Israel’s Knesset Speaker Avraham Burg and Defense Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer - the only two contenders for the Labor Party leadership so far - took their showdown to a party conference in Haifa on Friday.
At the event, Burg suggested that Ben-Eliezer had ignored social issues, and the defense minister's supporters pointed to Burg's lack of experience, reported Haaretz.
While Ben-Eliezer, who trails Burg badly in opinion polls ahead of the September 4 leadership primary, called for a clean campaign, his supporters handed out stickers with the message: "We have had enough experiences with prime ministers with no experience" - a reference to the fact that Burg has not held any top government positions, said the agency.
Burg sniped at Ben-Eliezer from the podium, saying that unlike the defense minister, he (Burg) had never been a member of another party - a reference to the fact that Ben-Eliezer had previously been a member of two small and now defunct parties.
Burg also attacked those Laborites who had served in the government of former prime minister Ehud Barak, charging them with ignoring the socio-economic needs of the country. This, he said, included the "minister responsible for housing" - a clear reference to Ben-Eliezer, who served for a period as housing and construction minister in the Barak government.
Burg did add, however, that if he became party leader, he would ensure that Ben-Eliezer played a senior role in the Labor leadership. He also said he would support the appointment of Foreign Minister Shimon Peres as party president.
The two men also referred to the current security situation.
"Israel is continuing the ceasefire, despite the hardships, and is extending its hand for peace," Ben-Eliezer said, adding that 26 Israelis had already been killed since Prime Minister Ariel Sharon declared a unilateral ceasefire on May 22, described by Palestinians as “a propaganda ploy.”
"We continue to tell our neighbors that we do not believe that mortars and tanks can achieve a peace agreement" he said. "Such an agreement will be achieved around a negotiating table, when the two sides sit together and talk."
Ben-Eliezer added that the Labor Party would not be able to return to power if it did not reach out to the unemployed, to new immigrants and to Israel’s Arabs. He was heckled by party members, who demanded to know what the party’s representatives were doing about this while they were in office.
Burg said that the peace camp was correct in its belief that the situation of one people occupying another people could not continue. But he said that the end of the occupation did not mean there would automatically be peace.
Referring to the right wing, Burg suggested that since winning the February 6 election, it had "also learned something - that force does not solve the problem." – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
