knesset-cc-SA-by-Chris-Yunker“Only those who ignore history, particularly that of the Jewish people, can underestimate the necessity of organizations defending human rights,” the Association for Civil Rights in Israel wrote in a position paper against the current version of the ‘Hok Hasimun.’
In a petition to the Deputy Attorney General, Attorney Debbie Gild-Hayo, the Director of Policy Advocacy at ACRI, stated that the purpose of the bill as promoted by the Minister of Justice Ayelet Shaked, is not to increase transparency but to persecute and mark out specific non-profit organizations. Non-profit organizations that receive funding from foreign countries will be obligated by law to declare this publicly and their representatives in the Knesset will be required to wear a special tag.
ACRI believes that the bill is inappropriate, anti-democratic, and that it harms basic human rights; similar to several bills that have emerged in recent years to harm organizations that have a different agenda to the government. Previous proposals were ultimately not promoted, due to the harm that they would have caused to democracy.
The existing law already ensures NGOs’ transparency. NGOs have to report the identity of donors who give donations in excess of 20,000 NIS and they are required to report four times a year specifically on donations coming from foreign countries. Therefore, the purpose of the bill is to undermine the legitimacy and activities of organizations that are associated with the political left and human rights organizations. In contrast, there was apparently no attempt to increase the transparency among organizations promoting right-wing agendas, that receive donations from individuals overseas, which in many cases remain confidential.
The bill suggests that organizations that receive donations from foreign countries supposedly serve them, however in reality the opposite is true. Each organization sets its priorities and decides what actions they want to take. Only then do they turn to various entities, including foreign countries to finance them. The implication that these organizations work for foreign countries is misleading and constitutes further defamation against civil society organizations.
The freedom to criticize the government and to monitor and assist those who are harmed by government activities are essential practices of democracy. Unfortunately, senior officials in the Knesset and government are leading attempts to harm these freedoms and are trying to silence criticism of their policies. By doing so, they are acting against international conventions that Israel has signed, that ensure the protection of human rights and those who are working to maintain them. Ironically, the Israeli government boasted in reports to the UN about the freedom of human rights organizations and the government’s cooperation with them, whilst at the same time they are trying to curb their activities.
Please click here to read ACRI’s petition written by Attorney Debbie Gild-Hayo, Director of Policy Advocacy at ACRI (23 November 2015). To read ACRI’s petition in Hebrew please click here.
