Israeli Supreme Court justice wins women’s rights prize

US-born Daphne Barak Erez honored with ‘Closing the Gender Gaps’ award by Women in Parliaments group in Brussels

By Raphael Ahren 27 November 2013, 8:56 pm

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Raphael Ahren is a former diplomatic correspondent at The Times of Israel.

Supreme Court Justice Daphne Barak-Erez, left, together with members of the Israel Knesset at the gathering in Brussels. (Photo credit: Courtesy David Saranga)

An Israeli Supreme Court Judge on Wednesday received a prize for her work in advancing women’s place in society.

Daphne Barak Erez, 48, who last year became Israel’s youngest-ever member of the Supreme Court, received the Women in Parliaments Global Forum’s “Closing the Gender Gaps” at an event in the European Parliament in Brussels.

“We are happy to see that Europe and Israel share the same views on the issue of gender equality,” Israeli Ambassador to the EU David Walzer said. “We are happy to see that Europe and Israel share the same views on the issue of gender equality. This issue is without any doubt one of the pillars of the Israeli society.”

David Saranga, who heads the European Parliament department at Israel’s mission to the EU told The Times of Israel that the prize is based on the data provided by the World Economic Forum, and a clear recognition of the long-standing action of Israel in this field. “This issue is without any doubt one of the pillars of the Israeli society,” he said.

Women in Parliaments Global Forum is an independent body “advancing society by building a network between Women in Parliaments,” according to its website.

“The Israeli legal system is the arena in which the promise of gender equality is materializing – as a result of legislation regarding gender equality in various areas of life as well as through judicial precedents which insist on the pragmatic implementation of these principles,” Barak Erez said at the award ceremony. “Since the ‘Equal Rights of Women Law was enacted in its original form back in 1951, the principle of gender equality has been applied to both political and social rights, including by adopting affirmative action policies. Currently, there is no question that gender equality is considered a fundamental principle of the Israeli legal system.

Born in the US, Barak Erez grew up in Israel, where in 2011 she was appointed dean of the law faculty at Tel Aviv University. Last year, she renounced her American citizen ship when she became a Supreme Court justice. She has written extensively on public law and contract law. Two books she edited deal with feminism and law.