United Nations CERD /C/ISR/14-16 International Convention on Distr.: General the Elimination of All Forms 13 January 2011 of Racial Discrimination Original: English Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination Reports submitted by States parties under article 9 of the Convention Fourteenth to sixteenth periodic reports of States parties due in 2010 * Israel ** [25 October 2010] * * This document contains the fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth periodic reports of Israel, due on 2 February 2006, 2008 and 2010 respectively, submitted in one document. For the tenth to thirteenth periodic reports and the summary records of the meetings at which the Committee considered the report, see document CERD/C/471/Add.2, CERD/C/SR.1794, 1795, 1810 and 1813. * ** In accordance with the information transmitted to States parties regarding the processing of their reports, the present document was not formally edited before being sent to the United Nations translation services. GE. CERD/C/ISR/14-16 Contents Paragraphs Page Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………………………..1-25 I. Article 2 26-164 A. Measures to Eliminate Racial Discrimination 26-91 B. Social, Economic and Cultural Measures to Ensure Development and Protection of Racial Groups 92-164 II. Article 3 165 III. Article 4 166-175 IV. Article 5 176-228 A. The Right to Equal Treatment Before National Tribunals 176-211 B. Security of the Person 212-313 C. Political Rights 314-366 D. Civil Rights 367-460 E. Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights 461-828 V. Article 6 829-835 VI. Article 7 836-889 A. Education and Teaching 838-875 B. Culture 876-879 C. Information 880-889 2 CERD/C/ISR/14-16 Introduction 1. The Government of Israel welcomes the opportunity to present its fourteenth periodic report to the Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in accordance with the requirements of article 9, paragraph 1(b), of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (hereinafter, the “Convention” or “CERD”). This report describes the developments that have taken place since the submission of Israel's thirteenth report on 1 September 2005 (CERD/C/471/Add.2), taking into account the concluding comments adopted by the CERD Committee on June 14, 2007 (CERD/C/ISR/CO/13). In accordance with the reporting guidelines, this report builds upon Israel's previous reports. Accordingly, information and explanations that have been included in previous reports from the Government of Israel are not repeated in this Report, except where necessary. 2. In accordance with recommendation No. 41 to the concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination of June 14, 2007, (CERD/C/ISR/CO/1), all Israeli Government Ministries and institutions relevant to this Report were requested to supply data and information concerning their areas of operation. Israeli non-governmental organizations (“NGOs”) were also invited to submit comments prior to the compilation of this Report, both through direct application and a general invitation to submit remarks posted on the Ministry of Justice's web site. Their contributions were given substantial consideration. 3. This Report was compiled by the Human Rights and Foreign Relations Department at the Ministry of Justice, in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other governmental agencies. 4. Racial discrimination is prohibited in Israel. The State of Israel condemns all forms of racial discrimination, and its Government has maintained a consistent policy prohibiting such discrimination. The Israeli Government has taken comprehensive measures to uphold the provisions of CERD since its ratification of this important instrument. 5. Since the submission of Israel’s thirteenth periodic report to the Committee in 2005, many significant legislative, judicial and administrative developments relevant to the Convention have occurred. This Report provides a comprehensive account of these developments. 6. A short summary of several of the most significant policy and legislative developments that have occurred in Israel since Israel's last Report to the Committee is provided below. Please note that while it will naturally take time for some of the more recent developments to translate into concrete results, in many areas substantial new measures that give effect to the provisions of the Convention have already come into effect. 7. In accordance with recommendation No. 39 to the concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination of June 14, 2007, (CERD/C/ISR/CO/1), we would like to note that Israel routinely considers its position with regard to Article 14 of the Convention, but that based on the experience of other states and on the current work of the Committee, it does not consider it appropriate to accept this optional procedure at this time. Under Israel's domestic legal system, any alleged victim of violations has full access to seek effective redress and judicial review in Israeli courts, as well as in many other venues, as detailed in Israel's Core Document. 3 CERD/C/ISR/14-16 Legislative Measures 8. Since the submission of Israel's thirteenth Periodic Report, significant new steps have been taken by the Israeli Parliament (the "Knesset") to promote tolerance and the elimination of racial discrimination in all its forms. Some noteworthy examples are cited below. 9. The Prohibition of Violence in Sport Law 5768-2008 (the " Prohibition of Violence in Sport Law "), came into effect on August 12, 2008. The new Law was enacted in order to facilitate safe and peaceful participation in sporting events, by broadening the definition of a racist display and facilitating training for security personnel, as well as by expanding their responsibilities and authorities. The Law further establishes a Committee for the Prevention of Violence in Sport geared towards the elimination of this phenomenon. Section 15 of the new law expands the offence, which was previously incorporated in Section 11A2, of the Safety in Public Places Law 5723-1962 (the " Safety in Public Places Law "), which prohibited racial expressions during sport events, by effecting several important amendments (please see further discussion in the section addressing Article 7 below). 10. In accordance with recommendation No. 29 to the concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination of June 14, 2007, (CERD/C/ISR/CO/1), which calls, inter alia , for increasing increase efforts to prevent racially motivated offences and hate speech, and to ensure that relevant criminal law provisions are effectively implemented, on February 25, 2008, Section 145 of the Penal Law 5737-1977 (the " Penal Law "), which refers to illicit association, was amended (Amendment No. 96) to include subsection 2A, which prohibits the gathering of people, associated or not, who preach, incite or encourage racism, including preaching, inciting or encouraging the principles of Nazism or the National Socialist Party. According to Sections 146 and 147 of the Penal Law , a person who preaches or encourages the activities forbidden in Section 145 will be sentenced to a maximum of three years' imprisonment, and a person of the age of 16 or over, who is a member, an employee or an agent of an illicit association will be sentenced to a maximum of one year's imprisonment. 11. In accordance with the Committee's recommendation No. 24 of June 14, 2007, (CERD/C/ISR/CO/1), amendment No. 1 to the Pupil's Rights Law 5761-2000 (the " Pupil's Rights Law ") issued on December 22, 2004, amends Section 1. The Pupil's Rights Law stipulates that the purpose of the Law is to establish principles for the rights of pupils in the spirit of human dignity and the principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), while preserving the dignity of all: the pupil, the educational employee and the education institution staff. This, in addition to preserving the uniqueness of different kinds of educational institutions, and to encouraging the creation of an atmosphere of mutual respect in the educational institution community. The amendment also serves to amend Section 4 of the Pupil's Rights Law , stipulating that the Director General's Directive, as well as the school-principals guidelines, must include rules for the protection of dignity, discipline and the prevention of violence. Judicial measures 12. The Supreme Court of Israel has played a pivotal role in the promotion of the principles enshrined in CERD through the development of jurisprudence dealing with contentious and highly charged political and security-related issues. Often, these issues also involve allegations of discrimination. As a result, the Supreme Court has issued a number of precedent setting decisions that have resulted in the modification of past practices. 4 CERD/C/ISR/14-16 13. In the criminal context, a number of criminal cases concerning incitement to racism and the commission of racist acts were decided by the Supreme Court as well as the lower courts, generally resulting in convictions. 14. On December 7, 2006, the Supreme Court rejected an appeal filed against a judgment given by the Jerusalem District Court, which convicted the two appellants with various charges of violence and assault of an Israeli Arab, and sentenced each of them to three years' imprisonment, six months' suspended imprisonment, and required each of them to make compensation to the victim, in the sum of 7,500 NIS (U.S. $2,027). When imposing the sentence, the District Court attributed special gravity to the fact that the offences were racially motivated– the Court asserted that the racial element involved in the offences, must be reflected in the punishment as well. The Supreme Court reaffirmed this approach and emphasized that in a society which espouses the values of equality and protection of human rights, there is no room for such racially motivated crimes, and any such behavior is to be condemned and denunciated.