Land of Paradoxes: Interest Politics in Israel

Preface

Preface This book is about interest politics in Israel, an old-new country imbued with political paradoxes: It is ruled by potent political parties and an intrusive state machinery; it is inhabited by a vociferous population reflecting a tremendous cultural and demographic variety. The book surveys economic organizations, professional associations, and trade unions. It looks at the settlement movements and immigrant associations, two manifestations of the ongoing process of nation building. Included, too, in the list of organizations examined are cause groups, usually more associated with contemporary issues in Israel politics. The conventionally used term "interest group"-taking in as it does under its rubric such varied organizations as the Israel Manufacturers Association, Peace Now, and the Union of Ethiopian Immigrants-may appear to be arbitrarily used. The similarities between an association of industrialists and their counterpart merchants justify their being lumped together under one analytical concept. But how can one account for a discussion comparing Gush Emunim, with its nationalistic-neomessianic message, and the Israel Medical Association? The starting point of this book, therefore, is the premise that interest groups, of all types and shapes, are characterized by certain attributes that distinguish them from other forms of political organizations. This distinction is particularly important in Israel, where the boundaries separating the numerous components of the polity have tended to be blurred. Historical processes, national mores, patterns of political behavior, and the distribution of resources have contributed to this lack of clarity. For example, Takam, a settlement movement whose early members belonged to the founding fathers of Jewish settlement in the prestate era, is associated with the Labor party; the aforementioned Gush Emunim is regarded as xiii Preface This book is about interest politics in Israel, an old-new country imbued with political paradoxes: It is ruled by potent political parties and an intrusive state machinery; it is inhabited by a vociferous population reflecting a tremendous cultural and demographic variety. The book surveys economic organizations, professional associations, and trade unions. It looks at the settlement movements and immigrant associations, two manifestations of the ongoing process of nation building. Included, too, in the list of organizations examined are cause groups, usually more associated with contemporary issues in Israel politics. The conventionally used term "interest group"-taking in as it does under its rubric such varied organizations as the Israel Manufacturers Association, Peace Now, and the Union of Ethiopian Immigrants-may appear to be arbitrarily used. The similarities between an association of industrialists and their counterpart merchants justify their being lumped together under one analytical concept. But how can one account for a discussion comparing Gush Emunim, with its nationalistic-neomessianic message, and the Israel Medical Association? The starting point of this book, therefore, is the premise that interest groups, of all types and shapes, are characterized by certain attributes that distinguish them from other forms of political organizations. This distinction is particularly important in Israel, where the boundaries separating the numerous components of the polity have tended to be blurred. Historical processes, national mores, patterns of political behavior, and the distribution of resources have contributed to this lack of clarity. For example, Takam, a settlement movement whose early members belonged to the founding fathers of Jewish settlement in the prestate era, is associated with the Labor party; the aforementioned Gush Emunim is regarded as xiii xiv Land of Paradoxes a spearhead of the pro-Greater Israel political parties. The Israel Medical Association is perceived as a trade union, but one that is also intertwined in the political web of Israeli society. The extremely high involvement of the state and its organs in countless spheres of social and individual life also casts serious doubts on the valid application to Israeli politics of the universal meaning of the term "interest groups." The major contention of this book is that the extent of linkage between interest groups and the power structures in Israeli society-Le., political parties and state organs-is an empirical question that renders necessary a scientific examination. It is further argued that one cannot generalize and reach conclusions about the autonomy of interest groups in the Israeli polity unless organizational, behavioral, and normative-ideological aspects of their behavior are probed. It is further assumed that although specific types of organizations may be termed "interest groups," subdivisions within this broad category should be distinguished in order to promote an understanding of their interaction with their broader environment. Consequently the first objective of this book is to make an analytical distinction between interest...