Equal Funding for Arab Religious Cemeteries.

Petitioned the Court in 2/99 against the Minister of Religious Affairs (MORA) asking that two articles of the 1999 Budget Law, which allocate funding exclusively for Jewish cemeteries, be declared unconstitutional. Adalah demanded that the MORA establish clear, non-discriminatory criteria for the distribution of resources (over US $4 million annually) to all cemeteries; no public funds were provided to Arab Muslim, Christian or Druze religious cemeteries.

Result: In 4/00, the Court accepted the petition in a precedent-setting 26-page written decision. The Court ruled that the MORA should allocate money designated for cemeteries on an equal basis and according to the proportionality test (percentage-of-the-population). Further, the Court ruled that: "The resources of the State, whether land or money … belong to all citizens and all citizens are entitled to enjoy them according to the principle of equality, without discrimination, based on religion, race, sex or other prohibited consideration." Adalah was awarded legal fees of NIS 20,000. A subsequent motion was filed demanding that the Court instruct the MORA to implement the Court's decision in its 2001 budget. In 6/01, the MORA stated that funds are set-aside and Arab municipalities and other groups must apply.

(H.C. 1113/99, Adalah, et. al. v. Minister of Religious Affairs, et. al., P.D. 54 (2) 164)