Civil-military reform bill OK'd
Ministerial Legislative Committee okays Steinitz Law, which requires senior military and police officers to wait two years after leaving service to start political career; Knesset Member Yuval Steinitz (Likud): 'This will slow down politicization of army'
JERUSALEM – The generals will have to be patient: The government's Ministerial Legislative Committee approves, with a number of changes, a bill that if made law would prevent a major or lieutenant general from retiring from the service and immediately getting a government seat.
Now, military heroes will have to wait at least two years before running for Knesset or prime minister - a concession to the military as the original bill required a four-year cool-off period for generals before running for prime minister.
The committee also banned equivalent police ranks from jumping right into politics.
Responses
"I am very happy about the committee's decision," Knesset Member Yuval Steinitz (Likud) said. "A two-year cooling off period is a blessing to Israeli democracy, on the one hand, and a blessing to the IDF, on the other hand, because it stops, or at least slows down the politicization of the senior officer ranks in the military and security services."
Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, by contrast, felt that the waiting period was too long.
