All living former Supreme Court presidents pan government for not respecting court ruling

All living former presidents of the Supreme Court condemn the government’s announcement yesterday that it does not see the court’s ruling on the functioning of the Second Authority council as valid, saying that refusing to respect or obey court rulings is “the last nail in the coffin of democracy.”

The Supreme Court presidents assert that the government’s declaration would create legal anarchy and concentrate all power in its hands.

“Such conduct completely undermines normal governance and law in the country. It will lead to anarchy and to the concentration of all governmental powers in the hands of a single body alone, and will make the existence of a functioning society impossible,” the former court presidents say.

The retired justices say that in order to avoid such catastrophic results, the government should immediately announce that it is committed to obeying court rulings.

The letter is signed by former Supreme Court presidents Aharon Barak, Dorit Beinisch, Asher Grunis, Esther Hayut and Uzi Vogelman.

On Sunday, the government said that it would not accept as valid any decisions made by the Second Authority media regulation body under the terms of a court ruling in June allowing it to function without a quorum.

The declaration gave rise to concerns that the government was violating the rule of law and taking the country towards a constitutional crisis, with President Isaac Herzog, the attorney general, and all heads of opposition parties condemning the move.

Earlier today, Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not intend to go down the “slippery slope” of a constitutional crisis, and said that the premier would comply with the court decisions.