Former Director-General of the Yesha Council, Omer Rahamim, warns against the weakening of the right-wing camp and its values through the exploitation of concepts such as "mamlachtiut", unity, and love of Israel.
In a lecture before the Sovereignty Youth Movement, Omer Rahamim, formerly Director-General of the Yesha Council, addressed the price the right-wing camp pays for unity and statesmanship (mamlachtiut)— a price that is reflected in its repeated inability to advance its worldview and positions in the name of maintaining unity and acting “mamlachti” (responsibly as a state).
Rahamim presented the youth with examples of the media’s differing treatment of actions taken by the right compared with identical actions taken by the left. He pointed, for example, to the attitude toward statements made by Shin Bet chiefs: statements receive media support as long as they promote a left-wing worldview, but are met with criticism and contempt when they come from a religious, kippah-wearing Shin Bet chief. The same applies, he said, to the civil service: officials are considered beyond criticism as long as they preserve left-wing positions, but face harsh criticism when those same public positions are filled by right-wing or religious individuals.
According to Rahamim, while the right sanctifies the concept of statesmanship because it views the State of Israel itself as a profoundly important religious value, the other side views this approach as merely a one-sided obligation imposed on the right.
In his lecture, Rahamim discussed the rebranding of outposts as “young settlements” — a move that was identified by the newspaper Haaretz as an effective public-relations strategy that needed to be opposed, because the terms “young” and “new” carry positive associations among the public, while the term “outpost” had successfully been branded by the left as negative. That branding campaign proved effective, and by the end of the current government’s term, almost all of the young settlements had become fully legal and regulated communities.
Branding, he explained, can completely transform public attitudes toward an issue. Thus, blocking roads as part of a left-wing protest can receive public legitimacy, while similar actions during protests against the uprooting of Gush Katif were denied such legitimacy. In Rahamim’s view, this represents a theft of democracy through exploitation of the religious camp’s commitment to statesmanship.
In this spirit, the word “unity” has become the new “joker card,” in Rahamim’s words. He believes that in practice — as proven both on the battlefield and in Israeli society — there is genuine unity among all parts of Israeli society. However, he argues that one cannot accept a reality in which, in the name of unity, some attempt to weaken the right’s ability to advance its ideological positions.
In his remarks, he analyzed the various systems that influence public opinion, including the media, the legal system, culture, and others. According to him, many of these systems are led by left-wing figures who know very well how to promote their own people and neutralize their opponents. One of the tools they use is raising the banner of unity — a banner under which the right is expected to fold its ideological flags. “When people keep talking about unity, they weaken our ability to do anything meaningful,” he warned.
Rahamim emphasized that left-wing positions advocating the establishment of a Palestinian state are legitimate positions, even if he considers them unrealistic and disconnected from reality. However, he argued that left-wing movements know these positions do not enjoy public legitimacy, and that openly declaring them would lead to a 90-seat majority for the right. Therefore, he claimed, these positions are concealed behind the concept of “unity.”
The role of the right, Rahamim said, is to become far stronger in its public advocacy and in planning the steps needed to implement its worldview. In this spirit, he himself worked together with the leaders of the Sovereignty Movement, Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar, in the Knesset in order to advance a declarative vote in which an overwhelming majority of Knesset members would support applying Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.
Rahamim stressed that making a decision does not mean disrespect or lack of love toward the other side — and certainly does not contradict unity. A decision is the way by which policy is determined in the Knesset and government. He described the idea of a “politics of hospitality” promoted by the Fourth Quarter Movement as, at best, naïve politics, and at worst, a cover for left-wing agendas.
Such a policy, he argued, portrays right-wing decisions as actions that contradict unity and lead to the breaking apart of the nation, while left-wing decisions are viewed as legitimate and reasonable.
According to Rahamim, embedding this perception within Israeli society, together with portraying Israeli reality as hopeless and despairing, is intended to cause right-wing voters to lose motivation to go to the polls and influence the future.
Regarding the current government term, Omer Rahamim stated that this is the first time the right has moved from defense to offense — the first time the right has begun leading on substantive issues and changing a worldview that previously led to many disasters.
The new reality, in which the right-wing camp has advanced and developed its positions and vision on the ground, is not irreversible. Things can continue moving forward or they can move backward — particularly, he warned, if Gadi Eisenkot forms a government relying on Arab parties, with Yair Golan serving as Defense Minister and dismantling the farms, while right-wing demonstrations are violently blocked.
Stopping this reversal, he said, can and must be achieved through the dedicated efforts of the entire camp. At this point, Rahamim focused on the role of youth, who can create a transformation within their immediate circles. This comes from the understanding and internalization that the right-wing camp stands with truth, Torah, and dedication.
Such public advocacy efforts can and should have a dramatic impact, potentially creating a real shift — even by moving half a Knesset mandate or one mandate toward supporting the continuation of national efforts in the next government term.
Rahamim also explained how, in practice, young people can and should approach the broader public and influence others precisely from their own perspective as teenagers. Even if conversations develop into arguments, there is no reason to be deterred. Debate does not harm love or unity within the nation.
“We are being poisoned by a toxin that causes destruction and weakens our ability to speak out,” Rahamim warned repeatedly. “In the generation of redemption, we stand tall and proudly say what we believe.”