Chazak! They will now be able to broadcast this again, which is good, because it’s very funny – RB
Supreme Court okays Balad, Otzma Le-Israel ads
Aviel Magnezi, Ynet, Jan 15 2013
The Supreme Court overturned a ruling by the Central Election Committee disqualifying Balad’s election ad and censoring parts of Kach Otzma le-Israel’s campaign on Tuesday. The ruling was made by Judge Asher Grunis, Miriam Naor, Edna Arbel, Salim Joubran and Esther Hayut. Central Election Committee Chairman Elyakim Rubinstein rendered the two rulings regarding the ads on Monday. According to Rubinstein, Balad’s use of a distorted instrumental version of Israel’s national anthem “ridicules and debases the national anthem and should therefore be disqualified.” As for the Otzma le-Israel campaign, Rubinstein ruled that parts of its campaign “carry racist or anti-Arab messages and are therefore offensive to the Arab public.” Each of the parties filed a court appeal over the decision, as did the Association for Civil Rights in Israel. The latter claimed:
This is the time for the parties to detail their agendas and perceptions for the public. None of the ads that were disqualified crossed any red lines.
Grunis wrote in his ruling:
The current election’s campaigns adhere to the vast changes in the world of media. Radio and television are just parts of the arena now and the Internet and social media have become a big part of the campaign. This situation, in which massages can be relayed to the public in ways unforeseen by the legislator, mandates an adaptation on the law’s part, in keeping with the times. It is hard to say that both (parties) failed to meet the law’s requirements in a manner which justifies having their ads disqualified. And while both may make the viewers uncomfortable, this does not warrant their disqualification.
Also on Tuesday, the Central Election Committee disqualified a part of an election ad by the Economy Party, in which a woman is seen sucking on a popsicle. Rubinstein proclaimed:
Part of the ad is vulgar and in bad taste, as well running the risk of hurting the public’s feelings.
The party’s previous campaign, depicting a woman taking her clothes off to illustrate its campaign slogan, “the government is stripping us bare,” was also harshly criticized as degrading to women.
High court overturns decision to ban election ads
Aaron Kalman, Timers of Israel, Jan 16 2013
Election ads that last week were ruled inappropriate by the Central Elections Committee are legitimate campaigns, the High Court of Justice decided on Tuesday. The committee had invalidated the Arab-Israeli Balad party’s advertisement, in which it parodied right-wing party members by making puppets of them sing ha-Tikva to an Arabic pop tune. At the time, Central Elections Committee chairman Elyakim Rubinstein said the Arab party’s ad ridiculed the national anthem, and that insulting national icons was unacceptable in an election campaign. Rubinstein had also ruled that the far-right Otzma le-Israel (Power to Israel) party could not broadcast the phrase “Not an Arab country, not a country of infiltrators” in its campaign ad. The decision by Israel’s court allows both parties to run their campaigns as planned. In a separate case, Naftali Bennett’s Beit ha-Yehudi (Jewish Home) party was fined 10k shekels for illegal campaign pictures featuring IDF soldiers. Rubinstein said theit ad violated a law banning use of the IDF “in elections propaganda in any manner or fashion that suggests the IDF is identified with any party or list.” Rubinstein ordered the party to donate the money to a charity for soldiers in need.
Niqnaq 