Yitzhak Keshet, head of the Harish Council, tells how the city became a model of ultra-Orthodox-secular coexistence • The full article will be published in the "Israel Hashavua" supplement
Chairman of the Harish Council Yitzhak Keshet
Yitzhak Keshet, head of the plowing council, did not think he would celebrate his 42nd birthday today.
Suddenly, in the middle of the corona storm that centered the struggle against the ultra-Orthodox population, the council he runs has become a symbol of coexistence and its leader the man of the hour almost reluctantly.
The head of the council wearing the black cap from the Likud, with the help of hard work, succeeded in enacting the law for opening and closing businesses, which is known by the city's residents as the "Shabbat Law."
The bill passed 53 different versions before it was approved, and according to the mayor, about 40 of them were prepared following comments from rabbis.
In an approved version, the issue of trade was dropped in exchange for expanding leisure and entertainment on Saturdays, so that cafes and restaurants will be opened in places defined by the municipality as well as other leisure places such as the gymboree playground and cinemas and theaters.
Also, in the convenience stores at gas stations there will be trade.
Not a trivial matter, in a city with 50 percent of the population religious-ultra-Orthodox.
"I think we in plowing should serve as a microcosm of Israeli society. A society that has all levels and no one has a majority. I am secular in my past and I tested and tried all streams before I became who I am, and I have the ability to understand all worlds. Internalizing the reality of cohabitation. Those who want a completely open city, perhaps in Tel Aviv, and those who want a completely closed city, perhaps in Bnei Brak or Elad. The fact that both sides, secular and ultra-Orthodox, are not entirely satisfied with the compromise ".
The full interview on Friday in the "Israel Hashavua" supplement.
