New social justice party to run for Knesset

Yet another new party has entered the political fray ahead of the upcoming Israeli elections.

Tzedek Hevrati (Social Justice), which announced its existence to the world on Monday, is led by Gad Haran, chairman of the Social Coalition and the social organization AMI (a Hebrew acronym for “Future for the State of Israel”). He is joined in the party by Jackie Edri, a leader in the struggle for the improvement of workers’ conditions at the Dead Sea Works plant.

Other party members include Idris Mawassi, the deputy mayor of the Arab-Israeli city of Baqa al-Gharbiya; Vicky Vanunu, an activist with the housing rights organization Ma’abara; and attorney Yael Segal-Machlis, who has been active for many years in fighting for civil rights and social justice and against racial discrimination in Israel.

A statement released by the party said that “our Knesset members have forgotten what every citizen feels… that Israel is currently in a financial and social crisis. Today, when all of the parties have abandoned the poor and even the opposition parties are only speaking to the middle class, it is more important than ever to ensure that every Israeli… has fair representation in the Knesset. We need to introduce true social justice to our house of representatives.”

The party has received permission to use the same name as the now-defunct party that was established in 2007 by millionaire businessman Arcadi Gaydamak.