Part I
There has been a lot of talk in Israel lately of mysterious right-wing "extreme elements" that have secretive plans to endanger the security of the State. Hints are dropped by the powers that be - assassination attempts against Sharon, or perhaps the destruction of the Dome of the Rock. I have come to expect this type of ominous agitation by the Left, which now unquestionably includes the prime minister and his cabinet.
They scare us, and then, when certain we must be paralyzed by their "reliable" warnings of national danger, they test the waters by throwing out their most powerful weapon against political dissent: administrative detention. We are to believe that this cruel, totalitarian imprisonment of a Jew without charges is the only thing that will save us from the lurking, evil, national danger. And after the idea has been out for a while, they will come up with a Jew who they say is involved in a sinister plot. (The plot goes unnamed, of course, because there probably is none.) They use his harsh, unjust imprisonment to blunt the resolve and bravery of people who disagree with their policies.
The saddest aspect of this plan is that there are religious Jews who, in an effort to prove that they are law-abiding, publicly endorse the capture and detention of "dangerous elements". The Judea, Samaria and Gaza Council and, most recently, Effie Eitam have clamored for the security forces to use their archaic, anti-Torah tool and detain security threats.
Two points must be made: first, that this detention is morally and legally wrong; and second, that its religious proponents sign their own detention warrants by endorsing it.
Part II
According to democratic law in America, there must be due process. Since the USA has a Constitution, authorities are forbidden from detaining a citizen without formally filing charges within 72 hours. The detainee must be advised of the charges against him and be offered every opportunity to legal council. Administrative detention, on the other hand, is based on nebulous, unconfirmed allegations in which the defendant has no access to the charges against him. He thus has no way to defend himself. Needless to say, an attorney would be useless.
In Torah law, there is no such thing as prison. It is considered unjust to punish the family of a transgressor by taking away their means of support. There is only a jail to keep defendants for the short period of their trial. In contrast, one of administrative detention's primary purposes is the terrorizing of family and friends. The idea is to show such pain and suffering of wife and children that any potential activist abandons his ideals to protect his family from the torments of his imprisonment.
Administrative detention is a medieval vestige from the British Mandate. It is neither moral by Jewish standards, nor is it legal from the vantage point of a democratic, freedom-loving model.
Part III
The Judea, Samaria and Gaza Council and the National Religious Party continue to try to show that not all religious Jews are fanatics, and that they oppose anyone who destabilizes the present government illegally. In an effort to make this clear, they advocate ruthless, oppressive methodology. I mourn the fact that they have no foresight.
As soon as it becomes more acceptable to use administrative detention against the more extreme elements of the Right, it will begin to creep into use for the less extreme. The very Jews who sold their brothers to better their political and social standing will be detained by the government for teaching certain pages of Sanhedrin or the Rambam's books. They will be detained on any pretense by a regime intent on purging the country of "extremist" Torah thought. I paraphrase a German Protestant bemoaning his failure to take a stand early against the Nazi party: "When they came for Rabbi Kahane, I was silent. When they came for Noam Federman, I was silent. When they came for me, there was no one left to protest."
The moderate religious Right must understand that there is a front line in the battle between ideologies. They are ideologically on the side of the Torah-true elements, but they act as a fifth column, fighting against their true comrades in an attempt to appease those in power, their ideological opponents.
Part IV
So, what should the government do if they hear of an illegal plot? They should arrest and detain those responsible, and formally charge them immediately. They must give them the right to an attorney and free access to all information being used against them. There must be a speedy, public and fair trial. They must then punish or free the defendant, based on the judgment of the trial.
More importantly, the government's use of frivolous lawsuits and unjust imprisonment to disrupt the actions of political activists must evaporate. There can be no correction of political or national errors as long as dissent is squelched by totalitarian, brutish means.
May our leaders see the error of their cruel ways, and may we find ourselves on the road to true national security soon.