Left-wing politicians hold that the bill is part of a right-wing push toward creeping annexation.
A bill that would limit Palestinian access to the High Court of Justice passed its first reading in the Knesset on Monday night.
The bill would send many of their cases, particularly with regard to land ownership and demolitions in Area C of the West Bank, to Israeli district courts.
Right-wing politicians hope the legislation will sharply reduce the high number of West Bank land cases that left-wing non-governmental groups and Palestinians file to the High Court.
They have also argued that the High Court is not the right venue for land cases, which should be handled by the same court that deals with such issues inside sovereign Israel.
Left-wing politicians hold that the bill is part of a right-wing push toward creeping annexation because it expands the district courts’ purview outside of sovereign Israel.
They have also argued that the process will now become more expensive and protracted.
Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked has been blunt about her goal of erasing the Green Line, so that the West Bank receives the same legal treatment as sovereign Israel.
“The Knesset today took a big step toward the normalization of life in Judea and Samaria. The rights of Judea and Samaria residents are no less important than the rights of other citizens,” Shaked said after the vote. “The move will also reduce the heavy burden imposed on the High Court of Justice.”
The High Court “handles more than 2000 petitions each year, and should reject many of them outright,” she added.
MK Tzipi Livni (Zionist Union) who opposed the legislation charged that Shaked was deceiving the public and playing innocent by pretending that this was at attempt to reduce the burden on the court.
“It’s complete nonsense,” she said.
Shaked and right-wing politicians want to “create a situation in which Israeli citizens will think that annexation is normal,” said Livni.
Laws like this strengthen the argument that West Bank Palestinians should vote in Israel, said Livni, as she described a move that would be part of a one-state solution.
“The road [for West Bank Palestinians to take] to the Knesset passes through the Jerusalem District Court. If everything is so normal then why shouldn’t [Palestinians] vote?” Livni said.
According to Shaked’s office, the bill transfers administrative affairs issues for Area C of the West Bank from the High Court to local district courts.
Such a move, it said, places the burden of proof in land cases against settler building on the Palestinians and not on the residents of the West Bank.
The High Court is tasked with the question of whether the building occurred “illegally” and takes into account the existing understanding of the status of land ownership.
But it does investigate the veracity of land ownership claims. Shaked’s office said that district could conduct such a factual investigation.
The burden of proof will now be on the plaintiff and not the defendant, Shaked’s office said.
It also charged that the myriad of Palestinian cases to halt demolition orders against illegal Palestinian construction had stymied the court and made it difficult to deal with the issue, which again can be better handled by district courts.
The bill also refers other issues to lower courts such as permission to enter and leave Israel, restraining orders barring individuals from regions of the West Bank and freedom of information petitions.
Their
of course you’re right,Livni, Barack, in fact, all of them are pathetic! They think,”If I give away… But Never there own fortune!
Livni, who is so fond of quoting the misdeeds of Israel “according to International Law” should be told, politely -naturally-, that International Law irrevocably had already granted the sole ownership of the Land to The Jewish People, who are now acting as The State Of Israel. And that this happened many years before she was born. So although she is not expected to remember it happening, at least she could read up on it. It is freely obtainable in any library, printed in likely thousands of books.
She is not alone. In the world today there are many thousands of politicians who are afflicted by the same collective memory ignorance. But she is a Jew, and is expected to know, as a politician, the political history of her people. However it looks as if she will remain the same nonentity as she always has been- an un-neccessary appendage to an irrelevant political party, along with Herzog’s throat thickening exercises and “deep voice” practice. Not to mention the Labour Defence Minister who was keenly inspecting the area with his binoculars still capped…I forret his name, so it’s not important. They all have their eyes wide shut….
This is a piecemeal approach to applying Israeli Civil Law in Area C. So this is a good step, especially when it comes ownership of land.