Read it for yourself: here below is the full text, in English, of a press release announcing new rules, as transmitted from the Israeli Ministry of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs in conjunction with the Israeli Government Press Office [GPO] which is part of the Prime Minister’s Office [PMO] currently headed by Benyamin Netanyahu.

First, though, just let me say here that I did not receive this press release myself, though I am still on various of the GPO mailing lists, despite the denial to me of an Israeli GPO Press Card since 2010, which is now under consideration before the Israeli High Court of Justice, or Supreme Court. Follow my updates here.

Nor did various other journalists I know, who work for major media organizations, receive this press release.

It is a mystery: who received it, and why, and who did not.

Though there was a report on this decision, by the Government-appointed Committee mentioned in the press release above, apparently both in the Hebrew-language edition of Haaretz, and in the Israeli business publication Globes, it is not yet published in English, to my knowledge.

However, this press release does exist, in English — but was sent to only a limited distribution list.

What emerges, after consideration of the announcements made and the statements reported in this press release, is this important fact: THERE ARE NOT [YET] NEW RULES.

No. There are only the principles mentioned in the press release above.

Nonetheless, in the first Supreme Court hearing of my petition for renewal of my Israeli GPO press card, on the basis of my own two “niche websites” [my words, contained in my appeal formulated in 2010], the Government of Israel told a three-judge panel of the Israeli Supreme Court that I do not qualify under these new rules.

The earlier ruling, which I had appealed, was that I do not qualify for a a GPO Press Card because this website does not have 100,000 “hits” from distinct visitors per day…

Yes, that’s true, I told the Israeli Government — we ourselves supplied you with the statistics from this site, and we do not have 100,000 “hits” per day.

But, is that a reasonable criteria? Or, is it the policy of the State of Israel that only a big journalist / media personality can qualify for an Israeli GPO Press Card?

The Supreme Court Judges apparently agree that these are questions with legal merit — both in accepting my appeal in 2010, and in declining to dismiss my case on Monday as the Israeli Government urged the Supreme Court to do.

It should be noted, here, that I arrived in Israel in May 2007 having fulfilled all the Rules and Regulations for a GPO press card, to the letter. Two weeks later I did receive a GPO Press Card.

Circumstances changed, and in 2009 — after Operation Cast Lead — my GPO Press Card was not renewed, but instead I was issued a “Certificate”, which I questioned. I was told that the “Certificate” was the same thing as the “Press Card”.

So, I asked, why don’t you simple issue a GPO “Press Card”, if it’s really the same thing.

My appeal to the PMO’s [the only route] was somehow “lost”, I was informed later in the year.

Meanwhile, I was delayed two hours in my first attempt to enter Gaza with this “Credential”, and it took a number of phone calls from the GPO’s then-Director, Danny Seaman, to straighten the situation out… he said he was angry, because he had explained to the IDF that the “Certificate” was the same as a “Press Card”, but the IDF was apparently not immediately convinced.

This is, of course, not the sort of thing one would want to happen every time one crosses a checkpoint … which is quite bad enough — particulary at Erez — without having one’s credentials questioned.

Here, let me note that the GPO decided to ban the entry of journalists into Gaza from early November 2008 [some 6-7 weeks before the launch of the IDF’s Operation Cast Lead], until 23 January 2009, five days after the two separate but parallel cease-fires [Israel’s, and Hamas’s] went into effect. The GPO explained to the Israeli media at the time that they did not want to facilitate the “distorted” reporting of international journalists on Hamas… or, of course, on the situation of the other 1.5 million people squeezed into the Gaza Strip without any means of leaving.

In 2010 I was denied any sort of GPO Press Card or credential at all. Danny Seaman told me at the time that he was surprised, he “had not been advised” — but, he said, he would stand behind his staff.

Appeal, he said… “No hard feelings.

One of the constants remains this blog, which I began well before my arrival in Jerusalem.

Without an Israel GPO press card, I am unable to go to Gaza — which severely hampers my ability to work and report — and I do not have a journalists’ visa which permits me to “work”, however that is defined [this is still unclear as well].

For the past two years, I have not been able to enter Gaza via the Israeli military-controlled Erez “Terminal”.
And I have been legally present, though with simple tourist visas stamped “NOT PERMITTED TO WORK”…

These are important matters that do indeed raise important issues of principles [and democratic values] that, I am relieved to report, the Israeli Supreme Court continues to keep under review.

State of Israel
Ministry of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs
Government Press Office

BLOGGERS TO RECEIVE GPO CARDS

“The Advisory Committee on Evaluating the Criteria for Issuing Government Press Office (GPO) Cards this morning (Tuesday), 13.12.11, submitted its recommendations to Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Minister Yuli Edelstein, Public Diplomacy, Diaspora Affairs Ministry Director-General Ronen Plot and GPO Director Oren Helman.

The Committee recommended unifying the various types of cards issued by the GPO under the single heading ‘GPO Card‘ which would serve all those engaged in media professions.

In light of the Committee’s recommendations, it was proposed to expand the content of the substantive definitions of media and the list of media professions and positions in order to adapt them to recent changes and developments in the field. The new definitions include media professions and means such as bloggers and niche portals.

The new definitions created by the Committee will make things easier for documentary film makers who, due to the nature of their work, do not operate under a permanent professional roof. Similarly, the Committee lifted various restrictions that prevented the issuing of GPO cards, such as scope of output, the requirement to distinguish between managing directors and editors, and the need that those applying for GPO cards be engaged in media work full-time.

Committee Chairwoman retired Judge Sara Frisch said that, ‘The positions and the comments that were brought before the Committee strengthened the need, in my view and that of my colleagues, to change the rules and broaden the definitions of media vis-à-vis the issuing of GPO cards according to the rules. The Committee’s recommendations were formulated such that the criteria for issuing GPO cards will be as inclusive and comprehensive as possible, while maintaining their effective benefit and preventing the excessive issuing of the cards, which would be liable to harm journalists’ work itself’.

Minister Yuli Edelstein said that, ‘At a time when claims are being raised about shutting people up, reducing freedom of the press and interference, the Committee’s recommendations are genuinely good news in expanding pluralism and reducing the room for consideration by the issuing authority regarding the issuing of press credentials. The Committee’s recommendations give expression to the undeniable changes vis-à-vis the development of the new media and questions of what is a newspaper and who is a journalist. We are in a new era which finds expression in the recommendations of the Committee’.

GPO Director Oren Helman said that, ‘I ascribe great importance to the Committee’s recommendations and the opening of the ranks so as to allow a younger generation of journalists to receive access to events and to the sources of government information, due to their being included in the eligibility for GPO cards. This is a genuine reform in the work of the GPO, which will lead to media pluralism and the strengthening of a very important democratic value – freedom of the press and media openness. The new structure of rules recommended by the Committee gives a genuine response to the technological challenges and developments being dealt with by the GPO’.

GPO Director Helman added that, ‘Defining in legislation the definition of who is a journalist would be bad for democracy and bad for journalism. We must avoid the possibility of influencing content via the definition of who is a journalist’.

The Committee’s recommendations were formulated with the consent of most Committee members – Shalom Kital, Yossi Ahimeir, Niv Calderon and Samir Darwish – except for a minority opinion by Committee member Dr. Amit Lavie-Dinur, which is included in the Committee report”.