The Judicial Overhaul and Anti-Democratic Initiatives

Judicial overhaul initiatives, along with other anti-democratic measures, have continued to be promoted by the government and the coalition in the Knesset, even following the start of the October 7th war and despite public assertions of coalition members indicating that the judicial overhaul and other controversial initiatives are "off the table." This document outlines the various actions taken in government that weaken the Israeli judiciary and democracy at large.

Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90

As is well known, for most of 2023 (up to October 7th), the coalition was dedicated to promoting judicial overhaul legislation and initiatives, which strived to counter key checks and balances in Israeli democracy by increasingly consolidating power in the hands of the government, while weakening the judiciary and allowing political considerations to have growing influence on public sector professionals. Judicial overhaul initiatives, along with other anti-democratic measures, have continued to be promoted by the government and the coalition in the Knesset, even following the start of the October 7^th war and despite public assertions of coalition members indicating that the judicial overhaul and other controversial initiatives are "off the table."

This document outlines the various actions taken in government that weaken the Israeli judiciary and democracy at large.

The “2024 model" of the Overhaul

A review of the steps taken by the coalition in recent months paints a very different picture than the promise to take anti-democratic initiatives "off the table" following October 7: coalition members continue to advance such initiatives in Israel, which would compromise the already weakened system of checks and balances. Their current actions show that the essence of their anti-democratic initiatives has not changed, and only the method to achieving it has been altered. Realizing that proposed amendments to basic laws—laws (which are hierarchically superior to regular laws)–attracted massive public outcry and protests throughout 2023, this method is no longer the focus. Instead of amendments to basic laws, the newly adopted method now includes legislation, regulation, questionable nominations, firing of gatekeepers, aggressive use of police and security forces, delaying critical decisions, and excessive politicization on multiple fronts. All these initiatives serve the same purpose: consolidating power in the hands of the executive branch (i.e., the Prime Minister and members of the coalition) while minimizing the power of the professional sectors.

These initiatives present multiple perils to Israeli democracy. First, the great variety of the actions being taken make them difficult to track. Second, some of these steps may seem relatively "soft," and one must therefore examine the critical mass of these steps to truly grasp their grave damage to democracy. Third, by taking these steps in the course of a war, the coalition is attempting to present some of them as helpful to the war effort, when, in fact, many of them are not at all related. Fourth, the steps are no longer focused on structural and procedural change, they are now infringing directly on basic rights. Fifth, processes currently promoted by the government may pave the way for the return of further anti-democratic legislation (for example, the more steps taken to weaken the public service sector, the less power gatekeepers have to prevent problematic legislative changes).

Below are several examples of the ways and means employed in recent months by the government and the coalition that weaken Israeli democracy.

A situation report marking the end of the Knesset's winter session (April 2024)

Conclusion

This document demonstrates that elements of the judicial overhaul, along with other initiatives to weaken Israeli democracy, are still being actively pursued even after the events of October 7th and despite statements by members of the coalition claiming that the overhaul is "off the table.”

At the heart of the coalition's actions are a massive wave of firing and resignations of gatekeepers, the weakening the professional sector in government ministries, together with anti-democratic legislation, and a governmental infringement on basic human rights. Also, there are clear, ongoing attempts to chip away at the independence of the judicial system, the media, academia, and civil society. The different actions weaken Israeli democracy and they also pave the way to reinstating the original legislative steps of the judicial overhaul.  In light of the new nature of these anti-democratic initiatives, it is particularly important to continue to follow these actions closely.