Article

2023-09-12 Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Estimated 47,000 rallied against overhaul at High Court on eve of pivotal hearing

The next stage of the judicial overhaul process, with the anti team screaming (and worse) in their Alinsky-inspired, anti-democratic way.

[IsraelTimes] Demonstration held in Jerusalem day before judges mull petitions against reasonableness law, the only piece of legislation passed so far in Netanyahu government’s judicial shakeup

Tens of thousands of demonstrators rallied against government plans to shake up the judicial system outside the Supreme Court in Jerusalem Monday, the evening before a highly charged hearing that could set up an unprecedented clash between the courts and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. The protest came as political tensions have flared ahead of Tuesday’s High Court hearing, in which a full panel of 15 judges, a first, will hear petitions against the reasonableness law curbing the top court’s power to exercise judicial review over government decisions and appointments.

Proponents of the coalition’s proposals for weakening the judiciary have warned the justices against invalidating the law, and last week staged a similar yet smaller protest outside the court, with the opposing sides seeking to turn out their backers in demonstrations of support ahead of the hearing.

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"Just as the High Court defends Israeli citizens, we are here to defend the High Court," former foreign minister Tzipi Livni told the crowd at Monday’s rally.

Just another leftwing politician who can’t accept that the voters threw her out of office.

Protesters blew horns and vuvuzelas, and held up signs decrying the overhaul, many of them featuring raised fists and calls for the protection of human rights
When they're defined by the state or an NGO they don't mean much...
, one of the key tenets that government opponents say will be put at risk if the court’s oversight powers are curtailed.

There were no official turnout figures for Monday’s protest. Channel 13 news reported 47,000 attended, citing an estimate from the Crowd Solutions firm, about half the estimated turnout for weekly protests in liberal bastion Tel Aviv.

Police closed a number of roads in the area ahead of the rally, snarling traffic around the court, which is located near the entrance to Jerusalem. Video showing a small group of protesters briefly blocking cars on the Begin highway, a major traffic artery in Jerusalem that includes an exit near the Supreme Court building.

Typical Black Bloc/Antifa behaviour.

Protesters later marched approximately two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Supreme Court to Netanyahu’s apartment on the capital’s Azza Street, where the rally was expected to continue.

Trying to target and freeze their opponent, and so annoy his neighbours that they’re shunned — another Alinsky tactic.

There was no immediate word from police on arrests or disturbances.

Livni, one of several speakers who addressed the demonstration, insisted the protesters did not gather outside the court in an effort to sway the judges, "but to strengthen them so they can rule unbiasedly."

"Whoever thinks that words and formulations will take us back home is mistaken. We are after an earthquake; plaster and paint will not fix the cracks," she said.

Smaller demonstrations were held at several other sites around the country, including in the central cities of Rehovot and Herzliya.

Protesters also gathered against outside the Modiin home of Justice Minister Yariv Levin, after an unruly demonstration there in the morning.

“Nice career ya got there, y’r honourness. Be a shame is something happened to it...”

The rally came several days after a demonstration in support of the government managed to draw some 10,000 to the same area.

Tuesday’s hearing will see both sides argue their case before the 15 judges. No ruling is expected for several weeks or possibly months, but the session will be closely watched in Israel, with the justices’ questions offering a hint of what direction they may be leaning.

As the hearing loomed, Netanyahu said Monday that he was working to "exhaust every possibility" to reach a broad agreement regarding the overhaul plans, but faced pushback from both hardline members of his government and opposition figures who do not believe his coalition allies will let him agree to any true compromise.

His statement in support of the compromise came days before he was set to fly to the US, where he will meet with President Joe The Big Guy Biden
Joe <q>The Big Guy</q> Biden

...46th president of the U.S. S I'm not working for you. Don't be such a horse's ass....
on the sidelines of the United Nations
...a formerly good idea gone bad...
general Assembly.

In a preview of Israeli ex-pat protests that may await him there, an anti-overhaul group said they projected a message reading "Don’t believe crime minister Netanyahu. Protect Israeli democracy" onto the UN Headquarters building in New York. Activists said the message was projected onto the building for about 30 minutes on a recent night. Images released by protesters showed the message clearly visible on the skyline and from FDR Drive, a major road along the east side of Manhattan.

Biden has pressed Netanyahu to seek compromise on the reforms and some US officials have expressed concerns about moves that may weaken the judiciary’s independence.

The "reasonableness" law, passed in the Knesset in July, prohibits the courts from reviewing government action using the judicial standard of reasonableness, whereby it can determine that a decision was invalid because it was made without properly assessing key considerations, or while using improper considerations.

Opponents of the law argue that it could potentially undermine the independence of senior law enforcement agencies, since without the reasonableness standard, it will be difficult to challenge arbitrary dismissals of officials.

Ministers and coalition MKs have argued that the law is necessary to stop the High Court from asserting its own worldview on government decisions and actions, and have said that the dismissal of senior law enforcement officials will still be subject to other tools in administrative law.

The law is the only component of the coalition’s broader judicial overhaul program that has been passed by the Knesset so far. Like other parts of the radical reform agenda, it has faced massive opposition from protest groups and opposition parties.

Posted by trailing wife 2023-09-12 00:00|| || Front Page|| [35 views ] Top
File under: Antifa/BLM

#1 If the court strikes the law down - why had they protested for 3 months.
If it doesn't - the ethical validity of their protests becomes questionable.

Amendment from Grom JR. If the court doesn't strike the law down, then they will become violent.

Posted by Grom the Reflective 2023-09-12 14:44|| 2023-09-12 14:44|| Front Page Top