Although a joint effort by the religious parties and the extreme left seems far-fetched, some of the Agudah sages favor that option, because they fear Likud’s hard-line policies on defense and the administered territories.
The right wing of Agudah, which favors Likud’s policies, remains closely allied with the Chabad Hasidic movement. Their overriding interest is passage of the “Who Is a Jew” amendment to the Law of Return, which would disqualify non-Orthodox converts for Israeli citizenship.
But they strongly doubt that Likud and its allies can muster the necessary votes, in the face of unprecedented Diaspora sentiment against the amendment.
Likud has promised the amendment in the past. But many of its own people defected when the bill came up for a vote. The Agudah right wing believes it stands a chance in the Knesset only if several Laborites support it. But for tactical reasons, they have refrained from pressing Labor for a commitment.
Veteran Agudah Knesset member Menahem Porush said Wednesday night that his party’s executive committee would meet Thursday “to decide how to translate the sages’ latest instructions into concrete action.”
He refused to say whether the Council of Sages favors an alliance with Labor.
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