Laundering human capital: The reckless amnesty bills and their debasement of the Torah - opinion

Two proposed bills in the Israeli Knesset are facing intense criticism for potentially allowing students of Torah study to receive exemptions from military service. Critics argue these bills, presented under the guise of protecting religious education, are a "reckless legislative blitz" designed to circumvent conscription laws and institutionalize an exemption for the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) sector.

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put your children in the right societal uniform – white shirt, black pants – and they will have in their hands an instant, legal, institutionalized, fast-tracked exemption from military duty and from the call to arms. It’s that easy.

The legislation includes a Basic Law: Torah Study and a Law of Exemption from Arrests. Opponents view these as "two heads of the same dragon" threatening to weaken the nation's army. The Women Partnership in Service forum, comprised of women from Religious Zionist backgrounds, is actively working to enlist public support against these bills. They highlight the "screaming injustice" of a significant portion of eligible draftees exempting themselves through a "cold, cynical, and supposedly sacred invocation of the Torah."

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These are two heads of the same dragon, and that dragon threatens to devour the nation’s army.

These women, whose own loved ones are serving in the military, express despair at watching legislation that would permanently release Haredi society from shared defense duties. They emphasize that the non-conscription of tens of thousands of young men is no longer just a political dispute but a "direct blow to the country’s national security that endangers our very existence here." The forum argues that the burden on those who serve is already crushing and shows no sign of easing, with every indication of worsening.

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We see a screaming injustice: an entire sector, now roughly a quarter of everyone eligible for the draft, has exempted itself wholesale from the duty of defending the homeland. It does so through a cold, cynical, and supposedly sacred invocation of the Torah.

The proposed Basic Law: Torah Study is seen as a constitutional anchor for this perceived disgrace, aiming to establish "Torah study as a foundational constitutional value." However, critics contend that this law debases the Torah itself by using it to justify exemption from national duty, thereby creating a societal division and undermining the principle of shared sacrifice in defending the homeland.

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The non-conscription of these tens of thousands of young men is no longer a political question or a dispute between communities. It is a direct blow to the country’s national security that endangers our very existence here.