The Stop and Frisk Bill – Good News!

Dear friends,

 

We are all in need of some ‘good news’ these days, and I’m happy to share with you a positive update on the Stop and Frisk Bill. ACRI’s campaign which included intensive work in the Knesset, a satirical video highlighting the arbitrary nature of the bill and the hundreds of letters that you sent to Knesset members had an impact on the final version of the law.

 

The most important achievement is that police will not have the authority to search someone’s person, if there is no concrete suspicion against them. The final version of the law establishes tighter regulations, and authorizes the police to search someone’s body for a weapon, only if there is reasonable suspicion that the person was going to commit an act of violence. Even though the discretion given to police is relatively narrow, we are still concerned that police will continue profiling and discriminating towards the Ethiopian, Arab and Middle Eastern communities. Our campaign succeeded in raising public awareness and we hope that the public’s criticism will continue to have an impact on the ground. The Chairman of the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee promised to continue discussing the issue and we will continue our work to fight against any law that would allow police to randomly violate people’s rights.

 

ACRI’s work on the Stop and Frisk Bill is just one example of what we do in the Knesset, to ensure that human rights are awarded the weight that they deserve in legislative debates, when put alongside other interests and considerations. We cannot overstate the implications that laws have on human rights – which is why we invest so much of our time and resources in the legislative process. We follow bills that are brought before the Knesset, conduct research and submit position papers on different issues, meet with Members of Knesset, participate in Committee meetings and initiate discussions in both Committee meetings as well as the full Knesset.

 

Our staff at ACRI are involved in approximately 30 legislative processes and 100 Knesset debates each year. You are invited to join our mailing list – the Knesset Round Up – to receive regular updates.

 

Yours,

Sharon

 

Sharon Abraham-Weiss
Executive Director,
Association for Civil Rights in Israel