Seeking Asylum in Israel: Refugees and the History of Migration Law

317 Pages·2016·1.606 MB·English

by  Gilad Ben-Nun

GiladBen-NunisMarieCurieIndividualFellowatVeronaUniversity’s
Department of Public International Law and holds a PhD from the
University of Leipzig. He is also the author of The Fourth Geneva
Convention: The History of International Humanitarian Law (I.B.Tauris,
forthcoming).
“Fascinating, even gripping ... [the book] sheds rare light onto the
drafting process of the most important treaty on refugees.”
Pierre Hazan, Special Advisor on Transitional Justice,
Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (Geneva) and
Associate Professor, Neuchaˆtel University
“Nomomentcouldbemoreappropriatefortacklingthistopicthantoday,
whenallofEurope,insideandoutsideoftheEU,andtheMediterranean
region, are helpless and in disarray facing the refugee crisis. Gilad
Ben-Nundaresatwin-trackstrategyofmakingusawareaboutthesection
ofinternationallawthathasbecomesocriticalafterWorldWarIIandthe
period of decolonization, and the role the youngstateofIsrael played in
writing and commenting this law: that is one track. The other is the
application of international and national law on refugees to Israel.
The second track can be observed as a paradigmatic oscillation between
universalism – i.e.alsoaglobalcommitmenttoconventionsandrulesof
supranationallaw – andafall-backintooldandnewnationalisms...This
book ispioneering inseveral ways.”
Michael Daxner, Professor, Freie Universita¨t Berlin and former
Principal International Officer, United Nations Interim
Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK)
“This book demonstrates convincingly that knowing about global
history is essential for understanding current international events.
By analyzing the conflict between judges and government in Israel
concerning the treatment of refugees, the author has made visible the
deep roots of today’s migration policies.”
Matthias Middell, Professor of Global History,
University of Leipzig
SEEKING
ASYLUM IN
ISRAEL
Refugees and the History of Migration Law
G B -N
ILAD EN UN
Publishedin2017by
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Copyrightq2017GiladBen-Nun
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To Keren:
התאואיהתחאבהואה
Maimonides, Commentary on the Mishna, Avot A. 6.

CONTENTS
List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgements xi
Introduction 1
Part I Universalism Established: Israel and the Creation
of the International Refugee Regime
1. The Origins of the 1951 Refugee Convention and
Non-Discrimination 19
2. The Origins of the Non-Refoulement Principle 51
Part II Universalism Lost: Israeli Governmental Policies
toward Non-Jewish Migrants, 2006–13
3. The Moderateness of the Sharon–Olmert Administrations,
2005–8 89
4. The Rise of the Israeli Extreme Right, 2009–12 108
5. The Legislative Process and Modern Adaptation of the
1954 Anti-Infiltration Act 119
6. The Israeli Extreme Right’s Anti-Migrant Onslaught 135
viii SEEKING ASYLUM INISRAEL
Part III Universalism Regained: The Israeli Judiciary and
the African Migration Challenge
7. The Revocation of the 2012 and 2013 Anti-Infiltration Acts 165
8. Incarceration, Forced Resettlement, and the Ensuing
Constitutional Crisis 206
Conclusion 219
Notes 229
Bibliography 273
Index 291
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Map
Map 1.1 Main East African migrant route to Israel 14
Graph
Graph 7.1 Working permits issued to non-Jewish residents
in Israel, 2000–12 157