Articles

An unflattering US report on freedom of religion would have us believe that Israel is being run by an ayatollah-like regime. While some limits to freedom of religion exist, Israel is a free country

Could economic compensation provide a basis for promoting equality for all IDF soldiers and for the ultra-Orthodox sector as well?

Calls for applying "Torah Law"in Israel lay bare the the much larger problem posed by the substantial clash of the world of Halacha with two fundamental principles of the modern liberal world: individual freedom and equal rights

The real story of the April 2019 elections took place outside the polling booth. In the Arab sector, the Movement to Boycott the Knesset Elections, a grassroots group based on Arab young adults and university students, working on the social networks with a shoestring budget, conducted an effective campaign with a simple and catchy slogan: “Boycott: The People’s Will.” This message stood in utter contradiction to the motto of the elections in 2015: “The Joint List: The People’s Will.”

Those who are not familiar with the Knesset’s day-to-day activities may mistakenly believe that it normally functions efficiently.

Despite the fact that the State of Israel and its central institutions are essentially secular and reflect a Zionist self-image, according to data from the 2016 Democracy Index only two-thirds (64%) of ultra-Orthodox Israelis report having a strong sense of belonging to the state. 

Many Israeli policies only influence Israeli citizens. But when it comes to questions of Jewish identity, every decision and every statement made reverberates throughout the Jewish world.

On July 19th 2019, Netanyahu’s total days in office as Israel’s prime minister equals Ben-Gurion’s and on July 20th he will hold the title of the Israeli prime minister with the longest term in office. This also will make him the third most 'veteran' leader among the OECD countries. 

A controversial decision delivered by the Supreme Court on May 2 could be an important test case for its ability to withstand political attacks, which call to curb the court’s authority and power

Only rarely can a protest totally uproot racism and discrimination, but a strong leadership can negotiate for change

Against the backdrop of the armed conflict between Israel and the Hamas - is limiting the space available for fishing near Gaza's shores collective punishment?

One of the main explanations for the dramatic decline in voter turnout in the Arab Israeli sector in the last elections (49%, versus 63% in the 2015 elections) is the sense that the voice of Israeli Arabs — is a voice that doesn’t count.

What is the media's responsibility in covering the protests of the Ethiopian community against and what are the problems in the coverage?

The June 2019 Israeli Voice Index, conducted by the Guttman Center at the Israel Democracy Institute, finds that the majority of the Israeli public does not think the process begun in Bahrain will lead to a peace agreement with the Palestinians, but Israelis do believe that steps towards economic peace can bring stability to the region.

Why should parties be allowed to use state funding for ongoing expenses to cover the debts accrued during political campaigns?

Long ridiculed, Labor is one of the few parties that meet stringent standards on campaign finance and transparency

A unity government (or “grand coalition”) is a special type of coalition with a particularly broad base, including all the major parties represented in the parliament and can have a range of ramifications on the political system. This explainer outlines how its works in Israel and around the world. 

Granting the government additional power, which will enable overriding Basic Laws in simple legislation must not be allowed, lest the defense of basic civil rights in Israel are compromised

The proposal promotes personal and political interests, strikes a severe blow to the public’s trust in democracy and to elected officials’ obligation to act with integrity

An opinion submitted today (June 26th) to MKs, the Attorney General, and the Knesset Legal Advisor on behalf of the Israel Democracy Institute, opposes the proposal to repeal the law to dissolve the Knesset and seeks to take the proposal off the agenda.

The Knesset once again renewed the declaration of a state of emergency. This practice has been around since the establishment of the State - is it still necessary?

Can the Mueller report shed light on the labyrinth of cyber connections, which are at the basis of the suspected criminal activity? Probably not.

The rerun elections expose a weakness in our system of government and highlight the need to modify the current system for forming a government

How do we divert Israel from a path leading towards a polluted, crowded, and expensive country to one that will take us to a low-pollution, competitive, and thriving economy? Project Israel 2050 is a one-of-a-kind cooperative venture led by the Israel Democracy Institute and the Environmental Protection Ministry, in collaboration with the OECD, the ministries of Energy, Transportation, and the Economy, and the Planning Administration. Here is a glimpse of the possible environmental scenarios for the foreseeable future and how they can be best dealt with.

Another Election? It Has its Pluses for the Public and for Democracy. Voters got to see how parties behaved after elections, and parties now know the real risk of a hardline negotiation stance.

The bizarre constitutional situation in which we now find ourselves raises a great many legal questions, not all of which have simple answers. Does the law allow the prime minister to fire all the government’s ministers? Can he serve as “the government” by himself?

Benjamin Netanyahu couldn’t form a government, because the electoral system is dysfunctional. The country needs to enact two simple reforms, or it will face perpetual stalemate.

Will Arab politicians take advantage of the second chance that the new elections have presented? Runing in a Joint List and reaching out to their younger voters - 60% of which didn't vote in the last election, would be the right place to start.

In today’s world of big data, it is easy to imagine what the impact would be of a single database containing information about their Jewishness—of Israelis and Jews around the world.

How do young ultra-Orthodox couples cope with the housing crisis? The most recent figures on home-buying point to a change of the trend in the ultra-Orthodox internal migration. This change poses a challenge, but also an opportunity. How should the state respond?