JUSTICE DONE

by MONITOR
IT is perhaps too easy to see Israel as a state dominated by a single political grouping in collaboration with a ruthless military machine. However, voices of protest, whether from individuals or organisations, are often heard in Israel although they may not be reported elsewhere. The parliament, though weakened by too many tiny parties pursuing their limited interests, can put effective pressure on the administration. Most important of all, the Israeli judiciary consistently shows itself to be independent of official influence. The country's High Court this week handed down a ruling that the army's long-standing practice of using Palestinians as human shields in combat is illegal in international law; it also rejected the military's claim that civilians used as shields had volunteered to do so. Israel's chief justice was very clear: “You cannot exploit the civilian population for the army's military needs, and you cannot force them to collaborate.” The judgement was on a case brought three years ago by human rights organisations which claimed that the army routinely forced Palestinians to enter buildings to see whether they were booby-trapped and placed Palestinians immediately in front of soldiers who were using their weapons. There have been many complaints from the Palestinians about these practices but it has taken protest within Israel to get them stopped. In the ruling the chief justice quoted the Geneva Conventions on the behaviour of an occupying force towards the civilians under its control. How long will it be before Israel's Supreme Court is asked to invoke the Geneva Convention which prohibits building on land a country occupies as the result of military action?