Reconsidering the Druze Narrative in the Wake of the Basic Law: Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish People

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 153
Author(s):  
Zeedan
Keyword(s):  
2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 43-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hassan Jabareen ◽  
Suhad Bishara

This analysis explores the origins and constitutional implications of Basic Law: Israel – The Nation State of the Jewish People (hereafter the Jewish Nation-State Law), enacted by the Israeli Knesset in July 2018. It examines the antecedents of the legislation in Israeli jurisprudence and argues that most of the law's provisions are the product of precedents established by Israel's Supreme Court, specifically the court's rulings delivered post-Oslo. The authors contend that the “two states for two peoples” vision of so-called liberal Zionists paved the way for Israel's right-wing politicians to introduce this law. Their analysis holds that the law is radical in nature: far from being a mere continuation of the status quo, it confers unprecedented constitutional status on ordinary policies and destabilizes the prevailing legal distinction between the area within the Green Line and the 1967 occupied territories.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Alon Harel

Abstract Basic Law: Israel as the Nation State of the Jewish People declares that Israel is the nation state of the Jewish people. It also includes several symbolic and operative provisions which are designed to strengthen the Jewish character of the state. The Basic Law purports to legally define and entrench the particular rather than universal values of Israel—the values that distinguish Israel from other nations rather than those that are shared by other nations. It anchors the Jewish identity of the state in its formal constitutional structure. My aim in this article is to present the history of the constitutional evolution of Israel and then to describe the conservative reactions to the constitutional liberalization of Israel. Then, I turn to examine the Basic Law, its provisions, and the arguments of advocates and opponents. Last, I evaluate its impact on the Israeli legal system. I shall argue that the Basic Law is part of a systematic attack on democratic liberties in Israel that may eventually transform Israel from a liberal democracy to an authoritarian democracy.


2020 ◽  
Vol 82 ◽  
pp. 101-114
Author(s):  
Alon Harel

The ‘Basic Law: Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish People,’ passed by the Knesset on July 19, 2018. This Article describes the main provisions of the Basic Law; it discusses some of the past history leading to the legislation. It also provides some evaluation as to its effects and speculations concerning its future. Last I use this basic law to make a broader point concerning constitutional legitimation. More specifically I argue that there are two ways to gain constitutional legitimacy: representational and reasons-based. While particularistic values such as the ones entrenched in the basic law gain legitimacy from representation, universalistic values need not rest on representation. I conclude by arguing that given the failure to gain consensual support for the basic law it is an illegitimate attempt to entrench particularistic values in a divisive society. It is only by representing the public as a whole that this law can gain constitutional legitimacy.


2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadia Ben-Youssef ◽  
Sandra Samaan Tamari

In July 2018, the Israeli Knesset passed Basic Law: Israel – The Nation-State of the Jewish People (Nation-State Law). This article highlights three of the law's central premises: the entrenched supremacy of Jewish settlers; the erasure of indigenous Palestinians; and, with reference to borders, the effective annexation of those parts of historic Palestine that were occupied in 1967. The authors reflect on the passage of the law within a broader history of settler colonialism and in the current global context of growing authoritarianism and overt institutionalized racism. The passage of such a colonial piece of constitutional legislation in 2018 is a testament to the continued resistance of Palestinians and the growing movement for Palestinian rights. The authors argue that the alternative to the exclusionary Nation-State Law, a rights-based, people-centered framework, is a promising avenue to not only secure Palestinian rights, but also advance a universal struggle for equality and historical justice.


AUC IURIDICA ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 67 (3) ◽  
pp. 129-152
Author(s):  
Veronika d'Evereux

The New Israeli Basic Law that was adopted in 2018 called “Israel – the Nation State of the Jewish People” divided the Israeli society. Part of the inhabitants accepted this law with enthusiasm because of its emphasis on the reasons why the State of Israel was established. On the contrary, the more secular part of Israeli society, as well as the minority citizens, strongly objected to this law and described it as an unjust disregard of the non-Jewish citizens, an act of racial discrimination or even an apartheid. The aim of this paper is mainly to examine selected provisions of this law, i.e., the provisions related to the Israeli citizens, under public international law and find out to what extent these legal provisions are in accordance with or in contrary to international law.


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