AG: Coalition using ‘cover of war’ to advance rapid changes to Israel’s form of government

Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara accuses the government of using “the cover of war” to advance far-reaching changes to Israel’s form of government, which she says is happening “at a rapid rate, in front of our eyes.”

Speaking at the Israel Bar Association’s annual conference, the attorney general also lambastes recently passed legislation that greatly increases the power of politicians in the judicial appointment process, although it will only take effect in the next Knesset.

“Under the cover of war and the diversion of the public’s attention, the [governmental] regime change has sped up greatly, and the contempt for the law and defiance of it is active and felt,” says Baharav-Miara.

“This is not a warning about the future, but a picture of reality. Israel’s form of government is changing in front of our eyes at a rapid pace.”

The attorney general says the most significant change to Israel’s democracy is the change to the judicial selection process, saying that the politicization of the process will harm the independence of the judiciary.

“Diluting the value of professionalism and making political considerations the decisive considerations in the process of selecting judges will change the image of the country as a democracy with an independent judicial system. Perhaps irreversibly,” says the attorney general.

“A judge seeking promotion will know that his promotion depends on the degree of favor his rulings find within the political system,” she insists.