Jan 1, 2024. Posted by Balkan Periscope - Hellas
A Supreme Court statement said eight of 15 justices had ruled against an amendment passed by parliament in July which scraps the “reasonableness” clause, used by the court to overturn government decisions which are deemed unconstitutional.
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“This is
due to the severe and unprecedented damage to the basic characteristics of the
State of Israel as a democratic state,” the statement said.
Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had argued the sweeping judicial reform package
presented a year ago was necessary to rebalance powers between judges and
politicians.
But his
detractors warn the multi-pronged package paved the way for authoritarian rule
and could be used by Netanyahu to quash possible convictions against him, an
accusation the premier denies.
Justice
Minister Yariv Levin slammed the judges for “taking into their hands all the
powers, which in a democratic regime are divided in a balanced way between the
three branches” of government.
Levin, the
architect of the judicial overhaul, said on Telegram that the ruling “takes
away from millions of citizens their voice”.
Tens of
thousands of demonstrators had rallied weekly against the government reforms,
with protests only ending due to the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in
October.
The
“reasonableness” amendment, the only major part of the legal reform package to
become law, was also one its most contentious steps as it sought to curb
judicial oversight of the government.
When
Netanyahu’s allies voted to scrap the reasonableness clause in July, opposition
lawmakers stormed out of the chamber, shouting “shame”.
The law has
been cited in only a handful of court decisions, including a high-profile
ruling last year which barred a Netanyahu ally from serving in the cabinet
because of a previous tax evasion conviction.
Times of Israel
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