Be'er Sheva Magistrate Oded Alyagon has unleashed a storm of
controversy after he denounced Orthodox Jews, among others,
as "human-sized lice" who are trying "to take over the
judicial system via brutal and relentless attacks and blood
libels." His remarks shocked and disgusted Israelis of all
political stripes for its unbridled hatred. High Court
President Aharon Barak praised the judge's remarks.
Spearheading demands for Alyagon's dismissal were United
Torah Judaism Secretary General Rabbi Moshe Gafni, Transport
Minister Shaul Yahalom, and the chairman of the Bar
Association, attorney Dror Choter-Yishai. They were joined
by attorneys from the southern region and the Central
Committee of the Bar Association.
Alyagon's outburst came at a farewell ceremony for Judge
Yitzhak Banai. "In recent years we have come to know huge
lice who were mutated to look like hybridizations of
poisonous snakes and long-clawed, sharp-fanged tigers," he
said. "They have made it their goal to take over the
judicial system for their own needs." Alyagon did not
specify to whom he was referring, but he provided clear
hints.
"These dangerous parasites come from three sources: from the
classic criminal population," he ranted. "From large
organizations that frequently require the services of the
courts" (alluding, apparently, to the Bar Association), "and
other circles who are blocked by the courts in their attempts
to take over the leadership and the whole population."
The event was attended by hundreds of people and Chief
Justice Barak. For his part, Barak, who considers himself
among the "enlightened" population of the world, praised
Alyagon's words as "well spoken."
Alyagon is no stranger to this controversy. About a year-and-
a-half ago he aroused a storm when he said that judges have
become "a marked target set by parasites to whom concepts
such as the rule of law are essentially foreign."
He derided the Torah-observant community as "parasites who
have never contributed one iota to the State, and whose goal
is to take control of the judicial system, or terrorize it,
so that they will be able to continue to take advantage of
the State's resources undisturbed." "Even if we do not have
ways of fighting these pests in a conventional manners, the
judicial system can overcome them, and we must wage a
constant and resolute war against these elements."
The Knesset Law Committee voted unanimously to denounce
Alyagon's most recent outburst.
"A judge who uses such language, is perverting the law from
the outset," Transport Minister Yahalom said. "He isn't
objective, and chareidi people can't appear before him in
court. "In his position as the president of the Magistrates
Courts, he conveys this message to the judges who are
subordinate to him. Indeed, it is possible to understand why
confidence and respect for the judicial system is declining.
The system must spit out such people,"he said.
Rabbi Moshe Gafni, who demanded that Alyagon be fired a year-
and-a-half ago, called on Chief Justice Barak to take action.
In a letter to Barak, Rabbi Gafni noted that "calling
criminals by names is abhorrent not only to me, but to all
cultured people. Criminals are tried in court and receive
their punishment, and there is no justification for using
such language in reference to them. "By the same token," he
continued, "the use of such languages against various sectors
of the community, when it is obvious at whom such expressions
are aimed, must surely not be used by a judge. I once more
demand the dismissal of Oded Alyagon."
The chairman of the Bar Association, attorney Dror Choter-
Yishai told Yated Ne'eman that the influence of the
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Aharon Barak, is evident
in Alyagon's remarks. "It is evident that the position and
philosophy of Chief Justice Aharon Barak, has penetrated the
judicial system very well, and has affected Alyagon too."
"A judge who compares humans to lice proves that he is
unworthy of being a judge," he said. "One who is interested
in waging a political battle over the image and values of the
State of Israel...does not belong on the bench."
The chairman of the southern branch of the Bar Association,
Attorney Daniel Gertner, was present during Alyagon's speech,
and spoke after him. He had the internal fortitude to
denounce Alyagon, saying it would have been better if such
things hadn't been said. "We are not aiming at a civil war,"
he said. "The last time he spoke that way, was in Eilat,
when he used the term `parasites,' aiming his words
explicitly at the chareidi public," Mr. Gertner said. "This
time, he included additional sectors, and added the
expression `lice.' This isn't merely an attack, but a
poisonous attack."
