Issue No. 16, April 2009

In Brief

ACRI to Israel Railways: Setting Army Service as Employment Criteria is Illegal

In March, following a change in the employment criteria set by Israel Railways, which added previous army service as a requirement, the company dismissed 40 Arab railway guards. In an urgent appeal to the Railways CEO, ACRI criticized the discriminatory policy change and demanded it be rescinded. Attorney Dan Yakir, ACRI's Chief Legal Advisor, stated in the appeal that the Labor Court has in the past disqualified this criterion, as it discriminates against Arabs, ultra-Orthodox, and people with disabilities.

Concern Over Attorney-General's Rejection of Gaza Investigation Appeal

ACRI and fellow human rights organizations were alarmed by the Attorney-General's outright rejection of their appeal regarding the need to conduct an independent investigation of events that took place during Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip, where there is suspicion that armed forces violated provisions of international law. "The obligation to investigate and bring to trial is one of the cornerstones of compliance with the provisions of international law", the organizations wrote in a letter to A-G Mazuz. "In the absence of an appropriate investigation, the legal provisions designed to minimize the harm to and suffering of civilians are worthless, and the declarations about adherence, meaningless".

Demanding Heterogeneous Makeup for New Migration Committee

On February 26, ACRI and nearly two dozen partner organizations intervened with the Interior Minister, asking he review the makeup of the newly-founded Committee on Migration Policy in Israel. The committee's future recommendations are expected to shape new migration regulation. The organizations protested the homogeny of the committee makeup, whose members are mostly Jewish-Ashkenazy lawyers and academics. "A public committee, whose recommendations are expected to directly influence the human rights of many, must be able to represent a variety of groups in society", the organizations warned.

'Big Brother' Hearing: ACRI Joined by Bar Association and Press Council

On February 22, a panel of 7 Supreme Court judges held a hearing on ACRI's petition against the Communications Data Law (nicknames 'Big Brother Law'), which grants the police and other investigatory bodies a far-reaching license to receive private information from phone companies and Internet providers. In addition to ACRI, the Israel Bar Association and the Israel Press Council presented their arguments, concerned with the need to provide additional protection for the confidentiality of lawyers and journalists. The Court demanded the State provide detailed information concerning the circumstances in which police have so far used the "urgent cases" clause, which enables them to receive communications data without prior permission from a judge. The Court also demanded the State reveal an internal procedure of the police concerning communication data of journalists, lawyers, doctors, psychologists, and other professionals.

Interior Ministry Ends Discrimination at Beersheba Branch

In March, in response to an ACRI petition, the Interior Ministry abolished its discriminatory processing practices toward Arab status-seekers. ACRI had submitted a petition to the High Court of Justice against the existence of separate and discriminatory services at the offices of the Ministry of Interior in Beersheba. Arab status-seekers were sent to the department of minorities and their requests were handled in the security room (bomb shelter) of the office. All non-Arab status-seekers submitting similar applications met with Ministry clerks in the spacious hall of the visa department. The petition also protested the referral of all Arabs in the South of the country to the Beersheba office, solely because they are Arab.

Court Instructs Jerusalem Municipality To Halt Construction in East Jerusalem

On March 25, the District Court of Jerusalem ordered a halt to the construction taking place on the main roads of the Wadi Hilwa-Silwan neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. During the proceedings, ACRI Attorney Tali Nir, representing the local residents, argued that “the situation is particularly troubling because the offender is the Jerusalem Municipality, which enforces the planning and construction laws in order to demolish homes in East Jerusalem…It is unacceptable that when the Municipality wants to build, it is not bound by these same laws".

Job Ops: Development Associate

ACRI is currently seeking a full-time Development Associate for its growing International Relations and Development Department. The Development Associate, based in Tel Aviv, will be the key staff person responsible for writing reports and proposals to overseas donors on the broad range of human rights issues addressed by ACRI, and for researching and developing new sources of funding.

Those interested in applying for the above position are invited to send a CV and cover letter to Mirah Curzer at mirah@acri.org.il. Deadline for Applications: Monday 27th April, 2009. For further details click here.

ACRI's Public Hotline
ACRI operates a “Public Hotline” for consultation and information on rights entitlement: 02-6521218 (Jerusalem and the south), 03-5608185 (Tel Aviv, the Sharon area and the center of the country), and 04-8526333/4/5 (Haifa and the north of the country).

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© ACRI 2009
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel
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Israel

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A Message from Hagai El-Ad, ACRI's Executive Director

Dear friends,

A new Israeli government, sworn in March 31, has pledged to "weather the thunder storms" of the global economic crisis. However, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's past record of financial management leaves ACRI and other defenders of human rights concerned for the fate of the weakest segments of Israeli society at a time of financial instability, worried the government will fail in taking action to ensure each and every one - regardless of religion, nationality, gender, ethnicity, political affiliation, or socioeconomic strata - will weather the storm. ACRI's legal, advocacy, educational and public outreach efforts to promote social and economic rights, such as the rights to health, housing, employment, and education, and ensure that people can live their lives in dignity, have become even more necessary and relevant.

In a sign of the times, one of ACRI's long-time partners, Mehuyavut ('Commitment'), has run into financial difficulties. In an act of solidarity, and a deep sense of responsibility toward the causes and constituencies that Mehuyavut serves, ACRI has made the strategic decision to integrate a number of Mehuyavut's projects into the organization. As of last month, the personnel and resources of Mehuyavut's flagship project Center for the Rights of the Unemployed, as well as two community action groups, have been successfully absorbed into ACRI (one group in Yeruham, where Jewish residents are working to advance the rights of their neighbors in the unrecognized Bedouin village of Rakhme, and a second group in Kafr Kassem, where a group of black Arabs are working to eliminate racism from their community). At a time when increasing numbers of Israelis are finding it difficult to make ends meet, efforts to promote social justice and to challenge policies and practices that breed inequalities and societal tensions are more important than ever.

To learn more about ACRI's work in the past year, and the individuals we have empowered, I invite you to read our new 2008 Annual Report. Thank you for your steadfast support, and, as always, I welcome any questions or feedback you may have.

Happy Pessah,

Hagai El-Ad
Executive Director

Lifting the Veil of Secrecy: Challenging Classified Evidence in Court

ACRI continues persistently to address the widespread and growing use of secret evidence within the national security and counter-terrorism framework in the Israeli legal system. In many cases, these measures violate basic due process principles, allowing people to be detained, or their rights to be violated, on the basis of classified materials, challenging the administration of justice.

Over the past several years, the use of such measures has been called increasingly into question in many parts of the world, and the threat these measures pose to democratic principles once again features prominently in the public, political, and legal discourse of Western democracies. Recent jurisprudence (such as the UK’s House of Lords decision in November 2007) has served to curb policies allowing the use of secret evidence, and courts and legislatures are reconsidering some of the excesses of the post 9/11 period. In Israel, unfortunately, secret evidence is increasingly treated by decision makers – including judges – as a routine measure. The judiciary in Israel has largely failed to fulfill its critical role of acting as a counter balance to the State’s tendencies to secrecy - tendencies which are heightened during times of conflict and crisis - and develop procedural safeguards to prevent its misuse and the infringement of human rights that it entails.

On March 23, ACRI, together with The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel and Adalah: The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, took an unparalleled step and withdrew a principled petition they had submitted to the High Court of Justice, in protest of the Court's unprecedented resolution to base its decision on the constitutionality of the law on secret evidence presented by Israel's General Security Service (GSS) - in the absence of the petitioners.

The petitioning organizations argued that the Court's decision has no legal basis and is in contradiction to previous HCJ rulings concerning secret evidence. The petitioners pointed out that this decision sets a dangerous precedent concerning secret evidence, which significantly harms future possibilities for judicial review of laws that violate human rights.

ACRI Demands Land Administration Issue Clear Rules for Group Acquisitions to Guarantee Equality

On February 1, ACRI intervened with the Israel Land Administration demanding clear rules be set for groups competing in the administration's tenders, so as to ensure standards of equality are met and no discrimination applied.

In the intervention, Attorney Gil Gal-Mor said that in light of the growing trend of group acquisitions of property and construction rights, it is essential to reexamine the existing policy of land allocation by the Land Administration. Most group acquisitions are entirely commercial, and should therefore be subject to the same principles of equality applied on contractors and promoters who partake in Land Administration bids. For example, the administration should demand of groups to show they had notified the general public, not just through means of "word of mouth", and offered them the possibility to join the group.

ACRI demanded the Land Authority announce that discriminatory criteria such as race, nationality or ethnicity cannot be employed by group acquisitions, unless it is for the benefit of a minority group that lives according to a specific lifestyle (ultra-Orthodox, for example), and when affirmative action is instated for weakened segments of society.

Dangers to Human Rights in Israel
By Hagai El-Ad, published in The Jewish Chronicle, March 12

Israeli and world media have reported widely on the undemocratic values of Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu Party. The mainly critical coverage has focused almost exclusively on Lieberman himself, his ethos, and his slogan: “No loyalty, no citizenship”.

Yet nearly 400,000 people voted for his ideas. Israel’s electoral system reveals societal trends in a lucid way, and the recent elections have exposed the nation’s darker undercurrents.

There has been a decline of democratic values and human rights in Israel for several years now. Israelis are increasingly favouring the eradication of opposition voices for the sake of security and stability. These values tend to be pursued even at the expense of equality, tolerance and pluralism.

For the full article click here