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Amnesty International is a global movement of more
than 7 million people who campaign for a world
where human rights are enjoyed by all.
Our vision is for every person to enjoy all the rights
enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
and other international human rights standards.
We are independent of any government, political
ideology, economic interest or religion and are funded
mainly by our membership and public donations.
© Amnesty International 2019
Except where otherwise noted, content in this document is licensed under a Creative Commons
(attribution, non-commercial, no derivatives, international 4.0) licence.
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/legalcode
For more information please visit the permissions page on our website: www.amnesty.org
Where material is attributed to a copyright owner other than Amnesty International this
material is not subject to the Creative Commons licence.
First published in 2019
by Amnesty International Ltd
Peter Benenson House, 1 Easton Street
London WC1X 0DW, UK
Cover photo:
Israel's Arab parliamentary bloc and Knesset members hold signs in protest as security
members scuffle with them during the speech of US Vice President Mike Pence in Israel's parliament in
Jerusalem, on January 22, 2018. Palestinian members of the Knesset were ejected from parliament as
they stood to protest a speech from the rostrum by Pence. Members of the Joint List coalition of Arab
parties had pledged to boycott the Pence speech in protest at a 6 December decision by US President
Donald Trump to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
© Ariel Schalit/AFP/Getty Images
Index: MDE 15/0882/2019
Original language: English
amnesty.org
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CONTENTS
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
2. METHODOLGY
3. BACKGROUND
3.1 SHRINKING SPACE FOR CRITICAL VOICES
3.2 DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PALESTINIANS
3.3 APRIL 2019 LEGISLATIVE ELECTIONS
4
6
7
7
8
9
4. LEGISLATIVE THREATS TO PARLIAMENTARIANS’
FREEDOM OF
EXPRESSION
5. DISCRIMINATORY IMPACT OF KNESSET REGULATIONS
6. DISQUALIFICATION OF BILLS ON POLITICAL GROUNDS
7. DELEGITIMIZING STATEMENTS AGAINST PALESTINIAN PARLIAMENTARIANS
8. THE RIGHTS TO FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, PARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND NON-
DISCRIMINATION UNDER INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW
9. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
9.1 TO THE ISRAELI KNESSET
9.2 TO THE GOVERNMENT OF ISRAEL
9.3 TO GOVERNMENTS OF OTHER STATES
11
13
15
16
17
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1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Palestinian members of the Knesset (MKs) are facing increasing threats to their freedom of expression.
These threats are of concern in and of themselves but also reflect the wider situation in Israel in which
the space for voices critical of the Israeli government’s
treatment of Palestinians has shrunk and
discrimination against Palestinian citizens has been entrenched.
During the past five years, Israeli legislative and executive authorities have subjected those criticizing
Israeli government policies towards Palestinians to increasing restrictions and obligations, sought to
undermine the support and funding they receive from abroad and denied entry to non-nationals
supporting or working for an organization that they perceive as promoting a boycott of Israel or Israeli
entities. In 2018 Israel passed the “nation state law” (formally known as Basic Law: Israel
- The Nation
State of the Jewish People), which defined Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people and
constitutionally entrenched inequality and discrimination against non-Jews.
In carrying out its research, Amnesty International reviewed existing and proposed legislation, ethical
regulations issued by the Knesset, relevant Israeli government statements and reports by human rights
groups and interviewed Palestinian MKs and representatives of relevant non-governmental organizations
between February and August 2019. It sent memorandums to the Speaker of the Knesset and the Likud
Coalition Chairman to seek comments on concerns, but has received no response to date.
Legislative changes
–
one of them enacted, the others proposed
–
are threatening the right to freedom of
expression of elected MKs and are likely to have a particular impact on Palestinian MKs. An amendment
that was passed in 2016 to one
of Israel’s Basic Laws allowed the Knesset to expel elected MKs through
a majority vote of their fellow parliamentarians. Amnesty International considers that the amendment
unduly limits parliamentarians’ right to freedom of expression and that its genesis
indicates that it is
aimed primarily at Palestinian MKs. One Palestinian MK described the law as “a sword dangled over our
heads by members of the Knesset who oppose us politically”. Other legislative changes proposed over
the last few years have risked
undermining minority groups’ rights to freedom of expression and political
participation.
Knesset regulations purportedly in place to enforce ethical practices among MKs have been used to
restrict the right to freedom of expression, impacting Palestinian MKs in a discriminatory manner.
In 2018, the Knesset’s Rules of Ethics were amended to allow MKs to be refused permission to travel
abroad if the trip is funded by “a body calling for a boycott of the State of Israel”. Amnesty International
considers that advocating for boycotts is a form of free expression that must be protected. The same
year, two Palestinian MKs were banned from travelling abroad with funding from specific NGOs that were
on a “blacklist” created by the Israeli Ministry of Strategic Affairs.
In 2016, Knesset Ethics Committee suspended three Palestinian MKs ruling that they had supported
violence by observing a minute of silence during a meeting they had held with Palestinian families whose
children had been killed by Israeli forces after attacking or allegedly attacking Israelis. The Inter-
Parliamentary Union (IPU) found that the suspensions were “unjustified” and violated the MKs rights to
freedom of opinion and expression.
Since 2011, the Knesset has disqualified four bills related
to Palestinians’ rights or political aspirations.
In 2018, during the legislative process leading to the adoption of the “nation state law”, it prevented a
bill proposed by Palestinian MKs offering an alternative definition of Israel as “a country for all
its
citizens” from reaching a parliamentary discussion, arguing that it would negate Israel’s definition as a
Jewish state. In Amnesty International’s assessment, the decision discriminated against Palestinian
MKs, seemingly on the basis of their national or ethnic origin.
At the same time, Palestinian MKs have faced inflammatory statements apparently intended to
delegitimize them and their work by senior Israeli government officials and other MKs. Some have been
labelled “traitors” by government ministers.
In line with both the International Covenant on Civil and Political rights and the International Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, to both of which Israel is a state party, states
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must ensure that restrictions on the right to freedom of expression are not determined in a discriminatory
manner.
Amnesty International urges the Israeli government to ensure respect for the right to freedom of
expression of elected officials without discrimination, refrain from using language that delegitimizes
Palestinian MKs and provide constitutional protection to the principle of non-discrimination. It calls on
the Knesset to repeal legislation passed in 2016 allowing it to expel MKs through a majority vote, end
the discriminatory use of parliamentary ethical regulations against Palestinian MKs, refrain from
disqualifying proposed legislation based on discriminatory grounds such as political opinion and repeal
or substantially amend legislation that facilitates discrimination against Palestinian citizens of Israel,
including
the “nation state law”.
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2. METHODOLOGY
Amnesty International carried out research and analysis on the threats to freedom of expression facing
Palestinian members of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, between February and August 2019. It
reviewed existing Israeli laws, proposed legislation, ethical regulations and decisions issued by the
Knesset, documents from legal proceedings relating to the participation of Palestinian parliamentarians
in the Knesset, relevant Israeli government statements and reports, as well as media reports on
developments in the Knesset. The organization also studied research and analysis published by human
rights groups specializing in issues related to discrimination against Palestinians in Israel, including
Adalah - The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel
(ACRI), the Human Rights Defenders Fund and MADAR, the Palestinian Forum for Israeli Studies.
Amnesty International interviewed representatives of Palestinian and Israeli human rights groups and
three current or former Palestinian members of the Knesset (MKs). Some interviews were conducted in
Hebrew, others in English. All interviewees were informed of the purpose of the interview and how the
information gathered would be used and freely consented to be interviewed.
Amnesty International sent memorandums to the Speaker of the Knesset MK Yuli Adelstein and Likud
Coalition Chairman MK David Amsalem on 14 August providing a summary of its findings and requesting
comments on the concerns addressed in this briefing. No response had been received as of 3
September.
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3. BACKGROUND
3.1 SHRINKING SPACE FOR CRITICAL VOICES
During the past five years, Israeli legislative and executive authorities have subjected those criticizing
Israeli government policies towards Palestinians to increasing restrictions and obligations.
1
In 2016, the Knesset adopted legislation imposing new reporting requirements on civil society
organizations that receive funding from foreign sources, many of which are human rights groups. The
legislation, which came into force on 1 January 2017, requires them to submit and publish quarterly
reports on any funding received from foreign governments or publicly funded foreign donors, including
information on any oral or written undertakings made to the funders.
2
In 2018, it passed into law a bill
that bans non-governmental organizations (NGOs) criticizing the Israeli army from accessing public
schools.
3
At the same time, Israel’s Ministry of Culture has made efforts to deny or limit funding to
Palestinian and Israeli cultural institutions and events in Israel and East Jerusalem that offer a platform
to artists critically engaging with issues such as the Israeli occupation of the Occupied Palestinian
Territories
and the Nakba (meaning “catastrophe” in
Arabic), the term used for the displacement and
dispossession of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in 1948-9 during the conflict following the
creation of the state of Israel.
4
Municipal authorities in several cities have attempted to restrict the
operations of local NGOs and cultural centres that host events on these issues by attempting to evict
them from public facilities.
Israeli authorities have repeatedly threatened, smeared and stigmatized Palestinian and Israeli human
rights defenders and organizations, as well as international groups, including Amnesty International,
labelling them as “traitors” and “foreign agents”, among other terms.
5
They have made efforts to
delegitimize Israeli and Palestinian human rights defenders and organizations in an effort to undermine
the support and funding they receive from abroad.
6
As part of these efforts, Israel’s prime minister and
See, for example, Amnesty International,
Israeli government must cease intimidation of human rights defenders,
protect them from attacks
(Index: MDE 15/3824/2016),
www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/MDE1538242016ENGLISH.pdf; ACT Alliance,
Protection of space for civil
society and human rights defenders: The case of Israel and Palestine,
March 2018,
actalliance.org/documents/protection-of-space-for-civil-society-and-human-rights-defenders-the-case-of-israel-and-
palestine/; Human Rights Defenders Fund,
By all means: The various ways Israel is targeting human rights defenders,
June 2019, hrdf.org.il/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/By-all-means_web.pdf
2
The Disclosure Obligations of Recipients of Support from Foreign Government Entities Bill (Amendment) (Increased
Transparency by Recipients of Support, when the Majority of their Funding is from Donations from Foreign
Government Entities), 2016, fs.knesset.gov.il//20/law/20_lsr_346561.pdf (in Hebrew). For a summary of the
legislation in English, see Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI),
Law requiring disclosure by NGOs supported by
foreign governmental entities (amended)
–
2016,
2016, law.acri.org.il//en/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Summary-of-
NGO-Law.pdf
3
State Education Bill (Amendment
–
Prevention of Activity of Organizations Acting against the Educational Goals and
against the IDF), 2017, fs.knesset.gov.il//20/law/20_lsr_504190.pdf (in Hebrew). See
The Jerusalem Post,
“‘Breaking the Silence Bill’ passed into law”, 17 July 2018,
www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Breaking-the-Silence-bill-
passed-into-law-562699
4
Examples of institutions and events targeted include the Al-Midan Theater in Haifa and the Nakba Film Festival
organized by the Israeli NGO Zochrot. See
The Times of Israel,
“State said to defund
Arab theater that held play about
terrorist”,
19 February 2018, www.timesofisrael.com/state-said-to-defund-arab-theater-that-held-play-about-terrorist/;
Haaretz,
“Israeli culture minister pushes to nix funding for festival featuring films that ‘undermine our value’”, 17
September 2018, www.haaretz.com/life/.premium-regev-pushes-to-nix-funds-for-haifa-festival-over-film-that-
undermine-values-1.6489212; ACRI,
Anti-democratic initiatives advanced by the 20th Knesset - Freedom of cultural
expression,
2019, campaigns.acri.org.il/democracy/
5
Al-Jazeera English,
“Israel slammed over its ‘war on NGOs’”, 22 November 2016,
www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2016/11/israel-slammed-war-ngos-161101115337497.html
6
See, for example, Israeli Ministry of Strategic Affairs,
The money trail: The millions given by EU institutions to NGOs
with ties to terror and boycotts against Israel,
May 2018, eipa.eu.com/publicaffairs/wp-content/uploads/The-Money-
Trail_English.pdf
The report was criticized by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini as “unfounded
and
unacceptable” (see
Haaretz,
“EU blasts Israeli minister: You feed disinformation and mix BDS, terror”, 17 July 2018,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-eu-s-mogherini-to-israeli-ministeryou-
1
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other senior government officials have urged several countries to withhold financial support for human
rights organizations that express criticism of Israel.
7
Organizations aligned with Israeli government
policies on such issues have acted similarly.
8
Israeli authorities have started implementing a 2017 amendment to the Entry into Israel Law which bans
the entry into Israel or the Occupied Palestinian Territories of anyone supporting or working for an
organization that it perceives as promoting a boycott of Israel or Israeli entities, including those profiting
from illegal Israeli settlements.
9
As a result, human rights defenders, lawyers, scholars and students
have been denied entry to Israel or the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
10
Among them is Amnesty
International staff member Raed Jarrar, who was barred entry in 2017.
11
The authorities have also used
the legislative amendment to revoke the work permit of Omar Shakir, the Israel and Palestine Director of
the international NGO Human Rights Watch, and order his deportation from the country. In April 2019,
an Israeli court upheld the government’s order to deport him, ruling that
advocacy efforts by Human
Rights Watch to end human rights abuses by businesses operating in Israeli settlements constituted a
call for boycott and justified the deportation.
12
United Nations experts have urged Israel to overturn the
decision, saying it “threatens advocacy, research, and free expression for all”.
13
3.2 DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PALESTINIANS
Palestinian citizens of Israel comprise around 20% of the total population and, like any other Israeli
citizens, their rights to political participation and representation are recognized by Israeli law. However,
Israeli legislation facilitates direct and indirect discrimination against Palestinian and other non-Jewish
citizens in many areas, including citizenship, land and planning, housing, education and health.
14
feed-disinformation-1.6280308). In 2019, the Israeli Ministry of Strategic Affairs issued a similar report titled
Terrorists in suits: The ties between NGOs promoting BDS and terrorist organizations,
4il.org.il/wp-
content/uploads/2019/02/MSA-Terrorists-In-Suits-English-1.pdf
7
See
Ynet, “Israel to EU: Halt funding of NGOs working against us”,
21
July 2015,
www.Ynetnews.Com/Articles/0,7340,L-4682691,00.Html;
The Times of Israel,
“Israel’s envoy to call on UN to end
funding for B’Tselem”, 19 October 2016, www.Timesofisrael.Com/Israels-Envoy-To-Call-On-Un-To-End-Funding-For-
Btselem/;
Haaretz,
“Netanyahu slams human rights NGO B’Tselem for joining ‘chorus of slander’ against Israel”, 19
October 2016, www.Haaretz.Com/Israel-News/Netanyahu-Slams-Israeli-Rights-Group-For-Un-Appearance-1.5449949;
Haaretz,
“Netanyahu cancels meeting after German FM refuses to snub Israeli leftist NGOs”, 25 April 2017,
www.Haaretz.Com/Israel-News/Netanyahu-Cancels-Meet-After-German-Fm-Refuses-To-Snub-Leftist-Ngos-1.5464890;
Haaretz,
“Israel demanded Germany cut funding to Jewish Museum in Berlin, report says”, 9 December 2018,
www.haaretz.com/world-news/europe/report-israel-demanded-germany-cut-funding-to-jewish-museum-in-berlin-
1.6726205;
Haaretz,
“How a right-wing NGO’s agenda became Israeli government policy”, 12 October 2018,
www.haaretz.co.il/news/politics/.premium-1.6550175
8
See Amal Jamal,
The rise of “bad civil society” in Israel: Nationalist civil society organizations and the politics of
delegitimization,
German Institute for International and Security Affairs, 2018, www.swp-
berlin.org/fileadmin/contents/products/comments/2018C02_jamal.pdf; Policy Working Group,
NGO Monitor: Shrinking
space: Defaming human rights organizations that criticize the Israeli occupation,
2018,
policyworkinggroup.org.il/report_en.pdf
9
Entry to Israel Bill (Amendment no. 27
–
Non-Granting of a Visa and Permit of Residence to a Person Advocating a
Boycott against Israel), 2017, fs.knesset.gov.il//20/law/20_lsh_369171.docx (in Hebrew).
10
The Times of Israel,
“Shin Bet has denied 250 people entry into Israel this year — report”, 16 August 2018,
www.timesofisrael.com/shin-bet-has-denied-250-people-entry-into-the-country-this-year-report/;
Haaretz,
“Two
Leading U.S. Human Rights Activists Refused Entry to Israel, One for BDS Ties”, 3 May 2018,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-two-leading-u-s-human-rights-activists-deported-from-israel-1.6052515;
MEMO,
“Israel’s denial of visas for foreign academics hurting Palestinian education”, 3 August 2018,
www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180803-israels-denial-of-visas-for-foreign-academics-hurting-palestinian-education/;
Haaretz,
“U.S. Student Denied Entry to Israel to Be Held at Airport Until Final Ruling on Appeal”, 7 October 2018,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-district-court-to-rule-on-appeal-of-u-s-student-banned-from-israel-1.6532462
11
Amnesty International,
Israel denies entry to Amnesty International staff member,
31 October 2017,
www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/10/israel-denies-entry-to-amnesty-international-staff-member/
12
Human Rights Watch,
Israel: Human Rights Watch official’s deportation reinstated,
16 April 2019,
www.hrw.org/news/2019/04/16/israel-human-rights-watch-officials-deportation-reinstated
13
UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights,
UN experts call on Israel to overturn deportation of Human
Rights Watch director,
25 April 2019,
www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=24516&LangID=E
14
Adalah - The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights (Adalah),
The discriminatory laws database,
25 September
2017, www.adalah.org/en/content/view/7771
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In July 2018, Israel passed a law defining Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people,
constitutionally entrenching inequality and discrimination against non-Jews.
15
The “nation state law”
(formally known as Basic Law: Israel - The Nation State of the Jewish People) granted the right to self-
determination exclusively to Jews, highlighted the importance of “developing Jewish settlements” and
demoted the status of the Arabic language from an official language to one with “special status”. Human
rights organizations
have challenged the law before Israel’s Supreme Court, a complex task in light of its
constitutional status.
16
The legal proceeding is ongoing.
In 2014, the Knesset raised the electoral threshold from 2% to 3.25%, primarily affecting parliamentary
representation of Palestinians and other minority groups in Israel. Adalah and ACRI argued that raising
the electoral threshold for parties to gain seats at the Knesset violated Palestinian citizens’ voting rights
and enabled the disqualification of their candidates and parties.
17
3.3 APRIL 2019 LEGISLATIVE ELECTIONS
Early legislative elections were held on 9 April 2019 to elect the 120 members of the Knesset. Elections
had been due in November 2019, but were brought forward following a dispute between members of the
government over a bill on national service for the ultra-Orthodox population, as well as impending
corruption charges against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
On 6 March 2019, ahead of the elections, Israel’s Central Elections Committee voted to ban Ra’am-
Balad, a joint list formed of two parties, the Palestinian nationalist Balad and the Islamist Ra’am, and to
disqualify a Jewish member, Ofer Cassif, of Hadash-Ta’al,
a joint list formed of two parties, the Arab-
Jewish Hadash and the Arab nationalist Ta’al. The decisions were based on two petitions, one filed by
members of the Likud and Otzma Yehudit parties claiming that
Ra’am-Balad
is
“seeking to eliminate
Israel as a Jewish state and supports the violent Palestinian resistance and Hezbollah and that most of
its members are supporters and backers of terror” and the other filed by the chairman of the Yisrael
Beitenu party citing provocative comments Ofer Cassif had made in the past, including calling Justice
Minister Ayelet Shaked “neo-Nazi scum”.
18
The decisions ignored a recommendation made the day
before by the Israeli attorney general to allow both
Ra’am-Balad
and Ofer Cassif to stand in the elections.
On 17 March
2019 Israel’s Supreme Court overturned the decisions and allowed them to run in the
elections.
19
By contrast, the Central Elections Committee rejected a petition against Michael Ben Ari, the chairman
of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, thereby approving him to run in the election, but the Supreme Court
disqualified him. They banned him from running for the Knesset on grounds of incessant incitement
against Arabs.
20
On the day of the elections, over 1,200 hidden cameras were worn or positioned by activists and
observers from the governing Likud party in polling stations serving Palestinian communities or in
Palestinian-majority
areas across Israel. This was confirmed by Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime
minister and head of the Likud party, claiming that the deployment of camera was to counter
“widespread voter fraud” in these areas.
21
On social media, the public relations firm responsible for
disseminating the cameras stated openly that the campaign should be credited and thanked for lowering
Basic Law: Israel - The Nation State of the Jewish People, 2017,
knesset.gov.il/laws/special/eng/BasicLawNationState.pdf (unofficial translation).
16
Adalah,
Arab leadership takes action against Israel's new Jewish Nation-State Law,
6 August 2018,
www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9574
17
Adalah,
Israeli Supreme Court rejects petition against raising electoral threshold,
14 January 2015,
www.adalah.org/en/content/view/8401
18
The Times of Israel,
“Elections panel bars
Arab slate, Jewish far-left
candidate; court will now rule”, 7 March
2019, www.timesofisrael.com/elections-committee-disqualifies-arab-israeli-slate-jewish-far-left-candidate/
19
Middle East Monitor,
“Israel’s top court disqualifies far-rightist,
approves Arab party
for ballot”, 18 March 2019,
www.middleeastmonitor.com/20190318-israels-top-court-disqualifies-far-rightist-approves-arab-party-for-ballot/
20
Haaretz,
“Israel’s to court bans Kahanist leader from election run, okays Arab slates, far-left candidate”, 17 March
2019, www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/israel-s-top-court-bans-kahanist-leader-from-running-approves-arab-
slate-1.7018590
21
The Times of Israel,
“Likud admits deploying cameras at polling stations to monitor ‘problem Arabs’”, 9 April
2019, www.timesofisrael.com/likud-admits-hiding-cameras-at-polling-stations-to-monitor-problem-arabs/;
Haaretz,
“Likud hiding cameras in Arab polling stations will be ‘looked into,’ election board says”, 14 April 2019,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/.premium-likud-hiding-cameras-in-arab-polling-stations-will-be-looked-into-
1.7112910
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voter turn-out among Palestinian citizens of Israel.
Israeli election law does not allow officials to film voters entering polling stations or during the voting
process, and defines electoral interference as a criminal offence.
22
Despite multiple complaints, the
Central Elections Committee had allowed audio recordings of the voting process. The police seized
cameras used by Likud activists in polling stations, but were ordered by the committee to return them
immediately.
23
Several MKs and Adalah called on Israel’s
attorney general to initiate a criminal
investigation.
24
The attorney general has not responded publicly.
25
Palestinian MK Mtanes Shehadeh of
the Balad party told Amnesty International that the deployment of cameras “was a clear attempt to
intimidate Palestinian citizens and prevent them from realizing their equal right to political
participation… Now every Arab voter is assumed to be a potentially criminal offender committing
election fraud.”
26
The Likud party tied with the Blue and White alliance of Benny Gantz in the elections of April 2019.
Support from smaller parties would have allowed Benjamin Netanyahu to form the next government.
However, disagreements over the national service bill continued and snap elections were called, which
are scheduled for 17 September 2019. Voter turn-out among Palestinian citizens of Israel was a record
low of 49.1%, compared to 63.5% in the 2015 elections; the overall voter turn-out in Israel was 68%,
down from 73% in 2015.
27
Hadash-Ta’al
won six seats, while Ra’am-Balad
won four. They later
announced that they would join forces in an expanded joint list for the upcoming elections.
28
Adalah,
Adalah calls for criminal probe into Likud’s planting of hidden cameras in Israeli polling stations,
11 April
2019, www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9725;
Haaretz,
“Israel’s attorney general urged to probe
Likud hidden
cameras in Arab polling stations”, 11 April 2019,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/.premium-ag-urged-to-
probe-violation-after-likud-places-hidden-cameras-in-arab-polling-sites-1.7110075
23
The Central Elections Committee for the 21st Knesset,
Decision on the use of hidden cameras in polling sites,
9
April 2019, bechirot21.bechirot.gov.il/election/Decisions/AllDecisions/knesset21/documents/kalpies_cameras.pdf (in
Hebrew);
24
Adalah,
Adalah calls for criminal probe into Likud's planting of hidden cameras in Israeli polling stations,
11 April
2019, www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9725;
Haaretz,
“Israel's Attorney General Urged To Probe Likud Hidden
Cameras In Arab Polling Stations”, 11 April 2019,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/.premium-ag-urged-to-
probe-violation-after-likud-places-hidden-cameras-in-arab-polling-sites-1.7110075
25
The Times of Israel,
“Likud admits deploying cameras at polling stations to monitor ‘problem Arabs’”, 9 April
2019, www.timesofisrael.com/likud-admits-hiding-cameras-at-polling-stations-to-monitor-problem-arabs/
26
Amnesty International interview with MK Mtanes Shehadeh, Nazaretth, 15 April 2019.
27
Foreign Policy,
“How Israel Marginalizes Its Arab Citizens”, 15 April 2018,
foreignpolicy.com/2019/04/15/how-
israel-marginalizes-its-arab-citizens/
28
Haaretz,
“Israel's Arab Parties to Resurrect Joint List in Bid to Regain Seats”, 20 June 2019,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/.premium-israel-s-arab-parties-agree-to-merge-forces-ahead-of-upcoming-
election-1.7396627
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4. LEGISLATIVE THREATS TO
PARLIAMENTARIANS’ FREEDOM OF
EXPRESSION
Legislative changes
–
one of them enacted, the others proposed
–
are threatening the right to freedom of
expression of elected MKs and are likely to have a particular impact on Palestinian MKs.
An amendment that was passed in 2016 to one of Israel’s Basic
Laws (Basic Law: The Knesset) allowed
the Knesset, for the first time, to expel elected MKs through a majority vote of their fellow
parliamentarians.
29
The amendment authorizes the Knesset, by a majority of 90 out of 120 MKs, to
terminate the membership of a member if it has determined that two of the conditions that would have
barred a candidate’s participation in elections would apply to the member after his or her election. These
conditions are defined as “incitement to racism” and “support for an armed
struggle by an enemy state
or of a terrorist organization against the State of Israel”. Amnesty International is concerned that the
amendment enables the political majority to dismiss an elected MK simply because they choose to
interpret the free expression
of the MK’s political opinions as meeting these conditions, even when the
MK’s actions and statements are lawful and have not been the subject of any criminal or other judicial
proceedings.
The amendment has its origin in a bill introduced in 2014 and
known as the “Haneen Zoabi bill”, a
reference to former Palestinian MK Haneen Zoabi of the Balad party, who made a comment apparently
expressing support for Hamas during Israel’s 2014 military operation in the Gaza Strip. The bill was
promoted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
30
It later gathered momentum amidst public
controversy related to a meeting between three Palestinian MKs from the Balad party, including Haneen
Zoabi, and Palestinian families who were attempting to reclaim the bodies of relatives killed by Israeli
forces after they had attacked or were alleged to have attacked Israelis.
31
Statements by various MKs throughout the legislative process demonstrated that the bill was aimed
primarily at Palestinian MKs. During a parliamentary hearing introducing the bill on 10 February 2016,
the Chairman of the Knesset’s Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, MK Nissan Slomiansky of the
Jewish Home party claimed, referring to the three Palestinian MKs from the Balad party, that “there are
members of
the house who support terrorism and identify with terrorism”.
32
In the same hearing, MK
Miki Zohar of the governing Likud party asked, in a reference to speech or action that is perceived to be
against the state, whether when “Arab MKs talk like that and act against the state, shouldn’t we suspend
them?”
In May 2018, Israel’s Supreme Court rejected a petition, filed by human rights groups Adalah and ACRI
and Palestinian MK Yousef Jabareen of the Hadash party, against the legislative amendment, despite
recognizing it as infringing upon the right to freedom of expression.
33
“The [Supreme] court failed to
address our arguments of discrimination and violations of minority groups’ rights,” Sawsan Zaher, Deputy
Basic Law: The Knesset (Amendment 44), 2016, fs.knesset.gov.il/20/law/20_lsr_347851.pdf (in Hebrew). For a
summary, see Adalah,
“Expulsion of MKs” Law
- Amendment No. 44 to Basic Law: Knesset,
2016,
www.adalah.org/en/law/view/599
30
The Times of Israel,
“Netanyahu lends support to ‘Hanin Zoabi bill’”,
25 November 2014,
www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-lends-support-to-zoabi-bill/
31
Haaretz,
“Netanyahu calls for punitive measures against Arab MKs who visited families of terrorists”,
4 February
2016, www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-pm-punish-arab-mks-who-visited-families-of-terrorists-1.5400324
32
The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee hearing, 10 February 2016,
fs.knesset.gov.il//20/Committees/20_ptv_321902.doc (in
Hebrew); “‘We’ll suspend all the terrorist supporters’”, 11
February 2016, www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/207860#.VrwxgPmLTIU
33
High Court of Justice 5744/16,
Ben Meir v. Knesset,
judgement, 27 May 2018,
supremedecisions.court.gov.il/Home/Download?path=HebrewVerdicts\16\440\057\v17&fileName=16057440.V17&ty
pe=4 (in Hebrew). See also Adalah,
MK Jabareen, Adalah, ACRI petition Israeli Supreme Court against expulsion of
Members of Knesset Law,
2 January 2017, www.adalah.org/en/content/view/8987;
Haaretz,
“Israel’s top court
upholds law to remove lawmakers from office”, 27 May 2018,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/top-court-rejects-bid-
against-law-to-remove-lawmakers-from-office-1.6119132
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Director General of Adalah, told Amnesty International.
34
“The court’s ruling did not analyse how the law
affects Arab Knesset members and, in fact, the word ‘Arabs’ was not even mentioned in the decision.”
Amnesty International considers that the amendment unduly limits parliamentarians’ right to freedom of
expression, particularly the expression of political views that may not be acceptable to the majority of
MKs and as such may be used a pretext to expel them. The organization believes that it hinders the
ability of parliamentarians, particularly those representing minority groups, to effectively represent the
concerns of their electorate. Although the text does not explicitly target any particular group, it indirectly
discriminates against MKs representing Palestinian and other minority groups, who are inherently more
at risk of being targeted for their political participation.
While the amendment has not yet resulted in the expulsion of any parliamentarian from the Knesset, it
has had a chilling effect on freedom of expression. Palestinian MK Aida Touma-Suleiman of the Hadash
party described the text as “a
sword dangled over our heads by members of the Knesset who oppose us
politically”.
35
Other legislative
changes proposed over the last few years have risked undermining minority groups’
rights to freedom of expression and political participation.
36
In 2015, MKs submitted a bill aimed at
blocking funding for political parties supporting a boycott of Israel or its settlements.
37
In 2016, another
bill proposed to prevent parties and candidates disqualified from taking part in elections by the Central
Elections Committee from having recourse to a judicial review of the decision.
38
In 2017 an initiative to
amend the existing oath of allegiance and require MKs to pledge allegiance to Israel as a Jewish state
was presented.
39
These proposals have not been approved, but may be brought back for debate in the
Knesset.
Amnesty International interview with Sawsan Zaher, Haifa, 17 April 2019.
Amnesty International interview with Aida Touma-Suleiman, Tel Aviv, 11 April 2019.
36
See ACRI,
Overview of anti-democratic legislation advanced by the 20th Knesset,
2018, law.acri.org.il/en/wp-
content/uploads/2018/10/Overview-of-Anti-Democratic-Legislation-October-2018.pdf
37
Proposed amendment to Political Parties (Financing) Law (Revocation of Funding from a Party Calling for a Boycott
of the State of Israel), 2015, fs.knesset.gov.il//20/law/20_lst_315932.docx (in Hebrew).
38
Proposed amendment to Basic Law: The Knesset (Denial of the Supreme Court’s Authority to Intervene in the
Decision of the Central Elections Committee regarding the Approval or Disqualification of a Candidate or a List from
Participating in the Elections), 2016, fs.knesset.gov.il/20/law/20_lst_389851.docx (in Hebrew).
39
Proposed amendment to Basic Law: The Knesset (Declaration of Allegiance), 2017,
fs.knesset.gov.il/20/law/20_lst_369571.docx (in Hebrew).
35
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5. DISCRMINATORY IMPACT OF KNESSET
REGULATIONS
Knesset regulations purportedly in place to enforce ethical practices among MKs have been used to
restrict the right to freedom of expression, impacting Palestinian MKs in a discriminatory manner.
In January 2018, the
Knesset House Committee adopted an amendment to the parliament’s Rules of
Ethics that allows the Knesset’s Ethics Committee, which is comprised of sitting MKs, not to grant an
MK permission to travel abroad if the trip is funded by “a body calling for a boycott
of the State of
Israel”.
40
Amnesty International has never called for or endorsed specific boycotts, whether against Israel
or any other state or company. However, it considers that advocating for boycotts is a form of free
expression that must be protected. Consequently, it is concerned that the amendment restricts the
ability of parliamentarians to travel to carry out legitimate political activities solely on the basis of the
political views of the organization funding the travel.
MKs have long needed to obtain approval from the Ethics Committee to receive funding for travel abroad
within the context of their public duties. The measure is in place to ensure that such travel is in line with
the requirements of the job of an MK and to prevent funding from private individuals or businesses that
might generate conflicts of interest. Debbie Gild-Hayo, Policy Advocacy Director of ACRI, told Amnesty
International that the parliamentary process for approving travel abroad was “originally intended
to
promote transparency and integrity”, but now it has “begun determining what constitutes a legitimate
political opinion. It has effectively become a mechanism for political persecution”.
41
In March 2018, the Ethics Committee banned for the first
–
and, until now, only
–
time two MKs from
travelling abroad with funding from specific NGOs. Both parliamentarians, MK Yousef Jabareen and
former MK Haneen Zoabi, were due to travel abroad to participate in conferences and give lectures. MK
Yousef Jabareen of the Hadash party, planned to visit the USA on a trip funded by a US-based NGO,
Jewish Voice for Peace. Then MK Haneen Zoabi intended to travel to Ireland with funding from an Irish-
based NGO, the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign.
The decisions to
deny permission for travel were based on a “blacklist” created by the Israeli Ministry of
Strategic Affairs of organizations abroad that, it considered, support boycotts of Israel.
42
On 22 April
2018, MK Yousef Jabareen and Adalah filed a joint petition challenging
the decision before Israel’s
Supreme Court. The court has yet to rule on the petition.
43
Commenting on the amendment to the Rules of Ethics, MK Aida Touma-Suleiman of the Hadash party
told Amnesty International: “Everyone knows we will not be able
to fund advocacy tours abroad; the
regulation is an attempt to limit one of the most basic tools for parliamentarians to express their views
and access various audiences.”
The Knesset Ethics Committee has also suspended Palestinian MKs for carrying out legitimate functions
involving their constituencies. In February 2016, the Ethics Committee suspended from Knesset
discussions and committee hearings three Palestinian MKs of the Balad party after it ruled that they had
supported violence by observing a minute of silence during a meeting they had held with Palestinian
families whose children had been killed by Israeli forces after attacking or allegedly attacking Israelis.
44
Knesset,
Rules of Ethics for Members of The Knesset,
main.knesset.gov.il/Activity/committees/Ethics/Documents/EthicsRules.pdf (in Hebrew).
41
Amnesty International interview with Debbie Gild-Hayo, Haifa, 8 April 2019.
42
The Knesset,
MK Kisch calls to ban MK trips abroad that are funded by BDS organizations,
18 January 2018,
m.knesset.gov.il/EN/News/PressReleases/pages/Pr13728_pg.aspx;
The
Times of Israel,
“In first, Knesset bars MKs
from traveling on pro-boycott
groups’ dime”, 14 March 2018,
www.timesofisrael.com/in-first-knesset-bars-mks-from-
traveling-on-pro-boycott-groups-dime/
43
Adalah,
Israeli Supreme Court issues order in MK Jabareen Jewish Voice for Peace travel case,
7 June 2018,
www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9537
44
The Irish Times,
“Israeli-Arab
politicians suspended over visits to Palestinian families”,
9 February 2016,
www.irishtimes.com/news/world/middle-east/israeli-arab-politicians-suspended-over-visits-to-palestinian-families-
1.2528598
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The Ethics Committee received more than 450 complaints about the three MKs, including from Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Ethics Committee suspended former MK Haneen Zoabi and MK Basel
Ghattas for four months, and former MK Jamal Zahalka for two months.
The three MKs denied the allegations of supporting violence and explained that the reason behind the
meeting was to help the families obtain the bodies of their deceased relatives, which the Israeli
authorities had not released to them for burial. They said they were given only a day to prepare for the
hearing before the Ethics Committee. The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), of which the Knesset is a
member, reviewed the case after the three MKs filed a complaint with it in March 2016. In February
2019, the IPU’s
Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians found that the suspensions were
“unjustified” and violated the MKs rights to freedom of opinion and expression.
45
The application of disciplinary measures against Palestinian MKs appears to be discriminatory, since
Jewish Israeli MKs do not face similar consequences for meeting families of Jewish civilians who have
committed violent attacks against Palestinians. In 2015, MK Ayelet Shaked of the Jewish Home party,
who was then Israeli Justice Minister, met with the mother of an Israeli minor suspect in the killing of
three Palestinians following an arson attack in the town of Duma in the Nablus governorate of the
occupied West Bank in 2014.
46
The attack was labelled as a “terror” attack by the Israeli government.
Ayelet Shaked faced no disciplinary measures.
Inter-Parliamentary Union,
Israel - Decision adopted by the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians at
its 158th session,
8 February 2019, www.ipu.org/sites/default/files/documents/d-israel-158-e.pdf
The Inter-Parliamentary
Union determined that the “three members of the Knesset met with the Palestinian families
as part of the legitimate exercise of their parliamentary functions, in order to assist them in reclaiming the bodies of
their deceased sons” and that “the three parliamentarians observed a minute of silence in accordance with their
cultural and religious heritage as a customary practice performed out of respect for the deceased in general,
regardless of the circumstances of their death”.
46
+972 Magazine,
“Jewish politicians meet with terrorist families too”, 7 February 2016,
972mag.com/jewish-
politicians-meet-with-terrorist-families-too/116779/
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6. DISQUALIFICATION OF BILLS ON
POLITICAL GROUNDS
During the legislative process leading to the adoption of the “nation state law”
on 19 July 2018,
Palestinian MKs proposed a bill in June 2018 offering an alternative definition of Israel as “a country for
all
its citizens”. In response, the Knesset Presidium, a body comprised of the Knesset’s speaker and
deputy speakers, prevented the bill from even reaching a parliamentary discussion, arguing that it would
negate Israel’s definition as a Jewish state.
47
A petition submitted by Adalah in June 2018 challenging the decision to disqualify the bill was
dismissed by the Supreme Court on 30 December 2018.
48
The court determined that the dissolution of
the Knesset days earlier, on 26 December 2018, had rendered the petition theoretical and refrained
from criticizing or commenting on the disqualification.
“Israel’s Supreme Court stalled and did not make
a swift decision to allow MKs to conduct their political activity without interference and table proposed
legislation; by doing so, the court de facto legitimized and took part in the restrictions imposed on Arab
MKs,” Sawsan Zaher told Amnesty International.
49
According to the Knesset’s Rules of Procedures, the Presidium “shall not approve a bill that in its
opinion denies the existence of the State of Israel as the state of the Jewish People, or is racist in its
essence”.
50
The bill included several articles that were meant to alter the character of the State of Israel
from the nation state of the Jewish people to a state in which Jews and Arabs enjoy equal status from the
point of view of nationality. However, the decision was grounded in a particular political view and, in
Amnesty International’s assessment, discriminated against Palestinian MKs with alternative
perspectives, seemingly on the basis of their national or ethnic origin, and undermined their right to
freedom of expression.
The adoption of the “nation state law” (formally known as Basic Law: Israel
- The Nation State of the
Jewish People) risks facilitating further such discriminatory disqualifications of proposed bills.
Presenting
bills is “the most
basic thing Arab MKs can do, to bring to a public and legitimate debate
their platform, their narrative, and the unique voice of the Arab citizens they represent,” Sawsan Zaher
told Amnesty International.
51
Since 2011, the Knesset Presidium has disqualified three other bills related to Palestinians’ rights or
political aspirations. All were submitted by Palestinian MK Ahmed Tibi of the Ta’al party.
These were
bills to amend the Budget Foundations Law (Denial of the Nakba), disqualified on 7 July 2011, a bill
entitled Al-Quds, the Capital of Palestine and the Islamic Nation, and a bill to amend the State
Education Law (Content and Definitions in the Textbooks), both disqualified on 16 January 2012.
52
Previously, the Presidium had rarely prevented proposed legislation from reaching a parliamentary vote.
Before 2011, recorded examples of blocked bills include one that proposed that the Israeli prime
minister had to be Jewish, which was disqualified on 4 February 1997, and another
– known as the “Eye
for an Eye” bill –
that sought to mandate the eviction of Palestinian localities in the event that the Israeli
government was forced to evacuate Jewish settlements in the Golan Heights, which was disqualified on 8
November 2004.
Haaretz,
“Knesset council bans bill to define Israel as state for all its citizens”, 4 June 2018,
www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-knesset-council-bans-bill-to-define-israel-as-state-for-all-citizens-1.6145333
48
Adalah,
Adalah heads to Supreme Court after Knesset speaker, deputies nix legislation of Arab MKs’ bill declaring
Israel ‘state of all its citizens’,
11 June 2018, www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9541 (in High Court of Justice
4552/18,
Jahalka v. Knesset,
judgement, 30 December 2018); Adalah,
Israeli Supreme Court refuses to allow
discussion of full equal rights & 'state of all its citizens' bill in Knesset,
30 December 2018,
www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9660
49
Amnesty International interview with Sawsan Zaher, Haifa, 17 April 2019.
50
Knesset Rules of Procedure, 14 June 2018, knesset.gov.il/rules/eng/ChapterG2.pdf (unofficial translation).
51
Amnesty International interview with Sawsan Zaher, Haifa, 17 April 2019.
52
See The Jerusalem Post,
“Tibi bills disqualified for undermining Jewish state”, 16 January 2012,
www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Tibi-bills-disqualified-for-undermining-Jewish-state#/; Adalah, SC dismisses
MK Tibi’s petition against Knesset’s refusal to hear Nakba Bill,
5 February 2013,
www.adalah.org/en/content/view/7928
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7. DELEGITIMIZING STATEMENTS AGAINST
PALESTINIAN PARLIAMENTARIANS
Palestinian MKs have faced inflammatory statements apparently intended to delegitimize them and their
work by senior Israeli government officials and other MKs.
Yariv Levin, the then tourism minister, was reported as saying on 27 August 2018 that Palestinian MKs
who called on the United Nations to condemn Israel following the adoption of the
“nation state law”
should be tried for “treason”.
53
Avigdor Liberman, the then defence minister, was quoted on 21 May
2018 as accusing Palestinian MK Ayman Odeh of the Hadash party and his associates of being a “fifth
column” and said they should be “outlawed” for their support of a demonstration in Haifa protesting
against the killings of Palestinian protesters in the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces in the context of the Great
March of Return protests.
54
Miri Regev, the then culture minister, labelled former Palestinian MK
Haneen Zoabi a “traitor” after she accused the opposition in
parliament of hypocrisy over its failure to
stand up against racism.
55
Haneen Zoabi summarized her impression of the situation to Amnesty International: “Palestinian MKs
face mounting smear campaigns, inflammatory statements and other attempts to delegitimize them and
their work by Israeli authorities, the Knesset itself, and by the media. The targeting of Palestinian
representatives appears to be part of an attempt to hinder their participation in the public and political
life in Israel.”
56
During the April 2019 elections, Palestinian MKs, along with other Palestinian citizens of Israel, were
subjected to further intimidatory comments by senior government officials. Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu said notably that
“Israel is not a state of all its citizens… it is the nation-state
of the Jewish
people only”
and described Palestinian parties as attempting to eradicate the State of Israel.
57
An analysis conducted by the Arab Centre for Social Media Advancement (7amleh) of over 450,000
expressions of racism, insults or incitement towards Palestinians on Israeli social media during 2018
found that violent speech primarily targeted Palestinian parties and Palestinian MKs Aimen Odeh and
Ahmed Tibi, particularly around the adoption of the “nation state law”.
58
The Times of Israel,
“Minister urges prosecution of Arab MK ‘traitors’ who seek UN censure of Israel”, 27 August
2018, www.timesofisrael.com/minister-urges-prosecution-of-arab-mk-traitors-who-seek-un-censure-of-israel/
54
The Times of Israel,
“Defense minister: Top Arab MK, colleagues a ‘fifth column,’ should be ‘outlawed’”, 21 May
2018, www.timesofisrael.com/defense-minister-top-arab-mk-a-fifth-column-should-be-outlawed/
55
Ynet,
“Minister Regev to MK Zoabi: Go to Gaza, traitor”,
27 December 2017, www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,l-
5062676,00.html
56
Amnesty International interview with Haneen Zoabi, 12 August 2019.
57
Haaretz,
“Netanyahu blasts Gantz-Lapid alliance: They rely on Arab parties intent on destroying Israel”, 21
February 2019, www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/netanyahu-blasts-gantz-lapid-they-rely-on-arab-parties-who-
want-to-destroy-israel-1.6958943;
Foreign Policy,
“How Israel Marginalizes Its Arab Citizens”, 15 April 2018,
foreignpolicy.com/2019/04/15/how-israel-marginalizes-its-arab-citizens/
58
Arab Centre for Social Media Advancement (7amleh),
The index of racism and incitement in Israeli social media
2018: An inciting post against Palestinians every 66 seconds,
11 March 2019, 7amleh.org/2019/03/11/the-index-of-
racism-and-incitement-in-israeli-social-media-2018-an-inciting-post-against-palestinians-every-66-seconds/
These expressions peaked around the enactment of the Basic Law: Israel as the Nation State.
53
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8. THE RIGHTS TO FREEDOM OF
EXPRESSION, PARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC
AFFAIRS AND NON-DISCRIMINATION
UNDER INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS
LAW
The right to freedom of expression provides the vehicle for the exchange and development of opinions,
while also allowing individuals to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds. It is
enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
59
and the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights,
60
to which Israel is a state party. The right is key for the realization of many other
human rights.
The right to freedom of expression applies to information and ideas of any kind, including expression
that might shock or disturb the public. While the right to freedom of expression is not absolute, states
must ensure that restrictions are provided by law and are necessary and proportionate to a legitimate aim
(the protection of national security, public order, public health or morals, and the protection of the rights
of others).
61
States have a duty not only to respect freedom of expression but also to protect it and
prevent violations by non-state actors.
62
The state must combat attacks aimed at silencing those who
seek to express themselves, investigate these attacks and provide appropriate remedies for the victims.
Moreover, in line with both the International Covenant on Civil and Political rights and the International
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, to which Israel is also a state party,
states must ensure that the right to freedom of expression can be exercised without discrimination,
including discrimination based on national or ethnic origin or political opinion, and that restrictions on
the right to freedom of expression are not determined in a discriminatory manner.
63
The principle of non-discrimination and equality is necessary for the enjoyment of all other human rights.
Accordingly, human rights conventions have enshrined the basic norm that individuals must be able to
exercise their rights without discrimination.
64
Discrimination undermines people’s dignity and is defined
in international human rights law as unfavourable treatment based on prohibited grounds (such as
ethnicity, national origin, political opinion, and others), without objective justification.
65
Discrimination
can be direct or indirect. Indirect discrimination can occur as a result of seemingly neutral legislation or
59
60
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 19.
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Article 19.
61
ICCPR, Article 19(3); UN Human Rights Committee,
General Comment No. 34: Article 19: Freedoms of opinion
and expression,
12 September 2011, UN Doc. CCPR/C/GC/34, paras 21-23.
62
UN Human Rights Committee,
General Comment No. 34: Article 19, Freedoms of opinion and expression,
12
September 2011, UN Doc. CCPR/C/GC/34, paras 7, 11; UN Human Rights Committee,
General Comment No. 31:
The nature of the general legal obligation imposed on states parties to the Covenant,
26 May 2004, UN Doc.
CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add. 13, para. 4.
63
ICCPR, Article 2(1); International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD),
Article 5(d)(viii).
64
ICCPR, Articles 2, 3 and 26; ICERD. See also International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,
Articles 2 and 3; Convention on the Rights of the Child, Article 2; Convention on the Rights of People with
Disabilities, Articles 5 and 6.
65
For a detailed analysis of the definition of discrimination in international human rights law, see Amnesty
International,
Dealing with difference: A framework to combat discrimination in Europe
(Index: EUR 01/003/2009),
Chapter 2.
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policies that disproportionately disadvantage a particular group. Accordingly, the state has a duty not to
discriminate in its acts and policies, to guarantee the equal realization of human rights in a non-
discriminatory way and to repeal any discriminatory legislation.
66
Crucially, the state also has an
obligation to prohibit the advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to
violence, hostility or discrimination.
67
Freedom of expression and the prohibition of discrimination are of particular importance for
parliamentarians. The UN Human Rights Committee, the body of independent experts that monitors
implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by its state parties, has
affirmed that “the
free communication of information and ideas about public and political issues
between citizens, candidates and elected representatives
is essential” for the realization of the right to
freedom of expression.
68
Violations of the right to freedom of expression may prevent elected
parliamentarians from carrying out their mission and adequately representing the public, and infringe
upon
the public’s right to impart alternative views freely.
Additionally, discrimination against elected parliamentarians is not only contrary to the right to equality
and non-discrimination but may also undermine other human rights of individuals and groups, such as
the right to equal participation in elections and the right to take part in the conduct of public affairs.
69
Discriminatory speech and advocacy of hatred require an appropriate governmental response, particularly
when they target elected representatives and are disseminated by government officials. As noted by the
UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the body of independent experts that
monitors implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial
Discrimination by its state parties, “the prohibition of the dissemination of all ideas based upon racial
superiority or hatred is compatible with the right to freedom of opinion and expression”.
70
In addition to Israel’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and
the
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination to respect, protect and
fulfil the rights to freedom of expression and non-discrimination, its Supreme Court has recognized them
as fundamental rights despite their absence from Israel’s Basic Laws.
71
66
67
ICERD, Article 2.
ICCPR, Article 20.
68
UN Human Rights Committee,
General Comment No. 34: Article 19: Freedoms of opinion and expression,
12
September 2011, UN Doc. CCPR/C/GC/34, para. 20.
69
ICCPR, Article 25; Human Rights Committee,
General Comment No. 25: The right to participate in public affairs,
voting rights and the right of equal access to public service,
12 July 1996, UN Doc. CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.7.
70
UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination,
Concluding observations of the Committee on the
Elimination of Racial Discrimination: Israel,
3 April 2012, UN Doc. CERD/C/ISR/CO/14-16.
71
See High Court of Justice 75/53,
Kol Ha’am Co. Ltd. v. Minister of the Interior,
decided 16 October 1953,
versa.cardozo.yu.edu/sites/default/files/upload/opinions/Kol%20Ha%27am%20Co.%2C%20Ltd.%20v.%20Minister%
20of%20the%20Interior.pdf (unofficial translation); High Court of Justice 4541/94,
Miller v. Minister of Defence,
decided 8 November 1994, versa.cardozo.yu.edu/opinions/miller-v-minister-defence (unofficial translation); High
Court of Justice 6698/95,
Aadel Ka’adan v.
Israel Lands Administration,
decided 8 March 2000, www.escr-
net.org/caselaw/2014/hc-669895-aadel-kaadan-v-israel-lands-administration-541-pd-258 (unofficial abstract).
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9. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Palestinian MKs are facing increasing threats to their freedom of expression. The threats have
manifested themselves in the last few years through legislative changes
–
some enacted, others
proposed; Knesset regulations purportedly in place to enforce ethical practices among MKs; and the
disqualification of parliamentary bills on political grounds. These measures have impacted Palestinian
MKs in a discriminatory manner and consequently have eroded their right to equal political participation
in Israel. Palestinian MKs have also faced inflammatory statements apparently intended to delegitimize
them and their work by senior Israeli government officials and other MKs.
These threats are of concern in and of themselves but also reflect the wider situation in Israel in which
the space for voices critical of the Israeli government’s treatment
of Palestinians has shrunk and
discrimination against Palestinian citizens has been entrenched by measures such as the passing of the
“nation state law”
in 2018.
In light of the above, Amnesty International is making the following recommendations:
9.1 TO THE ISRAELI KNESSET
Repeal the amendment that was passed in 2016 to the law known as Basic Law: The Knesset
allowing the Knesset to expel elected MKs through a majority vote of their fellow
parliamentarians.
Repeal the amendment to the parliament’s Rules of Ethics that allows the Knesset’s Ethics
Committee not to grant an MK permission to travel abroad if the trip is funded by “a body
calling for a boycott of the State of Israel”.
End the arbitrary targeting of Palestinian MKs for simply exercising their legitimate political
work through the discriminatory use of parliamentary ethical regulations.
Repeal or substantially amend legislation that facilitates discrimination against Palestinian
citizens of Israel, including the
“nation state law” (formally known as
Basic Law: Israel as the
Nation State of the Jewish People).
Refrain from disqualifying proposed legislation based on discriminatory grounds such as
political opinion.
9.2 TO THE GOVERNMENT OF ISRAEL
Ensure respect for the right to freedom of expression of elected officials without discrimination,
and guarantee that their activities are not restricted on discriminatory grounds such as political
opinion.
Refrain from using language that delegitimizes or stigmatizes Palestinian MKs and publicly
condemn attacks by other MKs on them.
Provide constitutional protection to the principle of non-discrimination by introducing it into
Israel’s Basic Laws.
9.3 TO GOVERNMENTS OF OTHER STATES
Actively pursue opportunities to meet or publicly engage with parliamentarians representing
Palestinian citizens of Israel.
Denounce unfounded negative narratives against Palestinian MKs, including misleading
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accusations of support for terrorism.
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AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
IS A GLOBAL MOVEMENT
FOR HUMAN RIGHTS.
WHEN INJUSTICE HAPPENS
TO ONE PERSON, IT
MATTERS TO US ALL.
CONTACT US
[email protected]
JOIN THE CONVERSATION
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+44 (0)20 7413 5500
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KNESSET
Palestinian members of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, are facing
increasing threats to their freedom of expression. These threats are
symptomatic of the wider situation in Israel in which the space for voices
critical of the Israeli government’s treatment
of Palestinians has shrunk and
discrimination against Palestinian citizens has been entrenched.
Amnesty International has analysed the threats by reviewing legislation,
ethical regulations, government statements and reports by human rights
groups, as well as interviewing parliamentarians and others. It has found that
legislative changes
–
some enacted, others proposed, Knesset regulations
purportedly in place to enforce ethical practices and the disqualification of
parliamentary bills on political grounds have undermined freedom of
expression. These measures have impacted Palestinian parliamentarians in a
discriminatory manner and consequently have eroded their right to equal
political participation in Israel. Palestinian parliamentarians have also faced
inflammatory statements apparently intended to delegitimize them and their
work by senior Israeli government officials, among others.
Amnesty International is calling on the Israeli government to ensure respect
for the right to freedom of expression of elected officials without
discrimination. It is urging the Knesset to repeal legislation that facilitates
discrimination against Palestinian parliamentarians and, more broadly,
Palestinian citizens of Israel.
INDEX: MDE 15/0882/2019
SEPTEMBER 2019
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
amnesty.org