The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Opinion | High Court Guide to the Israel Prize | Israel Today

2021-08-17T09:03:53.683Z


In the past, the court overturned an education minister's decision to award a prize for "not considering all the appropriate considerations"


Last week, the High Court overturned the decision of former Education Minister Yoav Galant not to approve the awarding of the Israel Prize in Mathematics to Prof. Goldreich, because he signed a petition calling for an academic boycott of Ariel University. Who "did not consider the appropriate considerations" and therefore his decision is revoked and passes to the current Minister of Education, who will make a new decision in accordance with the directives of the judges.

Ironically, the first time the High Court chose to interfere with the Education Minister's discretion in approving the award was precisely when the Minister did not take into account value considerations that the court should have considered. The case occurred in 1997, when the Education Minister decided to grant the Israel Prize in the field of journalism for journalist Shmuel Schnitzer.

Three years earlier, Schnitzer had published an article in which he expressed himself in a controversial manner regarding the rise of the Flashmob members, while refusing to repeat his remarks.

The court ruled that the award rules state that the minister cannot decide on his own who to award the prize to, but if he believes there is a problem with the committee's decision, The court ruled that the minister did not take into account Schnitzer's statements when he decided to approve the committee's recommendation, and hence did not consider all the appropriate considerations and therefore his decision was null and void.

In our case, the court decided to intervene in the minister's decision for exactly the opposite reasons. The fact that the minister did take into account the candidate's statements is what makes his considerations "inappropriate." The one who ignored them in 1997? Which court is right? The one who ruled that the minister should give place to value considerations or the one who forbade it?

The contradiction between the Schnitzer case and the Goldreich case reveals the basic perception of the judges who are ultimately the decisive body in the question of how to decide who will receive (or not receive) the Israel Prize.

To those who sit on the judgment seat, the right and good way is always just around the corner.

The temptation to step into the shoes of the minister and determine what considerations to consider is great.

All it takes is a pinch, and here's a better decision!

But the good and the right are not around the corner. In fact it is scattered and messy in many places. The question of whether a person's wrongdoing can be separated from his actions that evokes appreciation is a complex question. The exact point at which such a separation is no longer conceivable varies from person to person according to his personal perception. The court's attempt to decide which value considerations are "out of the question" and which is not, actually leads to the abolition of many proper ways in which the minister could have chosen to go. What is certain is that the decision not to award the Israel Prize for academic activity to anyone who calls for a boycott of this Israeli academic institution is at least a legitimate position that is within the Minister's area of ​​authority.

Source: israelhayom

All news articles on 2021-08-17

You may like

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.