Spring Break
DANIEL ORTNER: In Israel, the rule of law does not hold sway
by Daniel Ortner
Columnists | 8/28/07
Posted online at 11:30 PM EST on 8/27/07
Respect for the rule of law is a concept thrown around by our U.S presidential candidates and branded on the media as one of our nation's core values. Yet, we often forget that this concept is not limited to, but also includes, a written constitution and written laws. Indeed, one of the most essential aspects of the rule of law is the destruction of the arbitrary. This means the individual citizen will know exactly what actions are illegal and exactly what consequences these actions will entail. This summer, I lived in Israel and worked with the Bedouin population. The experience showed me the potential ills that can result from violations of this essential aspect of the rule of law.
Under President Bush, this concept has come under attack. The firing of at least eight U.S attorneys without any warning or connection to performance seem to me at least to be the definition of the arbitrary. A recent law passed by congress that expands the President's ability to declare a state of emergency and take full control of the nation's machinery also suggests a nation that has lost its clear delineation of powers and laws. However, my summer experience allowed me to truly see what happens when this delineation vanishes completely.
Israel is a country without a written constitution. This inevitably leads to an expansion of legal ambiguity and uncertainty. However, many of the country's actions seem designed to generate arbitrariness as a point of policy.
One can best see this principle at play at border crossings or security checkpoints. At the end of the summer, the students in my program spent three days in Jordan and then attempted to cross back into Israel at a major Israel-Lebanon border crossing, the Allenby Bridge Crossing. Our group was made up of, among others, 15 Americans, and yet each experienced a different level of challenge and interrogation as he attempted to enter the country. Because I am an American-Israeli dual citizen, I was waived through without any problems. Meanwhile, other American citizens received light to heavy questioning. Two of those in our group were held back for over an hour because they had Muslim family members. Another was held for an equal length of time because her name was somehow deemed suspicious.
Under President Bush, this concept has come under attack. The firing of at least eight U.S attorneys without any warning or connection to performance seem to me at least to be the definition of the arbitrary. A recent law passed by congress that expands the President's ability to declare a state of emergency and take full control of the nation's machinery also suggests a nation that has lost its clear delineation of powers and laws. However, my summer experience allowed me to truly see what happens when this delineation vanishes completely.
Israel is a country without a written constitution. This inevitably leads to an expansion of legal ambiguity and uncertainty. However, many of the country's actions seem designed to generate arbitrariness as a point of policy.
One can best see this principle at play at border crossings or security checkpoints. At the end of the summer, the students in my program spent three days in Jordan and then attempted to cross back into Israel at a major Israel-Lebanon border crossing, the Allenby Bridge Crossing. Our group was made up of, among others, 15 Americans, and yet each experienced a different level of challenge and interrogation as he attempted to enter the country. Because I am an American-Israeli dual citizen, I was waived through without any problems. Meanwhile, other American citizens received light to heavy questioning. Two of those in our group were held back for over an hour because they had Muslim family members. Another was held for an equal length of time because her name was somehow deemed suspicious.
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