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Boycotting and whining
By Nadav Shragai
Tags: Jerusalem, Sabbath 

If the tens of thousands of members of the Eda Haredit anti-Zionist organization in Jerusalem had participated in the municipal elections and exercised their right to vote and make an impact, perhaps Nir Barkat would not have been elected mayor and the latest Shabbat riots would have been avoided. If East Jerusalem's hundreds of thousands of residents had exercised their right to vote and make an impact, perhaps the unconscionable gaps in the level of services and infrastructure between east and west would have been narrowed. If the secular public had bothered to drag itself to the ballot box six years ago instead of staying home and whining, it's safe to assume that Uri Lupolianski would not have become mayor and that municipal resources in the pre-Barkat era would have been dispensed in a more egalitarian manner.

The fact that hundreds of thousands of Jerusalemites have for years chosen not to participate in municipal elections sets the stage for more ifs and buts. Mainly, though, it highlights how far the political constellation running the city is from representing its people. When 250,000 Arabs boycott the municipal elections - as they have done for the last 42 years - so as not to recognize Israeli rule over the eastern part of the city, they miss an opportunity to directly affect their daily lives. They forfeit one-third of the seats on the city council.

The tens of thousands of members of the Eda Haredit in Jerusalem, who view Zionist rule as sacrilege and a postponement of the coming of the Messiah, weaken their bargaining power and decrease their own influence. You only have to visit the alarmingly crammed classrooms of the sect?s Torah students to understand. On the other hand, Jerusalem's secular population, which in previous elections voted with its feet, understood it made a mistake and changed the situation.
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But it is the mayor's duty to hold a dialogue with all sectors of the public, including those that chose not to participate in shaping the municipal government. Nonetheless, it is worth reminding the groups that boycotting elections carries a price, even if it crystalizes their identities. Sometimes those who do not vote have no influence, as is the case in the parking-garage affair.

The demonstrations and protests against "violating the Sabbath" are legitimate, but the violence committed by those who chose not to take part in Jerusalem's democratic game is particularly grave and cannot be accepted. Indeed, Barkat made mistakes regarding the operating of the parking garage during the Sabbath. But even wise management of the crisis will not necessarily bring quiet, because some of the riots are not fueled solely by religious concerns but are part of an intra-Haredi power struggle.

Jerusalem's secular public, which sighs in relief after every election that leaves the anti-Zionist population out of City Hall, needs to be aware of its error. From a long-term perspective, the representation of these sectors in the municipality will bring them closer to the state's institutions, which is exactly what happened with Shas and United Torah Judaism. There will even be benefits in the short term - the Arab public and anti-Zionist ultra-Orthodox will get a better understanding of the public's sensitivities and red lines. They will understand their part in the joint responsibility for the city, and their ideological ghetto will begin to crack.

The general public, too, will learn to be aware of the sensitivities of the other, and at least some of the walls of demonization of the Haredim will fall. The really fateful issues will be decided by the government. Jerusalem, the most politicized city in the world, remains an urban mosaic. Cooperation on such a level will benefit everyone.
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