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Censorship Problems in Israel – The Legal Aspect
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 February 2016
Extract
The State of Israel has always accepted the fact that freedom of the press is both a right and a freedom equal to other basic rights. Even in the absence of a written constitution, the Israel Declaration of Independence implied these rights when is stated that Israel “will be based on the principles of liberty, justice and peace as conceived by the Prophets of Israel; will uphold the full social and political equality of all its citizens, without distinction of religion, race, or sex; will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, education and culture”. It was self-evident to the framers of the Declaration that each citizen in a democratic and free society has the right to know and only then can he participate in the system of public discussion and choose a course of action.
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- Copyright © Cambridge University Press and The Faculty of Law, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem 1971
References
1 See Cohn, Haim, “Freedom of Expression and Individual Rights”, Israel Journalists' Annual (Tel Aviv, 1958) 189–91.Google Scholar
2 This definition is contained in the report of the “Task Force on Government Information”, Ottawa, 1969, Vol. II, pp. 3–10.
3 7 P.D. 871; see (1953) 1 S.J. 90–124.
4 Ibid., p. 94.
5 Among the more sensational stories were the capture, in toto, of a Soviet-made radar station in Egypt and its transport to Israel which appeared first in an English daily long before it was released for publication in Israel; and a reported meeting between King Hussein and Israeli Deputy-Premier Allon which was first published in an American weekly and then denied both by Israel and Jordan.
6 Williams, Francis, Press, Parliament and People (London, 1946) 17.Google Scholar
7 See “The British Press”, London, HMSO publication R 5572/70, p. 39.
8 See Salinger, Pierre, With Kennedy (New York, 1966) 127–60.Google Scholar
9 In 1970 some quarter of a million Israelis were engaged in work for the defence effort.
10 Podamski & Others v. Attorney General (1952) 6 P.D. 341, at 355.
11 Kol Ha'am v. Minister of Interior, op. cit. p. 99. The first Chairman of the Israel Press Council, Mr. Ze'ev Sharef supported this view: “The State must protect the individual. The press does not and should not agree to prior limitation on the publication of any subject. With the exception of the security sphere and in the Israeli situation also immigration, the press must preserve its right to publish any thing, in any form at any time”. See Israel Journalists' Annual (Tel Aviv, 1964) 10.
12 Press Ordinance, 1933, Laws of Palestine, II (1934), pp. 1214–37.
13 Ibid., section 19(2).
14 Ibid., section 20.
15 Reshumot no. 5 (June 16, 1948).
16 See Joseph, Bernard, British Rule in Palestine (Washington, 1948) 228–9.Google Scholar
17 See (1957) 11 L.S.I, sec. 23(d).
18 Reshumot no. 1287 (July 7, 1966), no. 1464 (July 25, 1968), no. 1467 (August 22, 1968), no. 1611 (March, 1970), no. 1615 (April 6, 1970).
19 Knesset Regulations, sec. 28(d). It was under this statute that the Speaker of the House struck out reference, first made by a Member of Knesset, to a meeting between the Jordanian Monarch and Deputy Premier Allon.
20 For a detailed description of the period and the Reactions Committee see Kna'an, Haviv, The Struggle of the Press (Tel Aviv, 1969, Hebrew).Google Scholar See also his “History of Censorship—The Press in the Period of Struggle”, Israel Journalists' Annual (Tel Aviv, 1965) 269–73.
21 See Dissentschik, Aryeh, “Leaks, Sin or Duty” Israel Journalists' Annual (Tel Aviv, 1965) 76–85.Google Scholar
22 Zak, Moshe, “Information Services and Freedom of Information”, Israel Journalists' Annual (Tel Aviv, 1960) 236.Google Scholar
23 In 1969 the credentials of a correspondent representing an American network were temporarily lifted because he had endangered a military operation in Egypt by broadcasting the news to America long before the operation had terminated and before any official announcement had been issued.
24 Israel prides itself on the fact that it has never expelled any foreign correspondent. The TASS correspondent was asked to leave after the Six Day War only because the Soviet authorities refused to permit an Israeli journalist to work in Moscow.
25 This has happened on rare occasions for previous violations of censorship. One case involved the representative of a leading American newspaper who sent a top secret military story from a neighbouring country and was refused permission to return to Israel.
26 For a description of this phenomena see Shadmi, Y. and Schnitzer, S., “Danger of Import”, Israel Journalists' Annual (Tel Aviv, 1965) 71–5.Google Scholar
27 The Judge Advocate General has once submitted an opinion that even though the censor is appointed by the Minister of Defence, he is independent in his considerations and decisions. He can consult his superior officers but the final decision is formally his.