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Needed: A presidential regime By Yehezkel Dror Tags: week's end, government  Few countries demand as much skill and talent to govern as Israel. As a state still in the making, and facing critical choices on divisive issues, Israel requires a concentration of democratic power that allows its leaders to make and implement the policies that will enable them to shape the country's future. During the early decades of the state, this need was met by a combination of outstanding leadership and a stable dominant party. But as the population grew, the quality of politicians decreased, and society became more complex, capacities to govern eroded and the state increasingly drifted. Today it is clear that the First Israeli Republic has done its job but is now obsolete, and that a new type of democratic regime is urgently needed. Not that Israel is an easy country to govern, never mind how good the political system might be. Sixty years is too short for the development of a culture of statehood. Society is deadlocked on critical issues. "True believers" often engage in direct and often illegal - as opposed to political and democratically legitimate - action, and, in so doing, create hard-to-alter facts. And vested-interest groups insisting on outdated entitlements hinder necessary structural adjustments. But despite the profound diversity and divisions in Israeli society and the hard dilemmas it faces as it confronts the future, the country is not inherently ungovernable. Rather, our leaders lack the institutional setting essential for governing (and many of them are personally inadequate for their tasks). This lack stems from structural defects built into our existing parliamentary regime. Cabinets are heterogeneous coalitions, which can continue to exist and maintain the support of the majority of the Knesset only by avoiding clear decisions on divisive issues. They have no choice but to make compromises that are often the worst of all options, and to allow each minister to dominate his or her own domain, thus making overall policy integration impossible. Coalition partners have de facto veto power, often preventing the cabinet from making decisions and taking actions that they oppose. And with that, our governing coalitions are still unstable, producing rapid turnover of governments and frequent elections. These facts, too, make long-term policies hard to craft, difficult to adopt and often impossible to implement. Advertisement Three typical illustrations can demonstrate the gross inadequacies of our political system: It is unable to overcome the vested interests that stand in the way of repairing the education system's failures. It often gives in to public demands that are sure to cause much future suffering, such as when we trade many terrorist prisoners for the bodies of dead Israeli soldiers. Finally, the state is structurally unable to craft and implement the integrated social policy essential for reducing poverty and increasing social justice. The most dangerous consequence of the regime's inherent weaknesses is its dithering, over a period of years, on critical peace negotiation issues, including the future of Jerusalem and Israeli settlements. The unavoidable result is a loss of control over historic processes and an increased likelihood that Israel will slide into situations that are worse than any of the options it could have chosen from were its regime more decisive. Much depends on the quality of political leaders. But even a leader with the qualities of Ben-Gurion, Lincoln and de Gaulle combined could not achieve much given the present governance system. This is acknowledged by nearly all veterans of the central corridors of power. Yet most academics and second-rank politicians prefer to make do with minor improvements, even though these cannot deliver the needed quantum-leap in capacities to govern. That leap can only be achieved by a transition to a presidential system. Let me outline some core features of a proposed presidential system for Israel I have prepared, based on a comparative study of presidential regimes and familiarity with Israeli politics and governance. b A president and vice president would be elected by a majority of the voters, to serve for five years, with the possibility of re-election to a second, four-year term. b 30 MKs or a petition signed by 200,000 voters can nominate a candidate for president. b The president will be free to appoint cabinet ministers, who will not serve as MKs. A majority of 70 MKs can veto appointment of a person as minister. b The president will have the authority to call for new Knesset elections, whereas a majority of 70 MKs can call for new elections for president and Knesset simultaneously. b The president will submit an annual budget to the Knesset, which can approve or reject it, but not change the details. b A serving president can call for a public referendum on a decision of profound national importance, subject to approval by a Knesset majority. b The Knesset will continue to be the legislative body. The president will have authority to veto legislation it passes, but a majority of MKs will be able to override that veto. Thus, adequate and stable democratic concentration of power, essential for coping with critical choices and long-term policies, will be achieved, together with checks and balances. Israel is facing critical choices sure to shape its future for years to come. The country has outstanding human resources and an innovative society, which can assure a thriving future. But without adequate capacities to govern, our societal potential cannot be translated into effective action. A breed of outstanding leaders is urgently needed. But even they will fail without an institutional basis enabling democratic power concentration adequate for making and implementing decisions on divisive issues. Therefore, I strongly recommend transforming the regime into a presidential one. Israel Prize winner Yehezkel Dror is professor emeritus of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He served as senior adviser to Israeli prime ministers and as founding president of the Jewish People Policy Planning Institute. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Violence on film Two settlers filmed shooting at Palestinians turn themselves in to police. Warning to Iran Bush: United States will not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.   1.   inherent contradiction 15:55  |  michael cohen 05/12/08

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