Rafi Rotem is the poster-child of extreme corruption of government in general, and the justice system in particular in Israel (within the 1967 borders) today! He is likely to become a political prisoner. As is the case in the United States, the persecution of whistle-blowers is one of the cardinal signs of collapse of civil society.
____
OccupyTLV, May 24 - Dr Zernik, PhD, of Human Rights Alert (NGO) filed a request with Amnesty International for monitoring and assistance in the likely imprisonment of persecuted Israeli Tax Authority whistle-blower Rafi Rotem. [1,2,3]
As is the case in the United States, the persecution of whistle-blowers is one of the cardinal signs of collapse of civil society.
The next hearing in Rotem's criminal prosecution is scheduled for Monday, May 26, 2014, in the Tel-Aviv Magistrate Court.
Following is a copy of the letter to Amnesty International.
____
Joseph Zernik, PhD
Human Rights Alert (NGO)
OccupyTLV
____
* The Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission to the Human Rights Council of the United Nations was incorporated into the 2010 Periodic Review Report regarding Human Rights in the United States, with the note: "corruption of the courts and the legal profession and discrimination by law enforcement in California".
* The Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission to the Human Rights Council of the United Nations was incorporated into the 2013 Periodic Review Report regarding Human Rights in Israel, with the note: "lack of integrity of the electronic records of the Supreme Court, the district courts and the detainees courts in Israel."
LINKS :
[1] 2014-05-21 Request, filed with Amnesty International, for monitoring and assistance in the likely imprisonment of persecuted Israeli whistle-blower Rafi Rotem
____
May 21, 2014
Amnesty International, Israel
Fax: 03-5250001
Amnesty International, UK
Human Rights Action Centre
17-25 New Inn Yard
London
EC2A 3EA
RE: Request for monitoring and assistance in the likely imprisonment of persecuted Israeli whistle-blower Rafi Rotem
Dear Sir/Madam:
I write to ask for your help in the case of Israeli whistle-blower Rafi Rotem, who is persecuted for over ten years, and now face frivolous criminal charges in the Tel Aviv Magistrate Court, which are likely to lead to his imprisonment.
A tax investigator blows the whistle
Rafi Rotme (born 1962) is an Israeli citizen, who was employed as an Intelligence Officer in the National Customs and VAT Investigations Unit. [
i] In that job, he won excellent periodic evaluations [
ii ] and a series of appreciation and commendation letters by the Israel Police. [
iii ,
iv ]
Starting in 2003, he filed complaints of corruption of the highest levels in the Tax Authority, including:
Undermining of investigations, worth tens and hundreds of millions NIS, of businesses related to organized crime, to tycoons, and to the authorities;
Leaks and refusal to provide protection, which led to the murder of a "source", and
Sex bribes to a tax investigator.
Retaliation by state authorities and perversion of justice by the Israeli courts
Following his whistle-blowing, Mr Rotem suffered serious retaliation in the workplace and beyond.
Mr Rotem unsuccessfully tried to protect his rights in the Israeli courts.
In 2005, Mr Rotem's claims were denied in the Tel Aviv Labor Court. However, a report by senior journalist Moshe Lichtman documents the perversion of justice in this case: Records from Mr Rotem's personal employee's file were filed as evidence by the State authorities, which purported to show complaints by Mr Rotem's co-workers before the time of his whistle-blowing. Such records purported to portray Mr Rotem as a violent person.
Such records from Mr Rotem's employee's file were missing the employee's signatures, required by Israeli law. Furthermore, the individuals, who purportedly filed the complaints, failed to appear in court and take the stand. [
v ] Such records also contradicted Mr Rotem's periodic evaluations by his supervisors of the same years. [
ii ]
In addition, in retrospect it turned out that Judge Varda Samet's husband, Attorney Haim Samet was counsel for Gibor-Sport Corporation. [
vi ,
vii] The aborted investigation against Gibor-Sport was one of the cases that were brough by Rafi Rotem as evidence for his whistle-blowing. Judge Samet did not disclose to the parties her conflict of interest in this matter, and did not recuse herself.
As a result of such proceedings, Mr Rotem's employment was terminated in the same year. The Judge Samet judgment was also later repeatedly cited by other Israeli courts in order to deny Mr Rotem protection and other rights as a whistle-blower.
Mr Rotem's case reached the Israeli High Court of Justice in the petition
Rotem v Samet ( 1233/08 ). The petition was summarily denied in a judgment that stated that the case originated in "soured labor relationships" and not in whistle-blowing. [
viii ,
ix ]
However, only an unsigned, uncertified judgment paper was served, and Mr Rotem's requests for the due service of a signed and certified judgment record remain unanswered. [
x ] Therefore, the Israeli Supreme Court's judgment should be deemed a simulated court record. [
xi ]
Mr Rotem has never received any of the benefits due to him for his many years in state service, and through the years of legal battles he lost his home and his possessions, and today he is homeless.
Mr Rotem's case has been widely covered by Israeli media, which overwhelmingly support his case, and investigative journalists have confirmed his claims. [
xii ,
xiii ,
xiv ,
xv ,
xvi ,
xvii ]
Regardless, Mr Rotem has been denied to this date the protection due under Israeli law to whistle-blowers, or the benefits due to him for his many years in the civil service.
Worse yet, Mr Rotem has been subjected over the past several years to a series of false detentions by police, where he was humiliated, kept in handcuffs and shackled, and seriously beaten. According to media reports, such detentions typically followed by a couple of days any media report supportive of Mr Rotem. [
xviii ,
xix ]
In December 2013, in an unprecedented measure, 44 senior journalists wrote a letter to the State Ombudsman. The journalists noted that in various public appearances, which they covered, the Ombudsman stated that Mr Rotem was a true and honest whistle-blower. The journalists asked the Ombudsman to act accordingly and accord Mr Rotem due protection and other rights Mr Rotem deserved under the law. [
xx ]
In April 2014, State Ombudsman Yosef Shapira responded to the journalists, stating in part, "...true and sincere effort is underway... to find an honest and humane solution for this affair". [
xxi ] In April 2014, the State Ombudsman also wrote to Mr Rotem's counsel, stating for the first time that Mr Rotem would be permitted to file a formal complaint with the State Ombudsman, a right that had previously been denied with no lawful foundation. [
xxii ]
Regardless, to this date, such promises have not been fulfilled.
Mr Rotem has become the poster child of whistle-blower abuse in Israel
As is evident from the 2013 journalists' letter, the case of Mr Rotem has become a key case in the public debate over whistle-blower protection in Israel.
Earlier, in 2007, Mr Rotem was also invited to testify in the Knesset's State Oversight Committee in a session on whistle-blower protection. In the same session, former Israel Police crime investigator, criminologist Dr Meir Gilboa stated: [
xxiii ]
... almost all enforcement agencies, be it the Israel Police or the Civil Service Authority, act as tools in the hands of the whistle-blowers' supervisors in order to harm them. We heard here one example, of Mr Rafi Rotem... they [supervisors] act to harm them... to prevent the State Ombudsman from according them due protection.
Former Member of Knesset, Professor Aryeh Eldad wrote: [
xxiv ]
The case of Rafi Rotem is a terrible lesson for any person who confronts corruption and considers exposing it. The lesson from Rafi Rotem's case may be: Keep silent, shut your eyes, ignore.
Mr Rotem's case involves corruption of the highest levels of Israeli government
In a newspaper interview after leaving office, former Israeli Attorney General Manny Mezouz states: [
xxv ]
...the worst corruption scandal is the one in the Tax Authority... it is the closest to organized crime...
In a dramatic courtroom session in May 2014, the Tax Authority corruption scandal came up in the sentencing hearing of former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's personal secretary Shula Zaken. The case was unrelated to the Tax Authority corruption scandal, but in an effort to reduce her prison sentence, Ms Zaken entered a last minute plea bargain. In reviewing the new evidence, provided by Zaken, Judge David Rosen emphasized the new evidence pertaining to the Tax Authority scandal, stating it was "shocking". [
xxvi ]
Overall, the case of Rafi Rotem and the Tax Authority scandal also confirms the assessment of US Ambassador James Cunningham in a cable, published by Wikileaks -- merger of organized crime and state authorities in Israel. [
xxvii ]
Mr Rotem now faces frivolous criminal prosecution for insulting public officers and abuse of telecommunications lines
None of the police that have been involved in the repeat false detentions of Mr Rotem has been disciplined or prosecuted. Regardless, in January 2013 the Tel Aviv Police filed criminal charges against Mr Rotem in the Tel Aviv Magistrate Court. The charges include insulting and harassing public officers, relative to words Mr Rotem used during his numerous false detentions, as well as abuse of telecommunications lines, relative to faxes and phone calls to public officers, demanding justice in his case. [
xxviii ,
xxix ]
In a prior effort to incriminate Mr Rotem, complaint of a murder threat by Mr Rotem was filed by a co-worker. However, the same person denied the same claims in police investigation. [
xxx ]
The current criminal case against Mr Rotem is assigned to Judge Yael Perdalsky, a former Israel Police prosecutor. Previously, complaints were filed against her by others, for ruling in favor of police without any basis in the law. [
xxxi ]
Even without such bias, the rate of conviction in criminal prosecutions in Israel is around 95%, and Mr Rotem is relying on a public defender for lack of funds.
Therefore, Mr Rotem will most likely be convicted and imprisoned.
I am not an attorney, but I am informed and believe that the maximum sentence on each count of insulting and harassing public officers can be as long as three years in prison. Given the numerous counts brought against Mr Rotem, any attempt to estimate the prison term would be a guess.
The prosecution of Mr Rotem resembles the false prosecution of Social Protest activists
Over the past couple of years, the the Tel Aviv Police attempted to prosecute Social Protest leader Daphni Leef and other activists on false charges of violence against police. The prosecutions were eventually aborted only after it became apparent that police were lying on the stand, and video footage showed police violence against the protesters. [
xxxii ]
Request for help
In this latest phase of harassment, intimidation and retaliation, Mr Rotem, a whistle-blower of corruption in the highest levels of the Israeli government, is facing a frivolous criminal prosecution and is likely to become a political prisoner.
On behalf of the Rafi Rotem support team, I write to ask that Amnesty International monitor the criminal prosecution of Rafi Rotem, and if imprisoned, act for his expedient release.
Your expedient response would be greatly appreciated!
Truly,
__________________
Joseph Zernik, PhD
Human Rights Alert (NGO)
OccupyTLV
____
* The Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission to the Human Rights Council of the United Nations was incorporated into the 2010 Periodic Review Report regarding Human Rights in the United States, with the note: "corruption of the courts and the legal profession and discrimination by law enforcement in California".
* The Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission to the Human Rights Council of the United Nations was incorporated into the 2013 Periodic Review Report regarding Human Rights in Israel, with the note: "lack of integrity of the electronic records of the Supreme Court, the district courts and the detainees courts in Israel."
End-notes:
i To facilitate international public awareness, an online archive was established, where many of the records are translated into English: Rotem Scribd Archive: Index of records
ii 2002-09-01 Periodic evaluation letter for Rafi Rotem by Rafi Amiel, National Investigations Unit Director, Tax Authority ( full English translation )
iii 2004-12-01 Appreciation letter for Rotem by Israel Police- Intelligence Unit, Tel Aviv -- case of murder of Judge Adi Azar ( full English translation )
iv 2005-01-18 Recommendation letter for Rafi Rotem - Israel Police - Ayalon District
v 2007-10-02 The Rafi Rotem file: The witnesses, who never took the stand_ Globes ( full English translation )
vi 2009-11-29 Business card of Attorney Haim Samet, husband of Judge Vardah Samet
vii 2006-08-28 IPO of Gibor Sport_TheMarker
viii 2008-02-07 Rotem v Samet et al (1233/08) petition in the High Court of Justice -- original petition record
ix 2008-04-08 Rotem v Samet et al (1233/08) petition in the High Court of Justice -- Online Records and Justice Edmond Levy Judgment and Decision ( partial English translation )
x 2004-01-18 VIDEO: Sex bribes in the Tax Authority_Channel 10 News
xi Regarding simulated proceedings and simulated records in the Israeli Supreme Court, see also the Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission for the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) Periodic review (2013), which was incorporated into the final HRC report with the note, "lack of integrity in the electronic records of the Supreme Court... in Israel".
13-01-01 The Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission, as incorporated into the UN Human Rights Council UPR reprort with the note "Lack of integrity in the electronic records of the Supreme Court, the district courts and the detainees courts in Israel" (page 4, paragraph 25) (English only)
xii 2013-06-23 Corruption fighter has become homeless_Haaretz ( English only )
xiii 2013-10-04 No justices in Jerusalem_Maariv
xiv 2012-02-16 Rafi Rotem, Tax Authority whistle-blower -- lives in the streets_NRG
xv 2013-05-09 VIDEO: Taxes, retributions, suspicions_IBA
xvii 2013-06-23 Israel's anti-corruption whistle-blower needs justice_Haaretz ( English only )
xviii 2013-12-19 Letter by 44 journalists to State Ombudsman to provide Rotem protection ( full English translation )
xix 2008-02-19 False arrests of Rafi Rotem_YNET
xx 2014-04-28 State Ombudsman's response letter to 44 journalists ( full English translation )
xxi 2014-04-29 State Ombudsman letter to Rotem's attorney ( full English translation )
xxii 2013-06-23 Corruption fighter has become homeless_Haaretz
xxiii 2007-01-30 Protocol #35, Knesset Committee on State Oversight -- Whistle-blower protection
xxiv 2013-06- 23 Corruption fighter has become homeless_Haaretz
xxv 2013-06-07 Interview with former Attorney General Manny Mezouz_Haaretz
xxvi 2014-05-15 Shula Zaken brings the Tax Authority corruption scandal back to center stage
xxvii 2009-05-15 Israel: a promised land for organized crime?_US Ambassador to Israel James Cunningham ( English only )
xxviii 2013-01-31 State of Israel v Rafi Rotem (1074-02-13) Tel Aviv Magistrate Court -- Indictment
xxix 2013-10-01 Homeless Whistle-blower Gets Indicted for Allegedly Harassing Police_J Post ( English only )
xxx 2007-05-07 Rafi Rotem:"Senior VAT officer complained that I threatened him with murder, then denied it"_Globes
xxxi 2011-01-01 Complaint v Judge Yael Perdalsky
xxxii 2014-04-01 Israel Police to Drop Charges Against DAPHNI LEEF, Other Social Justice activists ( English only )
