Broken justice
Broken justiceiStock

57% of the public does not trust the Israeli legal system, according to a survey conducted by the Gilad Saar Law Firm on a representative population sample (500 respondents) by the Rafi Smith Research Institute.

The survey was conducted as part of a Justice Ministry request to propose recording and uploading all court trials to a designated website or to allow direct viewing of trials that are being conducted to increase public trust in the judicial system.

According to the survey, 53% of women do not trust the Israeli legal system, compared to 60% of men. It also emerges that the younger the citizen, the lower his confidence in the judicial system, as among those between the ages of 18-29, 63% of the public does not trust the judicial system. Among those aged 30-49 61% do not trust the legal system in Israel and among those aged 50 and over, 48% mistrust the judicial system.

According to attorney Gilad Sa'ar, these are dramatic figures. "It seems that the situation is no't good, to say the least. A situation in which almost the entire public believes the judicial system is corrupt endangers democracy. Urgent action must be taken to restore the image of the legal system by substantially increasing its exposure to the public, by copying and recording hearings and uploading them to a dedicated Internet site accessible to all."

Additional data from the survey reveal gaps in mistrust along socio-economic divisions. 73% of those who earn a below-average wage do not trust the judicial system, compared to 53% of those who earn an average wage, and 50% of those earning above the average.

In addition, the more religious the sector, the less confidence it has in the Israeli legal system. 93% of haredim do not trust the judicial system, compared with 81% of the religious, 53% of the traditional, and 48% of the secular. 59% of those with a high school education and below do not trust the Israeli legal system, 60% of those with post-secondary education, and 53% of those with higher education do not trust the legal system. 60% of residents of Tel Aviv and the center do not trust the Israeli legal system, 57% of the residents of Haifa and the north, 59% of the residents of the south, 53% of the Jerusalemites and 51% of the residents of the Sharon mistrust Israel's justice system.