Herbert M. Singer Conference
Local Authorities and Central Government
and the Dynamics of War: A Changing Landscape?
Tuesday | February 20 | Shalva Center, Jerusalem
The Taub Center held its thirteenth annual conference in February. The topic this year was local authorities in Israel. The conference’s opening remarks were delivered by Colonel (Ret.) Miri Eisin, Vice Chairperson for Governance and Administration of the Taub Center Board of Directors and incoming Board Chair, who related to the importance of the local authorities. Eisin said that in light of the security failure on October 7th, it is important to point to the quick response of the local authorities.
This was followed by remarks by Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog who spoke about the relationship between the central and local governments and thanked the Center and its staff for holding the conference, particularly in view of the ongoing war, and for the important work that it continues to produce.
Opening remarks were concluded by Prof. Avi Weiss, President of the Taub Center, who spoke about the relationship between the central and local governments and the local government’s level of autonomy. Prof. Weiss quoted from an international study on the autonomy of local government and showed that autonomy is much more limited in Israel than in other countries.
The opening lecture was given by Mordechai Cohen, a senior fellow at the Institute for Israeli Thought and former Director General of the Ministry of the Interior. In his talk, entitled From a Problem to a Solution: The Structural Change Needed in Local Government, Cohen said that although local government has weakened over time, it is nonetheless run responsibly. In his opinion, the government of Israel is highly centralized. Even prior to the war, there were struggles for power and control. He claimed that the government also maintains total control of the Knesset. “Good morning, citizens of Israel. We have no Knesset. The Knesset is completely controlled by the government. The Knesset functions as the operational arm of the government. It didn’t happen overnight. It is the result of a process.” In this context, he mentioned the importance of local government in the dispersion of power and its significant role in Israeli democracy. He added that the separation of local government from national politics and its loose connection to the national parties is to the benefit of the local authorities and reduces the control by the national political parties. Cohen also complimented the local authorities on their role after October 7th, and particularly during the first few weeks when, in his opinion, the government did not function properly.
Watch the opening remarks and lecture with English subtitles:
The first session, entitled “The Relationship Between the Central Government and Local Authorities in Israel,” was moderated by Dr. Nir Barak from the Department of Politics and Government at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Participating in this session were Shlomo Dolberg, Director General of the Federation of Local Authorities; Shira Ohana, Director of the Hura Local Council; Anna Lerner-Zchut, Senior Director of the Strategic Planning Unit in the Ministry of the Interior; and Roten Yadlin, the head of the Gezer Regional Council.
Dr. Nir Barak noted that the local authorities played a critical role in the care of families who were displaced from their homes on October 7th and joined the previous speakers in praising the functioning of the local government, which filled the vacuum left by the central government in the first few weeks of the war. He presented data from a survey by the Israel Democracy Institute that public confidence in the Knesset and the government was at a low following the efforts to institute judicial reform, while its confidence in local government was at a high, which continues to be the case as the war continues.
Rotem Yadlin spoke from her experience with the relationship between the central and local governments: “The central government has not only weakened the local authorities, it also has its hand in their pockets.” She claimed that all the evidence points to a desire by the government to weaken the local authorities, and she called on all citizens to vote in the upcoming local elections.
Shlomo Dolberg spoke about milestones in the relationship between local authorities and the central government, from the establishment of the State until today. These include the Corona pandemic, the government’s decision to establish a committee to formulate recommendations for the transfer of government powers to local authorities, the enactment of the Arnona Fund Law, and others. He noted that Israel is ranked last among all OECD countries in terms of protecting local government and regulating its status vis-à-vis the central government.
Anna Lerner-Zchut views the relationship between the central government and local authorities not only as a system of decentralization and delegation of power but also as one of cooperation, trust, and consultation. She talked about efforts by the Ministry of the Interior to mediate between the central government and local authorities in the Northern District in order to optimize service to residents during times of security tension.
Shira Ohana said that the government neglects governance in the Negev and noted that: “There are about 30,000 residents in Hura, but there is no police station. This is in spite of the fact that certain ministers were elected specifically on the issue of governance in the Negev.”
Watch the first session with English subtitles:
The second session of the conference dealt with the topic of “Welfare in a Time of War” and began with remarks from Nir Kedar, the Director General of the Taub Center. He spoke about his familiarity with the welfare system, and mentioned that despite the stigma attached to the welfare system and its service recipients, in recent months it has been one of the most functional and impactful systems. He described the important services and solutions it provides during wartime: care for evacuees, support for families of the abducted, coordination with other ministries, etc., particularly in a challenging period of displaced residents and closed education institutions.
Participating In this session were Sharon Melamed, the Director of the Social Services Administration in the Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality; Etti Kisos, Deputy Director of the Social and Personal Services Administration in the Ministry of Welfare and Social Security; Saliman Al-Amur, co-Director of the Ajik Organization – Negev Institute; and Tehila Ravivo, Director of the Department for Social Services in the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council.
Sharon Melamed explained that the Social Services Administration in the Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality had not been prepared to deal with the absorption of evacuees, and it had never occurred to them that they would need to house evacuees in hotels and manage an absorption center for evacuees. She however added that, “We understood that in view of the severity of the crisis and the traumatic experience the evacuees underwent, we would constitute the front line in providing assistance.”
Tehila Ravivo, a resident of Kfar Aza, described the challenges encountered on the morning of October 7th and the actions of the regional council in the days that followed: “The Sha’ar Hanegev community was dispersed throughout the country, and we had to continue functioning. We allocated vehicles to all council employees and traveled to every location, never stopping for a moment. This is a commitment that existed even before October 7th; the regional council has been dealing with this reality for twenty years.”
Saliman Al-Amur talked about the Bedouin community, which is eager to improve its conditions, in both recognized and unrecognized settlements. He argued that the State must address the issue of unrecognized settlements: “There is a lack of concern for these settlements and the infrastructure there does not meet basic human needs, especially in the year 2024.”
Etti Kisos spoke about the Ministry of Welfare’s working relations with local authorities and the efficiency of Ministry of Welfare employees and social workers in the early morning hours of October 7th: “Our functions changed as the crisis unfolded. We had to take on roles that no social worker has ever been trained for – supporting families of the abducted, the missing, and the abducted who were later released, and preparing for the return of the abductees.” All of this had to be organized on the spot, without any experience or knowhow regarding how to deal with abducted civilians.
Watch the second session with English subtitles:
The third and final session dealt with the topic of “Rehabilitation and Development of the Gaza Envelope.” It was chaired by Sigal Moran, former head of the Bnei Shimon Regional Council and Director of the Ministry of Welfare and Social Security. Participants included Lior Niski, head of the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council; Uri Pinto, Director of the Western Negev Municipalities Group; Becky Kaspi, Senior Vice President and Director of JFNA Israel; and Ido Zolti, Director of Welfare and Social Services in the Sderot Municipality.
Lior Niski spoke about the residents’ loss of trust in local councils when there was no response from security and rescue forces on the morning of October 7th. He added that, in his opinion, every local council in the area has turned inward since that morning, leading to a situation of “divide and conquer” among the local authorities.
Ido Zolti commented on the cooperation with absorbing local authorities: “The evacuees from Sderot were scattered among 38 local authorities across the country, and despite the challenge of working simultaneously with all of them, we encountered enormous solidarity – they were all very cooperative.”
Sigal Moran said that the challenges being dealt with by residents and local authorities are changing, but are not becoming any simpler. She illustrated the difficulty in making decisions during the current period: “Kibbutz Ruchama is not ready to send children to the education complex near Sderot because of the danger, while the local authority, on the other hand, wants to bring them back.”
Becky Kaspi talked about the importance of solidarity and community, the mobilization of the Jewish community in the Diaspora on behalf of Israel, and the deep sense of partnership. She also emphasized that we should not forget that these are difficult times for Diaspora Jewry as well.
Watch the third session with English subtitles:
For speakers bios, click here