Discriminatory Treatment of Non-Jews by the Ministry of the Interior

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Association For Civil Rights in Israel

Report

A report published by ACRI paints a bleak picture of deliberate mistreatment of non-Jews wishing to formalize their status in Israel, of separation of family members, of covert procedures, and of the deliberate concealment of information.

ACRI published a report yesterday (6.12.04, to coincide with Human Rights Week) documenting the role of the Population Registrar of the Ministry of the Interior. The report highlights the fact that the Population Registrar sees itself as “the gate keeper”, and is willing, at any cost, to defend the Jewish character of the state, a policy that gives rise to severe human rights violations. The Population Registrar tramples routinely on the dignity of many individuals simply because they are not Jewish, on Israeli citizens who chose to share their life with residents of other countries, and seriously infringes the rights of their children. The report, which documents in great detail many cases of severe infringements by the Population Registrar, was written by ACRI Attorney Oded Feller.

The Registrar clerks are part of the life of Israeli citizens from the moment they are born until their death. They run the Population Registry, issue birth and death certificates, identity cards and passports. They have the authority to decide who is allowed into the country and who is to be deported, and to grant residency status to foreign nationals residing in the country. Thus, over the years, the Population Registry has become a fearsome apparatus that holds the authority to grant the most basic rights and liberties to Israeli residents. However, the Population Registrar, to date, heads the list of questionable state agencies that violate the basic rights of Israeli residents.

The Registrar combines declared official policies with policies that are not made public, and constitutes a cumbersome bureaucratic framework. Moreover, the Registrar clerks are not the least embarrassed to implement racist government and Knesset policies concerning the status of Palestinians or Arabs in general (”the demographic demon”). A similar zealousness is directed toward other immigrants and is camouflaged by the Ministry using secret procedures and a bureaucratic war of attrition.

The report, using numerous examples, reviews the difficulties and mistreatment encountered by non-Jewish individuals who request a formalization of their status in Israel, including foreign national spouses of Israeli citizens and their children. Thus, in some cases, children who are Israeli citizens are separated from one of their parents who is deported by the state, and children who are eligible by law to Israeli citizenship are denied registration, and are therefore denied basic rights including medical care provided by state health insurance. The report also exposes a series of bureaucratic measures used by Ministry of the Interior clerks to break the spirit of the applicants requesting their services: citizenship and residency are routinely revoked without due process and with no right of appeal; applications submitted to the Ministry are not dealt with for many years; applicants are repeatedly asked to produce numerous and strange documents, some of which are impossible to find; individuals defined as “denied service” are refused service for years with no explanation of why or how long it will last; the refusal by the Ministry of the Interior to make changes in the Population Registry; and numerous other issues.

Furthermore, life-changing decisions regarding the formalization of residency status for individuals whose fate is hanging in the balance, are made by an inter-ministerial committee that operates in a cloud of secrecy, and the individual in question is denied any knowledge of who the committee members are and if their fate in Israel has even been brought before them.

The report points out that the harsh policies adopted by the Population Registrar do not change with ministerial changeovers. The Registrar clerks and the Ministry’s legal department are the ones that in practice determine and shape these deleterious policies. This policy, the report states, enjoys the backing and support of the Attorney General, the government, and representatives of the State Attorney’s office.

ACRI emphasizes the fact that it is unacceptable that such significant issues – such as the granting of citizenship in Israel for those who have made the country the center of their lives, granting status to refugees, those seeking asylum, and other humanitarian cases – be decided without guiding and public criteria. ACRI recommends the publication of clear criteria to regularize the procedure for obtaining citizenship and residency that is enshrined in primary legislation or at least transparent regulations, and by so doing facilitate public debate and oversight of what transpires. ACRI is also calling on the State Comptroller and the Civil Service Commission to carry out an in-depth investigation into the services provided in the branches of the Population Registrar. The report further demands the investigation of complaints of withholding service, illegal confiscation of documents, rude service, mistreatment, demonstrations of racism and prejudice, and unnecessarily drawn out procedures.

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last updated : 07/12/04