The Central District Court last weekend discussed a petition filed by residents of Raanana against the municipality and its head, Haim Broida, and recommended that the petitioners withdraw their petition. The original petition was filed after the municipality published a new tender to operate a restaurant in the Sportek complex, requiring the restaurant to be open also on Shabbat (Saturdays) and Jewish holidays. Following the court's recommendation, attorney Uri Israel Paz, representing the petitioners, approached the municipality with a compromise, which included a proposal to leave the decision to open the restaurant on Saturdays up to the franchisee himself, so that he could choose whether to open or close on Saturdays without violating the terms of the tender. The municipality refused to accept the proposal and insisted that the restaurant open on Saturdays. The current operator, Liat Pinchasov, who has operated the place for the past seven years, refused to participate in the new tender due to the requirement to open on Shabbat. "It is very unfortunate to hear that here, in Israel, the franchisee's freedom of choice has been taken away from him and he is forced to work on Shabbat," said Orit Levy, one of the petitioners. "We are in a democratic country and by virtue of this, everyone has the right to choose whether to work on Shabbat or not. Even more unfortunate is that even after the compromise proposal, the municipality has not taken a single step forward. It is precisely in these times that I would expect the municipality to try to reach an agreement and not choose the path of quarreling and division."
