Knesset House Committee chairman and Coalition Whip MK Ofir Katz refused on Tuesday to approve a request by the Labor Party to officially change its name in the current Knesset to “The Democrats,” forcing faction chairwoman MK Efrat Rayten to rescind the request to avoid a vote.
After Yair Golan won the Labor Party leadership primaries last year, he decided to change the party’s name following its political merger with Meretz to “The Democrats.” However, in the Knesset, the faction is still officially referred to by the name of the party that ran in the last elections.
“Those who attempt to overthrow a duly elected government through violence, calls for rebellion, and a siege on the Knesset are anything but democrats,” Katz said.
“Yair Golan is misreading the situation if he thinks we will approve this request. I suggest you change your name to ‘The Anarchists’ – that we will gladly approve,” he added.
About a week ago, Rayten submitted an official request to the Knesset House Committee to change the faction’s name to “The Democrats” – a step considered technical and an internal party matter. Nevertheless, the coalition decided to reject it.
'Dictatorship at its finest'
The rejection sparked uproar in the committee, and Rayten, who insisted on speaking and demanding approval of the request, was removed from the discussion by Katz.
Before her removal, Rayten said: “I am the faction chairwoman, and this discussion is at my request to change my faction’s name. I will not stand for this disgrace. You will not interfere in this. This is dictatorship at its worst.”
The committee’s legal adviser said that a party’s name was a part of its freedom of expression and that the only legal way to block the name is if it is blatantly misleading.