Shas spokesman Asher Medina acknowledged that his party and the broader Chareidi political leadership failed during the past four years to secure the status of yeshiva bochurim, but pushed back strongly against claims that the failure has caused a widespread loss of confidence in Chareidi elected officials.
Speaking in an interview with Kol Chai’s “Central Edition,” hosted by Shneur Weber, Medina was asked how Shas intends to approach Chareidi voters who are deeply troubled by the arrests of yeshiva bochurim and the ongoing military draft crisis.
“There is no doubt, we did not succeed in bringing about an arrangement for the status of yeshiva students, which we wanted so badly and worked so hard and devoted ourselves for four years to make happen,” Medina acknowledged.
At the same time, Medina rejected the characterization that yeshiva families now look at their political representatives and say, “We sent you and you did not deliver results.”
“Yes, there is pain. Yes, there is great pain, and we share in it,” Medina said. “We are all in the same boat. We all have children, we all have grandchildren, we are all facing the same concerns.”
Medina insisted that throughout the past four years, Shas and the Chareidi representatives acted in accordance with the instructions they received from the Gedolei Yisroel.
“Everything they did for four years was according to the instructions of the Gedolei Yisroel, step by step. Whatever the Gedolei Yisroel instructed us to do – we did, and we carried out their mission.”
Weber pressed Medina on why Chareidi voters should believe that Shas will succeed in the next government after failing to resolve the issue during the past four years. Medina responded that one of the central lessons is that the Chareidi community must emerge from the coming elections with greater political strength.
Medina specifically pointed to Israel’s judicial and legal establishment, saying Shas will demand more far-reaching changes in the next government.
“Everyone knows and understands who the greatest persecutors of Judaism and the Torah world are,” Medina said, arguing that significant changes are needed regarding the appointment of judges and the authority wielded by government legal advisers.
Addressing Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara’s latest demand that enforcement measures against those who have not reported for military service be intensified, Medina warned that “what we have seen until now is only the promo.”
He concluded by urging Chareidi voters not to remain at home on Election Day, arguing that a stronger showing at the polls will be essential if the community hopes to secure greater political power to address the draft crisis.
{Matzav.com}
