By Alon Tal on The Times of Israel…
Replacing judicial review with non-binding ‘declarations of inconsistency’ is a terrible idea – here’s why…
The battle to preserve Israel’s Supreme Court’s authority to review the constitutionality of the Knesset’s laws is raging in full force. This is just one of the many ill-advised reforms the new Netanyahu government is aggressively promoting that will weaken the judicial system. Many people see it as the single greatest present danger to Israel’s democracy.
Historically, Israel’s Supreme Court has been cautious about using its authority to invalidate legislation. But occasionally, on average less than once a year, when laws allow egregious violations of human rights, the court intervenes.
For instance, when the Knesset passed an “Infiltrator Law” in 2013 that authorized border police to hold illegal African migrants in an internment camp for a year without due process or a judicial hearing, mercifully the court struck it down. Israel’s Supreme Court has long seen itself as a champion of human rights and has not hesitated to be activist and intervene when there are gross violations, even if it means going head-to-head with the country’s legislative branch.
Read the full article on The Times of Israel here.
