
Hadash is a
left-wing
Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social ...
to
far-left political coalition
A parliamentary group, parliamentary caucus or political group is a group consisting of members of different political parties or independent politicians with similar ideologies. Some parliamentary systems allow smaller political parties, who a ...
in
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
formed by the
Israeli Communist Party and other leftist groups.
History
The party was formed on 15 March 1977 when the
Rakah and Non-Partisans parliamentary group changed its name to Hadash in preparation for the
1977 elections. The non-partisans included some members of the
Black Panthers (several others joined the
Left Camp of Israel) and other left-wing non-communist groups. Within the Hadash movement, Rakah (which was renamed
Maki, a Hebrew acronym for ''Israeli Communist Party'', in 1989) has retained its independent status.
In its first electoral test, Hadash won five seats, an increase of one on Rakah's previous four. However, in the next elections in
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
the party was reduced to four seats. It maintained its four seats in the
1984 elections, gaining another MK when
Muhammed Wattad defected from
Mapam
File:Pre-State_Zionist_Workers'_Parties_chart.png, chart of zionist workers parties, 360px, right
rect 167 83 445 250 Hapoel Hatzair
rect 450 88 717 265 The non-partisans (pre-state Zionist political movement), Non Partisans
rect 721 86 995 243 ...
in 1988. The
1988 election resulted in another four-seat haul, though the party lost a seat when
Charlie Biton broke away to establish Black Panthers as an independent faction on 25 December 1990. The
1992 elections saw the party remain at three seats.
In the
1996 elections the party ran a joint list with
Balad. Together they won five seats, but split during the Knesset term, with Hadash reduced to three seats. The
1999 elections saw them maintain three seats, with Barakeh and
Issam Makhoul replacing
Ahmad Sa'd and
Saleh Saleem.
In the
2003 elections Hadash ran on another joint list, this time with
Ahmed Tibi's
Ta'al. The list won three seats, but again split during the parliamentary session, leaving Hadash with two MKs, Barakeh and Makhoul.
In the
2006 elections Hadash won three seats, with
Hana Sweid and
Dov Khenin entering the Knesset alongside Barakeh. The party won an additional seat in the
2009 elections, taken by
Afu Agbaria.
In January 2015, former Knesset speaker
Avraham Burg joined Hadash.
In 2018, Hadash activists were involved in creating joint Jewish-Arab anti-occupation movement
Omdim Beyachad (Standing Together).
Policies and ideology
Hadash is a left-wing party that has supported a socialistic economy and
workers' rights
Labor rights or workers' rights are both legal rights and human rights relating to labor relations between workers and employers. These rights are codified in national and international labor and employment law. In general, ...
. It emphasizes Jewish–Arab cooperation, and its leaders were among the first to support a
two-state solution. Its voters are principally middle class and secular Arabs, many from the north and Christian communities. It also drew 6,000–10,000 far-left Jewish voters during national elections in the 2010s.
The party supports evacuation of all
Israeli settlement
Israeli settlements, also called Israeli colonies, are the civilian communities built by Israel throughout the Israeli-occupied territories. They are populated by Israeli citizens, almost exclusively of Israeli Jews, Jewish identity or ethni ...
s, a complete withdrawal by Israel from all territories occupied as a result of the
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...
, and the establishment of a Palestinian state in the
West Bank
The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
and
Gaza Strip
The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...
. It also supports the right of return or compensation for Palestinian refugees. In addition to issues of peace and security, Hadash is also known for being active on social and environmental issues.
In keeping with socialist ideals, Hadash's environmental platform, led in the 2010s by Maki official
Dov Khenin, calls for the nationalization of Israel's gas, mineral, and oil reserves.
Hadash defines itself as a
non-Zionist party, originally in keeping with
Marxist
Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...
opposition to nationalism. It calls for recognition of Palestinian Arabs as a national minority within Israel.
[ Hadash has in recent times included elements of ]Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism () is a political ideology asserting that Arabs constitute a single nation. As a traditional nationalist ideology, it promotes Arab culture and civilization, celebrates Arab history, the Arabic language and Arabic literatur ...
in its platform.[Ilan Lior]
MK Dov Khenin: Netanyahu government is dangerous for Israel
Haaretz (16 January 2013). "It has also spearheaded Knesset legislation on environmental issues (it describes itself as red-green)."
Hadash shifted to a more Arab nationalist appeal after running on a joint list with Ta'al in 2003.
In 2015, Hadash declared its support for international campaigns against companies operating in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Controversy
On 1 November 2009, then party leader Mohammad Barakeh was indicted on four counts for events that occurred between April 2005 and July 2007; assault and interfering with a policeman in the line of duty, assault on a photographer, insulting a public servant, and for attacking an official who was discharging his legal duty. The charges related to his role in a protest against Israeli government policy, and was considered controversial mainly by those who were opposed to such protests.
Election results
Leaders
* Meir Vilner chairman (1976–1992)
* Tawfiq Ziad chairman (1992–1994)
* Saleh Saleem chairman (1996–1999)
* Tawfik Toubi, secretary-general (1989–1993)
* Mohammad Barakeh, secretary-general (1993–1999), chairman (1999–2015)
* Ayman Odeh, secretary-general (2006–present), chairman (2015–present)
Notes
References
Further reading
*
*
*
*
External links
Official website
Hadash
Knesset website
{{Authority control
1977 establishments in Israel
Communist parties in Israel
Marxist parties in Israel
Political parties established in 1977
Political party alliances in Israel
Socialist parties in Israel
Words and phrases in Modern Hebrew