Adalah's Newsletter Volume 7, November 2004

01/11/2004

Volume 7, November 2004

www.adalah.org

Adalah and Sawt al-'Amel Petition Supreme Court of Israel to Cancel Law which Renders Unemployed Individuals who Own or Use Cars Ineligible for Receipt of Income Support Payments

Adalah Petitions Supreme Court in Name of Religious Leaders Demanding Legal Recognition for Muslim Holy Sites to Preserve and Protect Them from Desecration

Articles on the Constitution

‘Constitution by Consensus’: By Whose Consensus?

Prof. Nadim N. Rouhana, Director of Mada

Israeli Constitutional Committee Faces Double Bind

Jonathan Cook, Journalist

Pluralism, Nationalism and the Constitution: Internal and External Dimensions

Dr. Marwan Dwairy, Chair, Board of Directors, Adalah

Land, Planning and Justice

Following Adalah’s Demand, ILA Agrees to Cancel Discriminatory Criteria for Lease of Agricultural Land to Arab Bedouin in the Naqab

Supreme Court Issues Order Nisi against ILA in Petition Contesting Use of Army Service Criterion in Land Distribution but Fails to Grant Injunction

Political Rights

Supreme Court to Attorney General: Trial of MK Dr. Azmi Bishara Cannot Proceed without First Deciding the Question of Parliamentary Immunity

Economic and Social Rights

Attorney General: Jewish Towns are Designated National Priority Area “A” to Develop Peripheral Areas
Supreme Court Justice Heshin: Why Will State not Admit to Judaizing the Galilee?

Supreme Court Expands Panel of Justices in Case Challenging Discrimination against Arab Municipalities and Local Councils in Allocation of Budget Balancing Grants

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Adalah’s Newsletter is a monthly publication, which covers the main activities of Adalah. It is issued in Arabic, Hebrew, and English. Comments, suggestions, and the submission of articles from our readers are welcome. To view previous volumes, click here..

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Opening Remarks

The protection of the minority from majoritarian rule is a key democratic principle justifying a constitution. The majority in the current Knesset passed the racist family unification law, voted against the participation of Arab MKs in the 2003 elections, enacted many laws restricting political and social rights, and opposes judicial review of laws. The Israel Democracy Institute has launched a campaign for a “Constitution by Consensus”. The “consensus” in this campaign is only between Jewish Israeli citizens, a compromise with and for the Orthodox. Unsurprisingly, of the 125 members of this institute for “democracy”, there is only a single Arab citizen - a former soldier. This campaign and the existing power relations within the Knesset raise serious concerns: if a constitution is formulated, it will be a nationalist-religious document, and will represent a deterioration in the current situation. Human rights groups must raise their voices now, in order to influence the public debate on this matter.

Announcements

Invitation to Conference: Planning, Control & the Law in the Naqab Monday, 6.12.2004. Simultaneous Arabic-Hebrew translation Program in English

Diary of former Adalah Attorney Jamil Dakwar, ACLU Human Rights Observer at Guantanemo Bay