"Not only did Lod District Court Vice President Avraham Yaakov order Azeb
Gebreegziabher released in response to her appeal, he ordered the
Population, Immigration and Border Authority to pay her 25,000 shekels
($7,200) in damages, and scathingly criticized border officials for holding
her in the first place, implying that racism may have been at work. He also
demanded an apology"
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.591651
Israel finally lets Swedish-Eritrean tourist enter, after 5-day detentionBorder
control suspected woman was planning to settle in Israel illegally.
By Ilan Lior <
http://www.haaretz.com/misc/writers/ilan-lior-1.331695>| May
20, 2014 | 3:00 AM
A Swedish citizen of Eritrean origin was released from custody at
Ben-Gurion International Airport on Monday and allowed to enter Israel
after she had been held for five days by border control officers who
suspected she was planning to settle here illegally.
Not only did Lod District Court Vice President Avraham Yaakov order Azeb
Gebreegziabher released in response to her appeal, he ordered the
Population, Immigration and Border Authority to pay her 25,000 shekels
($7,200) in damages, and scathingly criticized border officials for holding
her in the first place, implying that racism may have been at work. He also
demanded an apology.
"The clerks of the respondent acted in an arbitrary and extremely
unreasonable fashion. Israel cannot be portrayed in the world as blocking
entry to European citizens simply because of their ethnic origins," Yaakov
ruled.
Gebreegziabher's attorney, Daniel Kfir, praised the judge for "defending
the basic constitutional rights that were forgotten by the Interior
Ministry."
The border authority, however, insisted that what she told the court was
not consistent with what she had told the border control officers at the
airport.
"The data presented in court on this issue totally contradicted the data
the passenger presented to the border control officers, to whom she
unequivocally stated that she was single and childless," the authority said
in a statement. "When other facts emerged during the court hearing, the
authority agreed to allow her entry beyond the letter of law, subject to
her depositing a guarantee. We will study the ruling and weigh whether to
appeal."
According to the border authority record of her questioning,
Gebreegziabher, 44, said she had planned to visit with a relative in Tel
Aviv for two weeks and tour the country with him; she had a round-trip
ticket and $1,000 with her. According to the report, she said she knew that
the refugees' situation in Israel was good, that they work and that the
authorities treat them well.
She said she had heard everything in Israel was nice, adding that the
weather was very cold in Sweden and foreigners there weren't treated so
well.
In court, Gebreegziabher stated that she was a hospital worker in Sweden,
had lived there for 14 years and had two daughters, aged 7 and 12, at home,
facts that were confirmed by the Swedish Embassy. Border authority
officials insisted, however, that during questioning at the airport, she
had stated that she was childless, which is one of the things that made
them suspect her motives and refuse her entry.
The judge said there was nothing in her responses to questioning that
indicated she planned to stay illegally and ascribed racist overtones to
the decision. "The respondent was apparently relating to one fact that
isn't typical of Swedish citizens - that the appellant is of Eritrean
origin," he said. "It's inconceivable that the respondent would
discriminate against citizens of the same country solely because of their
origin."
He said the appellant had no reason to say she had no children and that he
did not believe she did say so, "which casts doubt on the reliability of
the entire report."
What transpired, said Yaakov, reflects the general attitude of the border
authority to Eritreans. "It's hard to understand the logic of the
respondents, who apparently thought the appellant would choose to exchange
her Swedish citizenship with all its attendant economic benefits for a
status of no status in Israel," he said in his ruling.
During the hearing, the border authority representatives agreed to allow
Gebreegziabher entry, on condition she post a 30,000 shekel guarantee.
Yaakov called that demand "scandalous," and ordered her freed
"unconditionally, and with an apology for the five days she was held at the
airport."
Received on Wed May 21 2014 - 21:59:01 EDT