The Conference of Presidents of the Great Jewish Organizations in America was severely criticized by the surprising mid-month decision by the conference's nominating committee to elect Dianne Lib, chairman of the HIAS, to run unopposed for the chair of the presidential conference in today's elections. 

The Libyan election was criticized because HIAS is a post-Jewish organization. Its leaders openly support anti-Semites such as the boycott activist and Hamas supporter Linda Parsor (who organized a fundraising campaign for HIAS), Hamas-affiliated anti-Zionist Jewish organizations and boycotts such as IfNotNow and JVP.

After her election, 17 members of the Presidents' Conference signed a letter to the leadership, revealing many material flaws in the election process. Among other things, the conference members were not given enough time to review the nomination committee's decision, some members of the nomination committee were not eligible to serve under the conference rules, and more.

"Israel Today" was informed that Diane Libya had previously been sacked by another candidate for the post of chairman. After that, she played a major role in his disqualification, serving as a member of the nominating committee. This, despite the conflict of interest rules and the murky past between them, was supposed to bring about For her disqualification as a committee member. 

As one presidential member explained, "Rules were tightened in the run of the Amok to bring Libya to the election. Obviously, if it had not been so, she would not have been elected."

In the face of stiff criticism of Libya's election on Sunday, outgoing chairman Arthur Stark and Libya issued a letter to members of the presidential conference, announcing unexpectedly that the rules of the conference had been changed and that according to the new rules, Libya would serve as elected chair under Stark for a year. She will take up the chair independently in April 2021.

On the face of it, the surprising move indicates the readiness of the conference leaders to consider criticism, but it is not. In fact, Stark and Libya and their members insist on requiring conference members to choose Libya on Tuesday, and not allow a proper selection process to take place. They keep Libya from heavy and very heavy allegations that it represents positions that violate the interests and values ​​of 95 percent of American Jews, including the interest in fighting the rising anti-Semitism in the left and supporting Israel.

Cancel the vote

Last week, presidential officials argued that Libya could not turn the conference into a post-Jewish organization such as HIAS because the organization's rules require consensus work. A flash procedure where the rules were changed to make up the role of "elected chairman" shows that the rules are no barrier to any move. 

There is a very simple solution that will also save the most important Jewish organization in the US from hostile perception by Libyan post-Jewish officials. The conference leaders can cancel the scheduled vote and send the entire process back to the nomination committee for reconsideration, both of Libya's nomination and Others in good standing If this happens, the conference is likely to be rescued as a pro-Jewish and pro-Israeli organization, but this opportunity will disappear once again if, despite the serious exceptions in the nominating committee's work, and the extremes of Libya's organization, the conference members will vote for it today.