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HomeRead, Watch, ListenIsrael
OpinionIsraelWorld

We must speak out for a democratic, fair, peace-seeking Israel 

Speaking up for democracy, fairness, and peace is not disloyalty, but strategy. It is essential for Diaspora Jews to join Israelis in speaking out.
Mick Davis
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Sir Mick Davis delivers the speech from which this article is excerpted at Melbourne Hebrew Congregation this week (Sharon Berger)

Sir Mick Davis delivers the speech from which this article is excerpted at Melbourne Hebrew Congregation this week (Sharon Berger)

Published: 26 November 2025

Last updated: 26 November 2025

Israel’s Declaration of Independence set out three foundational commitments for the Jewish state: mature liberal democracy, fairness for all citizens, and the pursuit of secure peace. 

These are not "left" or "right" ideas but core Zionist values. They define the Israel we love and defend. They are also interdependent: corrode one and the others weaken. Strengthen one and the others are reinforced. This is not ideology: it is systems-thinking—and it is borne out by data.  

I want to make a sober, data-grounded case that speaking up for democracy ,fairness and peace - is not disloyalty. It is strategy. And it is the only strategy that can keep Israel safe and the Jewish people strong.

Against silence 

There are three concerns I hear in every diaspora community, including this one:  

  • Concern 1: Public criticism shows lack of unity. 

Unity does not mean unanimity. It never has. Jewish unity has always   meant argument for the sake of heaven and action for the sake of people. Criticism is not betrayal; it’s essential for effective governance. We are one   people, not one opinion. Israel and the Jewish people are not weakened   because Jews insist on strategy and standards. They are weakened when   we replace strategy with shallow slogans and allow drift to become   doctrine.  

  • Concern 2: Criticism empowers our enemies. 

Silence about Israel's current direction is more dangerous than speaking up.   Silence gives permission for trends and policies that weaken Israel's deterrence, corrode democratic resilience, and accelerate international isolation. 

Our enemies don’t get to define the boundaries of the Jewish conversation. We do. If we speak with love, with facts, and with Jewish values, we strengthen— not weaken—our case.  

Antisemites will always hate Jews and the idea of a Jewish state and have their own language and narrative. And nothing we say will add or detract from their causeless hate. Put them out of your mind, they merit no consideration other than making sure you and your community are safe.  

  • Concern 3: Peace with Palestinians is impossible.  

Scepticism is not foolish. It is the residue of pain. But even after October 7th, 55% of Israeli Jews still prefer peace over perpetual conflict. That’s not naivety – it’s strategic realism. Security and peace are interconnected, not mutually exclusive. You cannot kill an idea with a drone. Force can buy time. But only a political horizon can make time work for us. Most of Israel’s senior retired security leaders are adamant that peace is the ultimate security.  

We must also be candid about Israel’s international standing and why it’s important. Israel is facing an unprecedented diplomatic crisis, particularly among Western allies. The seeds of isolation were planted years ago by enemies of Israel and the Jewish people and are now sprouting uncontrollably. Antipathy to the Israeli government’s direction of travel is now mainstream. 

Three data points that keep me awake at night 

US favourability toward Israel has fallen to 57% — the lowest in two decades. Among young adults it’s catastrophic: from 64% favourable in 2023 to 38% in early 2024. 

In the UK sympathy for Palestinians is 2.5 times greater than for Israelis, and this is mirrored across the European Union.  

In Australia, 45%, today, support recognition of Palestinian statehood versus 35% in May 2024.In the 18 to 34 age demographic, that level of support is 57%. 

Our enemies exploit this, of course, and they do not distinguish between criticism of a policy and the denial of a people's right to exist. But we shouldn’t confuse the two or silence ourselves. 

We should speak with absolute clarity for Israel's right to exist and defend itself—and with equal clarity demand an Israel that is true to its founding promises. That is how we keep friends. That is how we keep our children. 

Democracy 

Where should we be? 

Israel's founders understood that sovereignty without the rule of law is power without purpose. Mature liberal democracy means independent courts, free media, political competition without intimidation, minority rights, and the equal protection of law for all citizens. It is what makes our might moral—and our moral purpose sustainable. 

Shikma Bressler, an Israeli physicist and one of the leaders of the protest against the government's judicial overhaul, addresses Israeli anti-government protesters during a pro-democracy demonstration (JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)
Shikma Bressler, an Israeli physicist and one of the leaders of the protest against the government's judicial overhaul, addresses Israeli anti-government protesters during a pro-democracy demonstration (JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Where are we going wrong? 

Under this Israeli government these fundamental aspects of democracy have been under attack.  

Israel’s status as a liberal democracy was downgraded by V-Dem in 2023 for the first time in over 50 years because of this government’s judicial "coup" against these checks and balances.  

Most Israelis know something is deeply   wrong: in 2024, 60% of Israelis said democracy is in danger—the highest a decade. Among Jewish Israeli voters, that fear spans the spectrum: 94% on the left, 71% in the centre, and 38% on the right. This is not a partisan worry; it's a national alarm. 

Press freedom is also under sustained pressure. Israel now ranks 112th out of 180 on the press freedom index – down 11 places in a year. For context that is lower than Zimbabwe and one place behind Haiti. An intimidated press leads to a vulnerable public square.  

But even more concerning is the bias: recent analysis showed only 3% of sampled war coverage mentioned the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Palestinian voices, including Arab citizens of Israel who make up 20% of the population, were virtually ghosted – appearing in just 0.8% of the items sampled. That is not journalism. That is erasure.  

Polarisation is being stoked deliberately. The Overton window—the range of ideas considered "acceptable"—has shifted sharply. It is now more acceptable for a minister to talk casually about "voluntary relocation" of Gazans than for an opposition leader to assert that secure peace is in Israel's strategic interest.  

But civil society, that diaspora Jewry has helped build, shows resilience. The democratic muscle memory is strong, even as the ligaments are strained.  

What’s the occupation got to do with it? 

Long-term rule over another people without its consent demands a regime   of control. You cannot sustain one legal order in Tel Aviv and another in Hebron without corroding both the rule of law and the belief that law binds   everyone equally. What happens on the other side of the Green Line does not stay there. It seeps back across the line into Israel’s politics, policing and public life. 

Fairness 

Where should we be? 

Fairness is not a garnish, but a core ingredient. A society that does not deliver basic fairness—shared burdens, shared opportunities, equal protection—loses cohesion and, with it, resilience.  

An elderly beggar at the Damascus Gate entry to Jerusalem's Old City (FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)
An elderly beggar at the Damascus Gate entry to Jerusalem's Old City (FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

Where are we going wrong? 

One number tells the story: 28% of Israeli children live in poverty - the highest rate in the OECD. And Israel is the most expensive country in the OECD. That is not just unjust. It is unsustainable.  

The murder crisis in Arab society is a national disgrace. In 2024, Arab citizens of Israel were 21 times more likely to be murdered than Jewish citizens—up from 11 times in 2022. This is not just a policing failure; it is a moral failure and a strategic one. A state that does not protect all its citizens equally is weaker.  

What’s the occupation got to do with it? 

Permanent occupation diverts budgets and political capital from fairness at home to management abroad. A state that subsidises West bank housing while children live in poverty and fear, creates bigger problems than it solves. 

 Over time, corrosion in one corner spreads through the structure. And methods used to impose order on another people are eventually turned on your own 

Peace 

Where should we be?  

Security first, last and always. But security requires a political horizon to reduce daily friction, strengthen legitimate partners, strengthen partnerships, isolate Iran, and starve all extremists of oxygen. A horizon is not a concession; it is a force multiplier. 

Israeli, Palestinian, and Jordanian mayors jump into the Jordan River in 2010, to promote river rehabilitation (EcoPeace)
Israeli, Palestinian, and Jordanian mayors jump into the Jordan River in 2010, to promote river rehabilitation (EcoPeace)

Where are we going wrong?  

The confidence gap has widened into a chasm. Israelis still prefer negotiations in principle, but the belief that peace is achievable has collapsed. In 2013, half of Jewish Israeli adults thought a two-state solution was feasible; by 2025, only 21% do. Hope has been replaced by exhaustion. 

Coexistence within Israel is also frayed. Only one in five Israeli Jews believes   peaceful coexistence is possible today; among Arab citizens, it's one in two. That gulf is combustible.  

The settlement project keeps growing - nearly 512,000 Israeli citizens now   live in the West Bank, with more than 250 outposts. Facts on the ground have been steadily converting a supposed temporary occupation into a permanent problem. A majority of Israeli Jewish adults believe settlements help security—even though Israel's senior security alumni have, for years, warned it is the polar opposite 

The debate is stuck in the language of short-term tactics, not long-term strategy. While support for a two-state solution has declined – and quite sharply since October 7th- Israelis are supportive of regional agreements. 

Security and peace are interconnected – not mutually exclusive. But throughout the Gaza campaign extremists within Israel’s government   pushed an agenda of reoccupation and boasted of plans to put a final nail in   the coffin of a two-state solution and the hope of a secure peace for all Israelis and Palestinians living between the river and the sea. 

What’s the occupation got to do with it? 

Occupation corrodes not only us but also our options. It entrenches a daily reality that humiliates many Palestinians, hardens Israelis, feeds maximalists on both sides, starves moderates and isolates Israel from the   community of nations—and, dangerously, from many of our own young people. 

A diaspora-Israeli partnership for change 

In the UK, 78% of Jews feel attached to Israel, but 80% disapprove of Netanyahu's leadership. In the US, over 80% of Jews across generations feel favourably toward the Israeli people, but only around half feel favourably toward the Israeli government. Attachment remains strong. Frustration with illiberalism is strong.  

We are deeply connected to Israel—and we all want her to live up to her best self. We have agency. We are not powerless, and we are not without influence and diaspora Jewry are the natural partners of Israel.  

Partnership means speaking when speaking is hard. Partnership means acting when action is costly. Partnership means leading when leadership is lonely:  

I propose we:  

  • end the institutional silence. Every major Jewish organisation should publicly affirm Israel's Declaration of Independence. When the core values of that Declaration come under attack, silence is not neutrality; it is complicity. Silence isn’t solidarity – its surrender. 
  • oppose annexation unequivocally. Annexation is anti-Zionist: it endangers Israel as a Jewish and democratic state.  
  • invest in the triangle of democracy, fairness and peace. Fund organisations defending democracy, expanding civic equality, and keeping the peace horizon alive.  

We do not accept the false binary that says, "support or silence." We choose a third way: loyal honesty.  

Since October 7, our people have been traumatised, first by the attack on our Israeli brothers and sisters, and then by the international reactions to it, and the deluge of antisemitism that has hit us around the world, including here. Many of us have felt pulled between our love for Israel and our fears about its direction.  

We can and must hold both: that’s not weakness, but wisdom.

We can be relentless against terror and generous toward peace. We can be loyal to Israel and honest with its leaders. We can be proud of the IDF and protective of the rule of law. We can insist on Jewish self-determination and defend equality for Israel's Arab citizens. We can protect our Jewish homeland and accept a Palestinian state. 

The future of Israel and the Jewish people hang in the balance. And the balance tips with our choices, our voices and our courage.

This article is an excerpted from a speech delivered by Sir Mick to Australian audiences at The Jewish Independent's events Israel: It's Time to Dream Again.  Read the full speech here.

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About the author

Mick Davis

Mick Davis

Sir Mick Davis is a former Chief Executive of the UK Conservative Party, a former chairman of the UK Jewish Leadership Council and UJIA, and an international businessman and philanthropist. Together with Mike Prashker, he is the founder of The London Initiative for a democratcy, fairness and secure peace in Israel.

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