Committee debates suspending former MK's pension benefits.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFbishara(photo credit: DR)
Former MK Dr. Azmi Bishara (Balad) was reported on Sunday to have arrived Saturday night in Libya for a meeting with Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.The two were said to have discussed issues pertaining to the Arab world and the Palestinian struggle.While Bishara was reportedly in Libya, the Knesset’s Ministerial Committee for Legislation approved a bill on Sunday that would suspend his government pension benefits.The proposed bill will suspend any pension or salary payments normally due to Knesset members if they are under investigation or indicted for a felony, punishable by five years imprisonment or more, committed during their tenure, and they seek to evade justice by refusing to appear before a court or investigators.Knesset and former Knesset members’ payments would only be reinstated upon their appearance in court or compliance with the investigator’s requests.The passing of the bill, commonly known as the “Bishara Law,” would strip former MK Bishara (Balad) of the pension payments he currently receives while living outside Israel.Bishara was under investigation for allegedly aiding Hizbullah while serving as an Israeli MK when he fled the country in 2007.The bill was sponsored by MK Yariv Levin (Likud) and MK Yisrael Hasson (Kadima).“I want to end this situation where betraying the State of Israel has become a profitable business that supports the traitor Bishara to the tune of thousands of shekels a month,” said Levin.The bill will now have to be brought to a vote in front of the entire Knesset before it can become law.
