Deputy AG says harming independence of judiciary ‘will be a source of constant regret’

Deputy Attorney General Sharon Afek says that state attorneys in Israel have an obligation to the entire Israeli public, and not any individual or political movement.

“We owe a duty of loyalty to the entire public,” says Afek at a conference of the Attorneys Union at a hotel near the Dead Sea, addressing the current government proposal to massively overhaul the judicial system.

“Not to a particular person, not to a particular minister, and not to a particular party,” Afek adds. “We owe loyalty to the entire public. We owe the public a double duty — both to promote the government policy that the public chose and also to protect the public interest and the rule of law.”

Afek says that some may think that “the professionalism and independence of legal advisers is a problem, but life has taught us that they are important asset of the state.” Afek says that damaging the independence of the judiciary “will be a source of constant regret.”