"Unless the social protest receives a fair deal, it is liable to revive more radically, because this problem must be solved," Osem Investments Ltd. (TASE: OSEM) chairman Dan Propper told "Globes". "It's like a boiler; unless the steam is released, it will explode."
Propper said, "We saw a mass movement by hundreds of thousands of people who are hurting. If they wounds are not cured, they will worsen, and things could become much more extreme. People won't be satisfied with tends and quiet protests."
"Globes": Could violence erupt?
Propper: "I hope not."
Propper supports the Trajtenberg committee recommendations, saying, "Trajtenberg's responses are fair. Taxes on the rich should be raised, while taking care of the middle classes and the poor. There are other things in the Trajtenberg report, and if they are handled properly and truly, matters will calm down."
Earlier today, tent protest leader Dafni Leef, on her Facebook page, thanked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for "forcing my friends to leave the country" and fired barbs at Minister of Finance Yuval Steinitz for bringing "economic ruin".
As for Leef, Propper said, "Dafni Leef led a real movement, but regrettably she lost her way and spoke harshly against Trajtenberg and was disrespectful of the prime minister. She will be remembered as the one of the people who launched the protest, but not as one of its winners. She missed the protest. If people stop remembering her name, she'll be forgotten."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on December 6, 2011
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2011