“Otherness” as the Underlying Principle in Israel's Asylum Regime

Israel Law Review

Volumn 42, Issue 3, 2009, Pages 603-627

  Kritzman Amir, Tally ^a  

^a The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute   (Israel)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 84944684168     PISSN: 00212237     EISSN: 20479336     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1017/S002122370000073X     Document Type: Article

References (157)

1. United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, Aug. 1,1951,189 U.N.T.S. 150, [hereinafter the Refugee Convention].
2. For an overview of the Israeli asylum system in its formative stage, see Anat Ben-Dor & Rami Adut, Israel: a Safe Haven? Problems in the Treatment Offered by the State of Israel to Refugees and Asylum Seekers: Report and Position Paper (2003).
3. See, e.g.,OrenYiftachel, ‘Ethnocracy’- The Politics of Judaizing Israel/Palestine, 3 Constellations 364 (2002)
4. Sammy Smooha, Minority Status in an Ethnic Democracy: The Status of the Arab Minority in Israel, 13 Ethnic & Racial Stud. 389 (1999)
5. Yoav Peled, Ethnic Democracy and Legal Construction of Citizenship: Arab Citizens of the Jewish State, 86 Am. Pol. Sci. Rev. 432 (1992).
6. Law of Return, 1950, S.H. 159
7. Bill and an Explanatory Note (no. 48), 1950, HH, 189
8. Nationality Law, 1952, S.H. 146
9. Draft Bill, (no. 93), 1951, H.H. 22.
10. On the migration for employment in Israel, see, e.g., Sarah S. Willen, Transnational Migration TO Israel in Global Comparative Context (2007).
11. See, e.g., the Nationality Law, Transnational Migration TO Israel in Global Comparative Context, art. 11.
12. Nationality and Entry into Israel (Temporary Order) Law, 5763–2003, Passed by the Knesset on July 31, 2003.
13. see Nationality and Entry into Israel (Temporary Order) Law, 2003, S.H. 544. 2.
14. See also, HCJ 7052/03 Adalah—The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel v.The Minister of Interior [Feb. 14, 2006] (unpublished)
15. reprinted in, Original petition to the High Court of Justice, Oxford Report on International Law in Domestic Courts (ILDC) 393 (IL 2006).
16. Refugee Convention, Oxford Report on International Law in Domestic Courts (ILDC), art. 1(D) specifies that [t]his Convention shall not apply to persons who are at present receiving from organs or agencies of the United Nations other than the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees protection or assistance. When such protection or assistance has ceased for any reason, without the position of such persons being definitively settled in accordance with the relevant resolutions adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations, these persons shall ipso facto be entitled to the benefits of this Convention.
17. See also Michael Kagan & Anat Ben-Dor, Nowhere to Run: Gay Palestinian Asylum-Seekers in Israel (2008), available at http://www.law.tau.ac.il/Heb/_Uploads/dbsAttachedFiles/NowheretoRun.pdf
18. Lex Tekkenberg, The status of Palestinian Refugees in International Law (1998).
19. Finally, see the recently published UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Revised Note on the Applicability of Article ID of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees to Palestinian Refugees (October 2009), available at http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4add77d42.html.
20. Regulations Regarding the Treatment of Asylum Seekers in Israel, art. 6 (2001) (on file with author) [hereinafter the Regulations].
21. See Prevention of Infiltration (Offences and Jurisdiction) Law, 1954, S.H. 160
22. Bill and an Explanatory Note, (no. 161), 1953, H.H. 172.
23. See, e.g., Rinus Penninx, Immigrants and the Dynamics of Social Exclusion: Lessons for Anti-Discrimination Policies, in Dedication Anti Detachment: Essays in Honour of Hans Vermeulen 193 (Flip Lindo, Onbekend, Mies van Niekerk, & Hans Vermeulen eds., 2001).
24. Zygmund Bauman, Modernity and Ambivalence 58 (1991).
25. Stuart Hall, Introduction: Who Needs Identity?, in Questions of Cultural Identity 4–5 (Stuart Hall & Paul Du Gay eds., 1996)
26. Gerard Delanty, Citizenship in a Global Age: Society, Culture, Politics 115 (2000). This Article refers to the constitution of the “we-ness” only indirectly within its limited scope as the flip side of the coin of the formation of the “otherness.”
27. This dichotomy has been critiqued in the feminist critique of international law. See, e.g., Ann Tickner, Gender in International Relations 64–65 (1992)
28. Saskia Sassen, Is This the Way to Go?—Handling Immigration in a Global Era, 4 Stan. Agora 1 (2003).
29. See, e.g., Penninx, Handling Immigration in a Global Era
30. Zygmund Bauman, Modernity and the Holocaust 52 ff. (1989).
31. Zygmund Bauman, Postmodernity and Its Discontent 17 (1997).
32. Bauman, Postmodernity and Its Discontent, at 15.
33. See Postmodernity and Its Discontent
34. see also Ian Lustick, Israel as a Non-Arab State: The Political Implications of Mass Immigration of Non-Jews, 53 Mid. E. J. 417 (1999).
35. Law of Return, Israel as a Non-Arab State: The Political Implications of Mass Immigration of Non-Jews, art. 1.
36. Published in the Official Gazette, No. 1 of the 5th of lyar, 5708 (May 14, 1948), available at http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace+Process/Guide+to+the+Peace+Process/Declaration+of+Establishment+of+State+of+Israel.htm.
37. See, e.g., the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, art. 1, S.H. 1391, according to which “[t]he purpose of this Basic Law is to protect human dignity and liberty, in order to establish in a Basic Law the values of the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state.”
38. Bill and an Explanatory Note (no. 2086), HH, 1992, 60, available at http://www.knesset.gov.il/laws/special/eng/basic3_eng. htm.
39. On the connection between being an Israeli state and maintaining a Jewish majority in Israel, see the Interim Report of the Advisory Committee on Israel's Immigration Policy 3–6 (Feb. 7, 2006) [in Hebrew] (copy on file with author). This committee was appointed by the former minister of interior and headed by Prof Amnon Rubinstein.
40. See e.g., the discussion following the second and third vote on the Law of Return in the Israeli Parliament, Aug. 27, 1952, 12 DK (1952) 3167.
41. See, e.g., AdmA 1644/05 Nikolay Frida v. The Ministry of Interior [June 29,2005] (unpublished).
42. See Nikolay Frida v. The Ministry of Interior.
43. HCJ 72/62 Rufaizen v. The Minister of Interior [1962] IsrSC 16 2428
44. HCJ 56/68 Kendel v. The Minister of Interior [1968] IsrSC 23(2) 477.
45. Law of Return, Kendel v. The Minister of Interior, arts. 4a & 4b.
46. Lustick, Kendel v. The Minister of Interior, at 101.
47. See, e.g., Chaim Gans, The Palestinian Right of Return and the Justice of Zionism, 5 Theoretical Inq. L. (2004), available at http://www.bepress.com/til/default/vol5/iss2/art2/
48. Alon Harel, Whose Home Is It? Reflections on the Palestinians ‘Interest in Return, 5 Theoretical Inq. L. (2004), available at http://www.bepress.com/til/default/vol5/iss2/art5.
49. See, e.g., Chaim Gans, Nationalist Priorities and Restrictions in Immigration: The Case of Israel, 2 L. & Ethics Hum. Rts. (2008), available at http://www.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi7a rticle= 1024&context=lehr.
50. Entry into Israel Law, 1952, S.H. 1ll
51. Bill and an Explanatory Note (no. 106), 1952, H.H., 134.
52. On the migration for employment in Israel, see, e.g. Willen, H.H.
53. On the structural exploitative scheme of employment of migrant workers, see HCJ 4542/02 Kav La'oved Association v. Israel [March 30, 2006] (unpublished)
54. original petition to the High Court of Justice is translated in ILDC 382 (IL 2006).
55. Adalah v. The Minister of Interior, ILDC.
56. Law of Return, ILDC, arts. 2.
57. Id. arts.3 & 3a.
58. The question of whether the Palestinians fled Israel voluntarily or whether they were forced to leave by the State of Israel has been well-debated by historians and falls beyond the scope of this paper. See generally Benny Morris, The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem, 1947–1949 (1989).
59. Law of Return, The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem, art. 4a.
60. Israel is a party to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, Aug. 30, 1961, 989 U.N.TS. 175.
61. In AdmApp (Tel Aviv) 2887/05 Elkasayev v. The Minister of Interior Affairs [Jan. 29, 2007] (unpublished), the court ordered the Ministry of Interior to enact regulations on the process through which stateless persons can acquire citizenship in Israel.
62. On the courts' attempts to simplify and shorten the naturalization process for family members of citizens, see HCJ 3648/97
63. Stamka v. The Minister of Interior [1999] IsrSC 53(2) 728
64. Adm. App.4614/05 The Minister of Interior v. Oren [Mar. 16, 2006] (unpublished).
65. See also Adm.Pet. 2790/04 Rozenberg v. The Minister of Interior [Dec. 29,2004] (unpublished).
66. Adm.Pet. 530/07 The Association for Civil Rights in Israel v. The Ministry of Interior [Dec. 5, 2007] (unpublished).
67. See, e.g. The Procedure on Treatment of Partners of Israeli Citizens, Including Same-Sex Partners, Procedure (Feb. 5, 2009), available at http://www.moin.gov.il/Apps/PubWebSite/ publications.nsf/All/9CD5C9CFC6C82B85422570AD00431263/$FILE/Publications.2.0009%20–10.8.09doc.pdf?OpenElement.
68. Nationality and Entry into Israel, The Procedure on Treatment of Partners of Israeli Citizens, Including Same-Sex Partners, Procedure. The existence of such rare and exceptional circumstances is supposed to be considered by a committee. It remains unclear whether this committee does, in fact, convene and make such decisions.
69. Law of Return, The Procedure on Treatment of Partners of Israeli Citizens, Including Same-Sex Partners, Procedure, art. 11.
70. See, e.g., HCJ 2934/07 Israel Law Center v. The Chair Person of the Knesset [Sept. 16,2007] (unpublished).
71. Letter from Adv. Oded Feller, Association of Civil Rights in Israel, to the Legal Advisor of the Ministry of Interior 6 (Jan. 10, 2007) (on file with author).
72. See also, e.g., HCJ 2271/98.
73. Dunia Zad Ahmed Muhammad Abed Hathut v. The Minister of Interior [2001] IsrSC 51(1) 458. It should also be mentioned that while there were efforts to revoke status of Palestinians who rightfully gained their status, occasionally, citizenship is revoked to those who acquired it under false pretense. This is not done exclusively for Palestinians, but also for persons who claimed to be Jewish.
74. See, e.g., HCJ 713/00 David Adishvili v. The Ministry of Interior [Mar. 19, 2001] (unpublished)
75. HCJ 754/83 Christopher Mark Rankin v. The Minister of Interior [Nov. 16, 1984] (unpublished).
76. See, e.g., Adm.Pet. (Jerusalem) 384/07 Hatem Siaj v. The Minister of Interior [2008] (unpublished) (regarding the loss of residency of a person who left Israel to study abroad)
77. Adm. Pet. (Jerusalem) 247/07 Omri v. The Minister of Interior [2007] (unpublished) (regarding the loss of residency of a person who left Israel to live with a spouse in his country of citizenship and wanted to regain his residency following their divorce).
78. It should be noted that the status of Palestinians residing in East Jerusalem is slightly different. However, this falls outside the scope of this discussion. See The Association of Civil Rights in Israel, The State of Human Rights in East Jerusalem: Facts and Figures (May 2009) available at http://www.acri.org.il/pdf/eastjer2009.pdf.
79. See The State of Human Rights in East Jerusalem: Facts and Figures.
80. The Refugee Convention, The State of Human Rights in East Jerusalem: Facts and Figures, at art. 1(A)(2).
81. Id. art.33.
82. See, e.g., id. art. 4 (freedom of religion); arts. 13–15 (property rights); arts. 17–19 (employment rights); arts. 2–23 (welfare and education rights); etc.
83. This perception is often a bit unclear, since decisions to immigrate can often be categorized as difficult choices at best. On the distinction between coerced choices and difficult choices in immigration, see, e.g., Harry Beran, What is the Basis for Political Authority?, 66 Monist 479, 497–98 (1983). Beran makes this distinction in a different context; namely, discussing whether an individual's choice to immigrate or to refrain from immigrating could and should be understood as an implied consent to the social contract. Similarly, David Hume commented that many do not have the choice to immigrate as they have been denied freedom of movement.
84. He is also often quote saying, “Can we seriously say that a poor peasant or artisan has a free choice to leave his country, when he knows no foreign language or manners, and lives from day to day on small wages which he acquires?” See David Hume, Of the Original Contract, in Hume's Moral and Political Philosophy 363–64 (Henry David Aiken ed., 1948). It should be noted that Hume made this remark in the context of a discussion about the duty to obey the law.
85. On the concept of necessity in immigration, see Niraj Nathwani, Rethinking Refugee Law 27–28 (2003). It should be noted that there are other immigrants who are in refugee-like situations and whose immigration is a result of extreme necessity, that are currently not classified as refiigees, such as victims of natural disasters, civil wars, general violence, etc. For the sake of simplicity, the Article only refers to refiigees.
86. For further elaboration on the limits of the boundaries of the category of refiigees see Tally Kritzman-Amir, Socio-Economic Refiigees (2009) (unpublished PhD Dissertation, Tel Aviv University) (on file with the author).
87. Refiigee Convention, Socio-Economic Refiigees, arts. 1(A)(2) and 1(C), which refers to a person “who is able to invoke compelling reasons arising out of previous persecution for refiising to return to the country of his former habitual residence.” This exception to the cessation of status was originally intended to apply to Holocaust refiigees, but it was recently purposively interpreted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refiigees (UNHCR) to “cover cases where refiigees, or their family members, have suffered atrocious forms of persecution and therefore cannot be expected to return to the country of origin or former habitual residence.” UNHCR Guidelines, International Protection: Cessation of Refiigee Status under Article 1C(5) and (6) of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refiigees (the ‘Ceased Circumstances’ Clauses), (2003) 6 (ss. 20–21) (Feb. 10, 2003).
88. James C. Hathaway, The Law of Refugee Status 135 (1991).
89. See, e.g. Holly Buchanan, Escape from Darfur: Why Israel Needs to Adopt a Comprehensive Domestic Refiigee Law, 11 Chap. L. Rev. 601, 611–12 (2008).
90. Jewish refiigees are treated by the Law of Return. See Law of Return, Chap. L. Rev.
91. Regulations, Chap. L. Rev.
92. This does not mean that the Refugee Convention does not have any legal meaning in Israel. The Regulations refer to the Refugee Convention. Due to a “conformity presumption, Israeli courts will always prefer to interpret legislation in a manner it conforms to the Refugee Convention, rather than interpreting it in a manner it contradicts the Refugee Convention.” On this presumption, see, e.g., CrA 6182/98 Shienbien v. The Government's Legal Council [1999] IsrSC 53(1) 625
93. HCJ 279/51 Amsterdam v. The Minister of Finance [1952] IsrSC 6 945
94. HCJ 279/51 [1952] IsrSC 6 945,966 (1952).
95. Up until February 2009, Israel has granted refugee status to about 170 asylum seekers. See Refugee Rights Seekers Forum, Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Israel (2009), available at http://www.acri.org.il/pdf/refugees0209.pdf [in Hebrew]. Others are considered to be in a refugeelike situation, and are not granted recognition. This policy has harsh implications on the day-to-day lives of these persons. It should be noted that the Refugee Convention remains vague and does not spell out a requirement for states to recognize of refugees as such.
96. See Regulations, Refugee Rights Seekers Forum, Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Israel, art. 3(D) and the current Procedure on the Treatment of Asylum Seekers in Israel, and of Persons who were Recognized as Deserving of Asylum by the Minister of Interior, art. C(3), available at http://www.moin.gov.il/Apps/PubWebSite/publications.nsf/All/A5C 1B2D4 AD341823422570AD004311 F4/$FILE/Publications.2.0012.pdf?OpenElement [in Hebrew] (last visited Dec. 16, 2009).
97. On the relationship between citizenship, refugee status, and rights see Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism 292–93 (1973).
98. Compare with the policy in the United States, defined in the Immigration and Nationality Act, arts. 209(b) and 316(a), 8 U.S.C. 1159
99. and 8 U.S.C. 1427, (determining naturalization of refugees to permanent residents and then to citizens in the United States); and with European Council Directive 2003/109/EC of Nov. 25, 2003 concerning the status of third-country nationals who are long-term residents.
100. See also Arendt, U.S.C., at 292–93.
101. See Tally Kritzman-Amir & Adriana Kemp, Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Israel: Between the Administrative Procedure and the Civil Society, Mishpat Hevra Ve'tarbut 55 (2008) [in Hebrew].
102. See Letter from the UNHCR office in Tel Aviv, Status and Protection of Asylum Seekers in Israel—Explanations and Updates, (Aug. 12,2008) [in Hebrew] (on file with author).
103. See Tel Aviv, Status and Protection of Asylum Seekers in Israel—Explanations and Updates, section B.
104. On chaos and otherness, see Bauman, Tel Aviv, Status and Protection of Asylum Seekers in Israel—Explanations and Updates, at 15.
105. Interestingly, and perhaps surprisingly, Zygmund Bauman made a similar distinction with respect to Jews in Europe prior to the Holocaust. See Tel Aviv, Status and Protection of Asylum Seekers in Israel—Explanations and Updates.
106. On group protection of Vietnamese, Southern Lebanese, and others, see Ben Herzog, Zionist Humanism: The Glocality of the Debate over Refuge in Israel (2003) (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Tel Aviv University) (on file with author).
107. Temporary protection for Liberians was terminated in 2007. See Dan Izenberg, Liberia Asks Israel to Let its Refugees Stay, Jerusalem Post, Feb. 27, 2007, available at http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1171894534035.
108. Temporary protection for Sierra Leonese was terminated in 2005. See Ina Friedman, Israel Preps Sierra Leone Refugees to Return Home, July 25, 2005, Jerusalem Report.
109. See Tally Kritzman, Paper presented to the Association for Israel Studies 23rd Annual Conference, Israel as an Immigrant Society: Between the Melting Pot and Multiculturalism: Israel as a State of Temporary Asylum (June 11–13, 2007) (on file with author).
110. On the government decision to grant temporary protection, see Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Israel, available at http://www.acri.org.il/Story.aspx?id=1878 [in Hebrew] (last visited Dec. 16, 2009).
111. The vast majority of the asylum seekers in Israel arrive from Sudan and Eritrea. Those arriving from Eritrea have escaped forced prescription, religious persecution, and other human rights violations. Those arriving from Sudan have escaped the difficult crisis, often referred to as genocide, in Darfur, the civil war in South Sudan, and tribal or religious persecution. Asylum seekers from both nationalities are likely to face persecution if returned to their country of origin. See United Kingdom: Home Office, Operational Guidance Note: Sudan, Nov. 2, 2009 (describing the situation in the Sudan), available at http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4aeecfca2.html
112. see United Kingdom: Home Office, Country of Origin Information Report—Eritrea, Oct. 13, 2009 (describing on the situation in Eritrea) available at http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4adclb972. html (see particularly Section 33 on the Treatment of Returned Asylum Seekers).
113. Joan Fitzpatrick, Temporary Protection of Refugees: Elements of a Formalized Regime, 94 Am. J. Int'l L. 279 (2000).
114. See also Joseph Pugliese, The Incommensurability of Law to Justice: Refugees and Australia's Temporary Protection Visa, 16. L. & Lit. 285, 296–98 (2004)
115. Scott Reynolds, European Council Directive 2001/55/EC: Toward a Common European Asylum System, 8 Colum. J. Eur. L. 359, 360 (2002)
116. Randall Hansen, Susan Martin, Andrew Scheonholtz, & Patrick Weil, Report on the Workshop on Refugee and Asylum Policy in Practice in Europe and North America, 14 Geo. Immigration. L.J. 801, 808–09 (2000).
117. Id. at 291 ff.
118. Refugee Convention, Id., art. 1(C).
119. Fitzpatrick, Id., at 300 ff.
120. Everett C. Hughes, Dilemmas and Contradictions of Status. 50 Am. J. Soc. 353 (1945).
121. See, e.g. Hundreds of Darfur Refugees Flock to Israel, Washington Post, July 13, 2007, available at http://www.washingtontimes.eom/news/2007/jul/l3/hundreds-of-darfur-refiigees-flock-to-isr-44735475 (“Israeli municipalities such as Beersheba and Eilat are worried that the refugees might become their financial burden.”).
122. See, e.g., Roni Sofer, Olmert: We Must Curb Infiltrations from Egypt, Mar. 23,2008, available at /http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3522476,00.html (“This is tsunami that can only get worse,’ said Olmert. ∗We must do everything we can to stop it.’ Olmert was reportedly furious by the fact that the problem has yet to be curbed: ‘Israel has taken a tough stand with the Palestinian, stopping any of their citizens from entering Israel, and yet thousands have crossed over (to Israel) in a matter of months.’”).
123. Jean Francois Lyotard, The Differend: Phrases in Dispute (1988).
124. ID.
125. Asylum seekers are not detained if the detention centers are at their full occupancy or if they manage to evade the army border control forces. Typically, though, asylum seekers await border control soldiers and do not attempt to infiltrate without being noticed. On occasion, when detention facihties were full, asylum seekers are taken by the soldiers to one of the major cities in the south of Israel and left there. See Bruno Oliveira Martins, Undocumented Migrants, Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Israel 13 (2009).
126. See, e.g., Dan Izenberg, 100 Refugee Kids Held in ‘Harsh Conditions’ at Ketziot, Jerusalem Post, Jan. 8, 2008 (covering a petition on detention conditions of asylum seekers), available at http://www.hotline.org.il/english/news/2008/JerusalemPost010808-new.htm.
127. See infra, section D.
128. Refugee Convention, Refugee Kids Held in ‘Harsh Conditions’ at Ketziot, at art. 31.
129. Martins, Refugee Kids Held in ‘Harsh Conditions’ at Ketziot.
130. HCJ 5616/09 African Refugee Development Center v. The Ministry of Interior [Aug. 26,2009] (unpublished).
131. On Iraqi asylum seekers in Israel see HCJ 4702/94 Al-Tai'il v. The Minister of the Interior [1995] IsrSC 49(3) 843.
132. “A person who was not a refugee when he left his country, but who becomes a refugee at a later date, is called a refugee ‘sur place.’” UNHCR, Handbook on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status under the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees para. 94 (1992)
133. Hathaway, Handbook on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status under the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees, at 41–42.
134. See Anat Ben-Dor & Michael Kagan, The Refugee from my Enemy is my Enemy: The Detention and Exclusion of Sudanese Refugees in Israel, Paper presented to the Minerva Conference on Human Rights (Nov. 19, 2006) (copy on file with author).
135. For an analysis of Article ID of the Refugee Convention, see Lewis Saideman, Do Palestinian Refitgees Have a Right of Return to Israel? An Examination of the Scope of and Limitations on the Right of Return, 44 Va. J. Int'l L. 829, 859 ff (2004)
136. see also Kagan & Ben-Dor, Va. J. Int'l L
137. Tekkenberg, Va. J. Int'l L.
138. Article 33(d) of the state's response to petitions Anonymous Petitioners v. The Head of the Israeli Defence Forces Operations, Va. J. Int'l L.
139. Refugee Convention, Va. J. Int'l L, art. 3.
140. Id. art. 1(F).
141. See Sigal Goldin & Adriana Kemp, Foreignness and Fertility: On the Bio-Politics of Migration for Employment, Body and Gender, in Racism in Israel (2008)
142. Deborah Lupton, Risk and Otherness, in Risk 123 (1999).
143. Carl Schmitt, The Concept of the Political 19–35 (1976).
144. See The Concept of the Political 19–35.
145. See The Concept of the Political 19–35.
146. On a number of occasions, Israel did, in fact, deport persons to Egypt, which later deported them to their countries of nationality. See Refugee Rights Forum 2008, IDF Keeps on Expelling Asylum Seekers to Egypt Despite Egypt's Declarations to the Media that they will be Deported to Their Homelands, available at http://www.hotline.org.il/english/news/2008/Hotline090308.htm. This policy is currently challenged in a petition that is pending before the Supreme Court in HCJ 7302/07 The Hotline for Migrant Workers v. The Minister of Defense
147. This was mentioned by the honorary senior officer of the UNHCR, Mr. Michael Bavli, in his talk with the Refugee Rights Clinic, Mar. 20,2007.
148. Compare with Giorgio Agamben, Homo Sacer: Sovereign Power and Bare Life (1998).
149. See, e.g., IRIN, ISRAEL: Asylum-Seekers Detained, Harassed, Feb. 4, 2009, available at http://www.irirmews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=82739.
150. See letter from the UNHCR office in Tel Aviv, ISRAEL: Asylum-Seekers Detained, Harassed.
151. Entry into Israel Law, ISRAEL: Asylum-Seekers Detained, Harassed.
152. Recently, the detention of enemy nationals is being regulated under the Entry into Israel Law after the first ten days of detention. See Anonymous Petitioners v. The Head of the Israeli Defence Forces Operations, ISRAEL: Asylum-Seekers Detained, Harassed (interim decision delivered by the Court) [Oct. 7, 2008].
153. See id. (petition) [submitted Apr. 2006] (copy on file with author).
154. See id. (Respondents' response to the petition) [June 18,2008] (copy on file with author).
155. See Letter from the UNHCR office in Tel Aviv, id.
156. In this Article, the term “refugee law,” refers to the Refugee Convention, the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, 606 U.N.T.S. 8791, several regional instruments, and other “soft law” norms that developed later, such as UNHCR handbook and guidelines, which are a semi-authoritative source of interpretation of the other refugee law norms.
157. Maryellen FuUerton, The International and National Protection of Refugees, in Guide to International Human Rights Practice 245, 247 (Hurst Hannum ed., 4th ed. 2004).