This article unveils a virtually unknown chapter in the history
of judicial diversity in Israel. During its first 20 years of existence,
between 1948 and 1968, only three Arab judges were appointed. Then,
within two years, between 1968 and 1969, Israel appointed three additional
Arab judges. Two interconnected changes account for this small
increase in judicial diversity. First, in the 1960s, the Arab legal elite began
to exert pressure on Israeli officials to appoint Arab judges. Second, perhaps
partly due to this pressure, the Judicial Selection Committee made
having a diverse judiciary a top priority. This historical example teaches
us that without outside pressure, the Judicial Selection Committee does
not look on diversity as an important consideration, using the merit system
of appointment as an excuse for its failure. Indeed, up to the present
day, the Israeli judiciary has relatively few Arab judges.
Application of Position Auction-Based Merit System in Bantul Regency in 2018
