Freedom of Expression/History/Country sources/Israel
What is the oldest written source in this country that mentions this right?
Israel
Israel is one of the few countries in the world that lacks an official written constitution. Multiple attempts have been made as early as 1948 but none have successfully drafted and implemented a formal constitution. Instead, Israeli leaders enacted several pieces of legislation known as the Basic Laws, or Knessets, eleven of which have passed. This has led to multiple changes in “constitutional” legislature from the first Knesset in 1958 to the final two Basic Laws enacted in 1992. Interestingly enough, the Basic Laws that were typically considered to hold constitutional weight, weren’t formally entrenched as laws that supersede common legislature until 1995(2020).
Under these Basic Laws, there is no official guarantee of the protection of freedom of expression. Instead, the Israeli Supreme Court has largely dictated the extent of the right to freedom of expression (Levush, 2019). In Alan Levi And Yaheli Amit v. Southern District Police Commander (1984), the Supreme Court ruled that “The right of demonstration and procession is a fundamental human right in Israel. It is recognized along with free speech, or emanating therefrom - as belonging to the freedoms that characterize Israel as a democratic state.”
However, there are limitations on the freedom of expression should any acts of expression “that constitutes incitement for racism, terrorism and violence; outrage to religious feelings; publication of false news causing fear and alarm; as well as expression of denial of the holocaust and praise for atrocities committed by the Nazis.” (Levush, 2019) Insults to public servants are also punishable by law and result in imprisonment for six months. Furthermore, it is expected that courts balance competing interests when discerning the extent to which the freedom of expression encroaches on other rights that embody the Israeli state(Levush, 2019).
Sources:
2020. Knesset.gov.il. 2020. https://knesset.gov.il/constitution/ConstIntro_eng.htm.
Levush, Ruth. 2019. “Limits on Freedom of Expression.” Maint.loc.gov. June 1, 2019. https://maint.loc.gov/law/help/freedom-expression/israel.php.
“Israel 1958 (Rev. 2013) Constitution - Constitute.” n.d. Www.constituteproject.org. https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Israel_2013.
Alevi, Alan, Yaheli Amit, Alan Levi, and D Levin. n.d. “393 Police Ordinance (New Version), 1971, Sections 83, 84 Press Ordinance.” Southern District Police Commander 1 P.D 38, no. 2: 1214. Accessed June 7, 2024. https://versa.cardozo.yu.edu/sites/default/files/upload/opinions/Levi%20v.%2 Southern%20District%20Police%20Commander_0.pdf.