MK Uri Ariel (National Union), who was narrowly elected on Monday to a position on the Committee for the Appointment of Judges, says the Supreme Court needs to be more representative of various sectors in Israel, must not override Knesset laws, and should rely more on Jewish Law. “A reform should be made,” Ariel said on Tuesday morning, “that would allow the Supreme Court – and not lower courts – to review Knesset legislation, but not to override or revoke laws. If there was a constitution – and I favor a constitution reached by a consensus – that would be a different story.” Prof. Meni Martner of Tel Aviv University spoke with Voice of Israel Radio, and agreed that the Supreme Court is currently “more representative of the liberal, Western side of Israeli culture than of the Jewish, conservative aspects.” He further said that the Court “in recent years has become identified with Meretz and the like.” MK Ariel was elected by a one-vote Knesset majority, 59-58, over his challenger, former Finance Minister Roni Bar-On of Kadima. Ariel’s surprise victory was seen as a boon for the nationalist camp, which now, for the first time in memory, has a majority on the nine-member committee. The committee is chaired by Justice Minister Yaakov Ne’eman, and includes Environment Minister Gilad Erdan, Supreme Court Chief Justice Dorit Beinisch, Supreme Court justices Edmond Levi and Ayala Procaccia, and two Israel Bar Association members. Ariel’s party leader, MK Yaakov Katz (Ketzaleh), said afterwards, “The victory of the camp that strongly supports the Land of Israel in the vote regarding the appointment of judges must remind Prime Minister Netanyahu that a Land of Israel coalition stands behind him. This historic vote can strengthen his firm stand against the United States that is pressuring him to do the opposite of what the State of Israel wants, as expressed in the recent elections.” Asked about reports that Chief Justice Beinisch feared that he might be elected to the Committee, MK Ariel said bluntly, “It’s not true. She did not fear my candidacy; that’s a spin made up by the media. One person wrote it, and then everyone followed… It’s true, I did say that Beinisch humiliated Israel, after she met with the US Ambassador to Israel [in late 2007, regarding the partition barrier and Jewish construction in Judea and Samaria – ed.]; I’m sure she’s not afraid of a little criticism.” MK Ariel said he does not think there are enough Israeli judges of Russian or Ethiopian extraction. In response to an interviewer’s question, he said that “if it’s true that there is a significant under-representation of Arabs, then I'll be happy to help increase Arab representation as well.” Asked about Netanyahu’s support for his candidacy, Ariel said, “I’m not sure he supported me; he did not speak to me about this issue at all. I can only say that if Bar-On wants to know why he lost, he should look to his own party.”
