Splitting Bet Shemesh...
Bad idea? Good idea? Gonna happen? Never gonna happen?
The idea and demand to split Bet Shemesh into two separate cities, one general and the second Haredi, has been around for a number of years - well before the recent elections.
The movement never really took off, and truthfully I don't know all the history behind it. The Minister of Interior has rejected it in the past, and the movement never really picked up any steam. Every so often the idea would be floated again, and then would die out, or go silent for a while until the next time. There was even a time when the local haredi askanim tried to promote the idea, when they thought Dani Vaknin was slighting them in the allocation of municipal resources.
As a result of the recent elections, and even partially in the lead-up to the elections, the idea for splitting Bet Shemesh has been raised again.. and this time it is picking up momentum like it never did before.
Personally I am against the idea.
You cannot just decide to split a city because you do not like your new neighbor. Cities, unlike villages/moshavim/yishuvim are not homogeneous - cities, especially large cities, have very diverse sectors living within. Yes, each community has its needs and priorities, and the municipal government has to find the way to use its resources as evenly and "fairly" as possible to provide as much as possible for all the various sectors.
If you don't like your neighbor and can't figure out how to live in the same city, move.
The city, if the split would theoretically be approved, would be divided somehow between the newer [more-] haredi neighborhoods and the older non-haredi neighborhoods. Besides for the main complication in such a division - the actual city lines - city resources would need to be divided, such as industrial zones, land for future construction, public buildings, etc.
And then, let's say all that can be worked out, what happens then? Will haredim not be allowed to buy homes in Bet Shemesh? What is stopping the same situation from happening again in another few years? Would non-haredim not be allowed to buy homes in Bet Shemesh Ilit (aka Ramat Bet Shemesh)?
People need to learn to live together, and understand and accept the needs of each others communities.
The city needs to provide yeshivot, shuls, mikvaot, and other items for the religious sectors, just as it needs to provide cultural centers, sports facilities, entertainment venues, and other items for the non-religious sectors. I would even say there is a cross of needs (religious need cultural events, and sports, and other things, just like non-religious need shuls and mikvaot, etc., but that's a different discussion). The religious sectors should not be preventing the non-religious from getting their needs provided, and the non-religious should not be preventing the religious from having their needs provided. The city should be providing for all of them equally, as per the resources available.
I suspect that this time the movement to split the city is going to pick up steam and not die out so quickly as it has done in the past. The local branch of the Likud has gotten behind it this time, though I don't know if it is in the form of an official Likud position or if it is just many members of the Likud pushing it. The Likud and its officers has shown itself to be one of the most effective forces in the city. Many of the accomplishments that have happened in the city have been the result of behind-the scenes action by local Likud members. With the leading Likud members behind the idea, it might just continue to gain momentum and become a real issue. With the Likud holding the position of the Ministry of Interior, the local Likudniks hold a lot of sway in national government and could have a good chance of getting the idea taken seriously - if they can really keep the issue in the realm of the public discussion.
They are kicking off the campaign to split the city with a rally this Tuesday evening (6pm at "kikar ha'avatichim").
I am against it, but recently I have come to understand their position better, as I have spoken to more people promoting it. My biggest concern is that if they really get the momentum going, if they really gain traction, the level of hate, from both sides, the screaming, the accusations, the strife, will increase and become unbearable.
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