Photo by Hagai El-AdFollowing the accumulation of testimonies regarding police violence in the social justice demonstration in Tel Aviv two weeks ago, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) sent a letter today to the Tel Aviv District Police Commander, Aharon Aksol, demanding that he act to internalize the understanding, among police officers, of the legal directives regarding the treatment of demonstrators.
In the letter, ACRI attorney Tal Hassin noted that the analysis of the many testimonies received by ACRI shows that police officers acted with unjustified force, showed contempt towards police orders, and abused their authority – as manifested in false threats to arrest and to handcuff protesters and in officers’ refusal to identify themselves. ACRI attorney Sharona Elihau-Chai also turned to the Department for Investigation of Police, asking them to investigate the reported police violence during the demonstration.
Attorney Tal Hassin: “It is the role of police in a democracy to protect freedom of expression and to enable it. However, from the information we received it appears that police conduct has the opposite effect: it deters demonstrators, who wish to realize their constitutional right to freedom of expression, from taking part in the protest.”
