This is a fine lockdown we are having at the moment. Whilst there seems to be less traffic on the road and less activity in the major centres, it is a far cry from the total lockdown that is needed to control the coronavirus here in Israel. What we have is an Israeli invention (the start-up nation, remember?) called a Swiss-cheese lockdown, with lots of holes that are a result of the various pressure groups that force Bibi into making concessions that he might not ordinarily make. But then again, it wouldn’t be Bibi if this wasn’t the case.
Given this uneven, often illogically implemented lockdown, I have to say that I feel sorry for your average, rank-and-file police officer. These will be my last words of sympathy towards a collective group trying to keep order in a situation of total chaos. Police are meant to enforce the law. I get it.
Depending on how you look at it, the work of the police is made either easier or harder when you have look at the present police minister. He thinks democracy is the worst possible system and civil rights is a swear word. He seems convinced that subservience to his all mighty leader is the best way to bring on fascism as quickly as possible. For some police, who might have similar views, this gives them freedom to revel in enforcing “law and order” as the minister wants. How dare citizens protest against the PM at a time of national emergency? In my view, with a non functioning government and a corrupt PM whose only motivation is self preservation, which is the reason why we are in this national emergency, this is exactly the time to show that there are many good, decent citizens who don’t accept this situation as a given.
But police who see their jobs as upholding the laws and the rights of the country’s citizens are between a rock and a hard place, torn between obeying orders given down the chain of command and preventing the civil rights of citizens whose infraction is wanting to voice their disagreement to the way the country is being run. Unfortunately, it appears that the majority of police have been enthusiastically zealous at upholding the orders that they have been given.
So we have a situation where many demonstrators, who keep to the rule of demonstrating within 1 km of their home, still get fined and manhandled by the police. Extremist ultra “orthodox” protesters (The extreme fringes of the ultra orthodox world are neither orthodox, religious nor god fearing Jews. Merely a godless violent cult that have distorted the beauty of the Jewish religion and beliefs of the many who do follow orthodox Judaism in their own way . But that’s another discussion), who damage property, throw refuse and call police Nazis, get away with a few token arrests and in any case, have ministers in the government who will ensure that nothing happens to them. I don’t know if the police are too scared or simply powerless because of politics. Probably both.
To make matters worse, we haven’t had a chief of police for 2 years. We’ve had 3 elections instead. That means that there is no policy, no direction and no leadership. Hmm. Seems like the police force is an accurate reflection of the State (or state, both meanings are applicable) of Israel.
And yet, it has to be said, that the police are doing a terrible job. I don’t wish to offend any members of the force here, but in regular times, the Israeli police force is not regarded as one of the world’s finest and most Israelis don’t have overwhelming respect for the boys in blue (or black, since a previous police minister apparently wanted to give the police a more sinister look. At least with that, he succeeded). I will trot out a cliché here and say that in times of crisis we see their true worth. Unfortunately, if the cliché is usually meant positively, here it is oh so negative.
I live in a small pastoral community on a Galilean hilltop. Police regularly come to check that we are all wearing masks when we go outside. A friend recently received a fine for not wearing his mask whilst taking a walk with his children, within the bounds of our settlement. When travelling through neighbouring villages, mask wearing is at best, optional. The police don’t dare go into the villages as they are scared of the consequences and potential violence. But a small community of 100 law abiding families is an easy target.
I have a confession to make. I too see that from the top to the bottom this lockdown is not taken in the seriousness that it should be. I’m only human and over this past week I have made a few ostensibly forbidden journeys that haven’t been merely to stock up on wine and hard liquor, which happily is permitted. The roads have been moderately busy. Admittedly, far less than usual hol hamo’ed Succoth busy, but far more than you would expect in a lockdown, where theoretically people are only permitted to go and buy some milk and cookies. There have been some “police road blocks” on the roads. These consist of a few striped cones spread over the road and a police van or two sitting on the side of the road. The inhabitants seem very happy at their summer camp, sitting around, drinking coffee, chewing the fat. Checking cars? Policing? Enforcing the lockdown? Nahhh. They get payed to man a road block, so that’s what they do. It appears that enforcing the lockdown isn’t part of the job description.
So how do I finish this? I don’t. As I have already said, the police in Israel are merely a symptom of the malaise we find ourselves in. I have been living in Israel now 36 years. This is by far the worst time that I can recall. Even worse than after Rabin’s murder, when there was almost universal mourning and a feeling that we all had crossed a border (except for maybe our present PM whom I suspect was a little less sad, but that’s also another discussion). Israel today is intotal chaos. There is an across the board feeling that the country is out of control, with no leadership and no viable alternative.
I apologise for the downbeat nature of this post. People who know me well know me for my positive view on life. I’ll try to be more upbeat next time. I can’t promise.