Commentator Blames 'Elite Hegemony' for Shas Party's Decline
Translated & summarized from Ice by baba
Commentator Avishai Ben-Chaim claims the decline of the Shas party and its chairman Arie Deri's potential resignation are the result of a deliberate campaign by an "elite hegemony." He argues this campaign has systematically dismantled the Mizrahi political movement, citing historical persecution and Deri's personal struggles. Ben-Chaim believes this effort has transformed Shas from a cultural revival movement into a "criminal event."
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Commentator Avishai Ben-Chaim blames an "elite hegemony" for the decline of the Shas party.
- Ben-Chaim argues Shas's struggles are the result of a deliberate, long-term campaign.
- He describes the situation as a "Mizrahi awakening" being dismantled.
- Ben-Chaim highlights Arie Deri's personal sacrifices and leadership role.
- The commentator criticizes public discourse for blaming the Mizrahi community.
- He asserts Shas's cultural revival movement has been turned into a "criminal event."
Commentator Avishai Ben-Chaim has launched a sharp critique of the political and media discourse surrounding the recent electoral struggles of the Shas party and its chairman Arie Deri's potential resignation. Ben-Chaim argues that the party's decline is not merely due to internal failures but is the culmination of a deliberate effort to dismantle the "Mizrahi (Eastern) awakening" represented by Shas.
He asserted that any serious discussion of Shas's historical disintegration must acknowledge the "longstanding, violent, unfair, and prejudiced hegemonic persecution" against the movement founded by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef. Ben-Chaim described this as a direct attack on Rabbi Yosef's effort to restore Sephardic Jewry's prominence and on Deri, whom he called the most talented Mizrahi political leader in Israeli history.
Ben-Chaim highlighted Deri's personal sacrifices, noting that Rabbi Yosef appointed him to leadership at age 24. He stated that Deri's success in mobilizing Mizrahi voters led to his imprisonment and subsequent weakening. Ben-Chaim criticized the public discourse that places blame solely on the party and the Mizrahi community, arguing that the "hegemony" actively shapes their history and struggles.
Concluding his remarks, Ben-Chaim declared that this "hegemony" systematically destroyed Shas through persistent effort and "contemptuous anti-Mizrahi stereotyping." He believes it transformed Rabbi Yosef's cultural and social revival movement into a "criminal event," gradually draining it of its vitality.
