The Movement for Quality Government in Israel, the main petitioner in the equal recruitment petition, attacks Defense Minister Gallant’s announcement of issuing only 1,000 conscription orders to ultra-Orthodox recruits. “This is a blatant violation of the Supreme court ruling and makes a mockery of the principle of equal recruitment.”
Adv. Dr. Eliad Shraga, chairman of the Movement for Quality Government in Israel: “This makes a mockery of the ruling and a transparent attempt to fudge the supreme court ruling. How do 1,000 draft orders meet the court’s demand to recruit all 63,000 eligible yeshiva students? This is a cynical evasion of the obligation for equal recruitment and the ruling of the supreme court. In addition, the fact that the army plans to send orders only to those who work and violate the conditions of the notion of ‘Torah as a vocation’ is further evidence that there is no real intention here to implement the ruling of the supreme court. This is blatant discrimination against the general public who serve in the IDF.
We call on the minister of defense and the IDF chief of staff to withdraw immediately from this plan and issue call-up orders to all 63,000 who are eligible for the draft, without discrimination and without excuses. The Movement for Quality Government in Israel will continue to fight for true equality in recruitment and for court rulings to be honored. This is our moral and legal duty towards all citizens of Israel.”
