JERUSALEM - Israel's parliament adopted two controversial laws Wednesday that critics warned would worsen discrimination against the country's Arab minority and make it easier to prevent Arab citizens from moving into hundreds of Jewish towns and villages.
One law legalizes the practice of using "admissions committees" in small towns in the Negev and Galilee to reject would-be residents based upon their social "suitability," a vague term that opponents fear will also be used to bar gays, blacks, single women, Christians and secular families.
The second law is aimed at imposing fines on Arab towns and organizations that commemorate Nakba Day, or "Day of the Catastrophe," which falls on Israel's Independence Day and mourns the displacement of 700,000 Palestinians.
"This is not just a racist law, it's an oppressive law," said Hassan Jabareen, founder of Adalah, an Israeli advocacy group focusing on legal rights of Arab citizens. "It sends the public message that Israel not only doesn't respect the history and memory of the Palestinian people, but they now prohibit Palestinians ... from commemorating their own history and identity."
In the Knesset, Israeli Arab lawmaker Jamal Zahalka said, "We will turn to the world for protection" from this latest assault by the government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the laws and noted that Arab legislators were able to stand in parliament and voice their criticisms.
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