Let’s not imitate Hamas

The Israeli government’s decision to appoint a committee to look into the possibility of worsening the detainment conditions of Hamas prisoners attests to the complete ignorance of government members in respect to current prison realities. It also attests to the defeat of common sense and victory of the urge for revenge, showing that the government of Israel is again choosing to align its moral conduct with that of terror groups.

Justice Minister Friedmann walked out of the government session with a magic formula that he believes will no doubt secure Shalit’s release: “We’ll take away their phones and visitation rights.” Phones? Which phones?! My dear Minister and Professor Friedmann, did you ever stop to think before speaking out? Have you looked into the detainment conditions of security prisoners before you vowed to worsen them? Have you ever visited the security wing of any Israeli prison?

Well, Prof. Friedmann, please allow me to take you on a tour. Security prisoners (some of whom were never sentenced, as they are being held under administrative detention) have no phones. Throughout their term. I have clients whose parents died while they were in prison and they were not even allowed to call their bereaving family.

Security prisoners whose families reside in the occupied territories enjoy almost no visits. Israel holds these prisoners within the State of Israel, while violating international law, which rules that the prisoners in an occupied territory must be detained within that area. Palestinian relatives and lawyers usually have no permits to enter Israel, and they depend on rare visits organized by the Red Cross. Even then, the Shin Bet limits the age of the visitors, thereby preventing security prisoners from seeing even the closest relatives for years, and at times for dozens of years. Security prisoners have no vacations, of course, but more importantly: They also do not get their terms reduced as is customary by law, notwithstanding cases that can be characterized as miracles.

“And what about the television sets, and newspapers, and university studies?” Minister Friedmann asked. Well, try to take them away. Just try. The Prison Service will be the first to object, because television, more than it is a privilege, is a means of control for the Prison Service. It maintains quiet, and television rights may be revoked as punishment for misbehavior.

Besides, do you seriously think that preventing television from prisoners will bring back Shalit? That same stupid Israeli logic, whereby if we failed to secure achievements vis-à-vis the Palestinians with force, we apparently did not use enough force, guides the latest trick pulled by the Olmert government. Yet every time, we are surprised again. “What, we killed 1,500 people in Gaza and they still fail to understand that Hamas is their disaster?” No. They insist that we’re their disaster.

The truth is, Minister Friedmann, that we’ve virtually reached the bottom. In order to worsen detainment conditions, we need to start cutting back on the truly fundamental things. Prevent Red Cross visits, prevent information about the health of prisoners, and perhaps even keep them hungry and fail to offer them medical care. How does that sound? I’ll tell you how this entire debate sounds – as though we are adopting the logic that guides terror organizations.

The next phase is obvious after all, and I can already hear it resonating, although for the time being it’s being whispered: Why don’t we keep security prisoners who completed their term in jail nonetheless, until Gilad comes back?

Why not? Because we are a state and not a terror group; because revenge is not a modus operandi and cannot be the basis for government policy; because our greatest advantage vis-à-vis terror groups is our moral spine. Yet this advantage is being eroded, and in no small part thanks to you, Minister Friedmann.

Attorney Michael Sefarad I the legal advisor of the Yesh Din human rights group