Top Human Rights Lawyering Prizes Awarded to Adalah General Director Hassan Jabareen and ACRI Legal Advisor Dan Yakir

At NIF awards event, retired Supreme Court Justice Ayala Procaccia praises the winners as lawyers of the highest caliber and calls to support human rights organizations.

On 13 December 2011, the New Israel Fund (NIF) held a very moving awards ceremony for Adalah's General Director, Attorney Hassan Jabareen, the recipient of its "Herman Schwartz Prize for Law and Social Justice", and for the Legal Advisor to the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), Dan Yakir, the winner of its "Guardian of Human Rights" prize in Jerusalem.

Several speakers celebrated the achievements of the winners, and especially criticized the attacks against the human rights organizations in Israel and called for providing support for these groups. Retired Supreme Court Justice Ayala Procaccia gave a keynote address. Her very supportive words about Adalah included:

"Adalah's petitions to the High Court of Justice deal with a wide range of human rights associated with the Arab public, among them the equal distribution of public resources, freedom of speech and political freedom, family rights, the official status of Arabic, freedom of religion and worship, and various social rights. An important part of the decisions in principle handed down by the High Court of Justice on human rights issues were given in petitions submitted by the organization. The activity of Adalah under the leadership of attorney Jabareen excels in its commitment, determination, and high professional and cultural level. This is an organization that works to advance human rights by legal means, not extra-legal means, by outstanding intellectual power, high moral commitment, and a broad vision of Israeli society in all its diversity. These special characteristics have given the Adalah organization its unique status on the map of human rights organizations in Israel."

Prof. Neta Ziv, the director of the Cegla Legal Clinics Program, Faculty of Law at Tel Aviv University, also gave an extremely informative and important talk at the event about the recent wave of legislation targeting human rights organizations and the special status of human rights defenders.

Speech by Justice Procaccia
Speech by Professor Neta Ziv
Photos