The End of Unreasonableness - An Investigation into Israel's Controversial Reforms

Earlier this year, thousands of protestors took to the streets of Israel to oppose Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposed changes to the country's judicial system. The government aims to tighten political controls in government, by increasing their control over judicial appointments and activist judges and limit Supreme Court power. These proposals sarked labour and hunger strikes, protests, and the closures of public locations, including Ben Gurion airport.

Despite these protests, the first of these controversial laws was passed in Israeli Parliament 64 votes to none. In a reform aimed at limiting judicial authority, the new law removes the power of the Supreme Court to overrule any action taken by the government that it would deem unreasonable, overruling the ‘unreasonableness doctrine’ that can be found in other nations, including the United Kingdom and Canada. Moreover, critics speculate that Netanyahu is merely using this legislation as protection from his own trial for charges of bribery, breach of trust, and fraud.

This is a move many consider to be an erosion of Israeli democracy, yet the government argues that these reforms, despite the pushback, are being used to correct an imbalance of power in which the courts continue to intervene in political decisions. Yariv Levin, Israel’s Justice Minister, praised Parliament’s vote, stating, “We have taken the first step in a historic process to correct the judicial system.”

This decision has resurrected months of turmoil, as Israel seems to head back into a state of national emergency. “We will never surrender,” says one protestor, who continues to defy what he deems a “dictatorship.” Protestors like this one have flocked to Jerusalem, camping between the Supreme Courts and the Knesset (Israel’s Parliament), polarizing the country, and catalyzing a staggering domestic crisis. Last week, protesters were sprayed with water cannons and dragged away from their camps by police as they blocked roads in anguish.

In addition, this has had massive consequences for Israel’s defense sector and military prowess, as reservists from all aspects of the military have refused to volunteer for service despite the unrest unfolding in Jerusalem. With nearly 10,000 members refusing service, questions are being asked about the military readiness of the country. Heads of security services, chief justices, and prominent legal figures have also loudly opposed these reforms. Additionally, 150 companies, central to Israeli industry and commerce and business figures have also gone into strike protocols and threatening the economic foundations.

With Israel’s closest allies, such as the United States, criticizing the government’s actions, the future of the country’s check and balances systems lies in the balance, as does its economic and military fortitude. Not to mention, what will the impacts be for the Palestinian people be? Israel’s relations within its government and with its people hang in the balance, with a future rife in uncertainty and undemocratic actions, who is to know what will happen in the coming months.

by Carolina Beirne