Last update - 00:00 29/10/2006
Katsav to tell High Court it has no authority to make him resign
By Amiram Barkat and Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondents and Haaretz Service
President Moshe Katsav will tell the High Court of Justice Monday in an official letter that it is not within its authority to rule whether he should step down from his position.
Katsav's letter comes in response to a petition issued by attorney Yossi Fox asking the High Court to instruct Katsav to resign in the wake of the allegations against him, which include two counts of rape.
The president said on Sunday that he was innocent of all allegations against him.
In recent days, discussions in the Attorney General's Office have focused on whether the High Court has the legal authority to instruct the president to resign. Under the Basic Law, a sitting president is immune from prosecution.
However, Attorney General Menachem Mazuz said earlier Sunday in response to the petition that "the High Court of Justice does not appear to have the authority to rule on the petition and grant the assistance it seeks."
Nevertheless, Mazuz called on the president to resign temporarily from his post as soon a decision has been made to indict him. The attorney general said in a statement that, once the decision to indict has been made, "it would be improper and inappropriate for the president to continue in his post."
"The president should take the step of declaring temporary incapacitation, until a final decision is made on the indictment in the court hearing on the matter."
Justice Ministry officials have said in the past that Katsav should resign in order to "spare the public embarrassment."
Mazuz said that in a situation in which "there is a criminal investigation of the president on allegations that include serious criminal violations," it would be appropriate for the president to remove himself temporarily from office, by petitioning the Knesset to determine that he is temporarily incapacitated.
"It is obvious that the more serious the allegations are, and the more the legal proceedings advance - the conclusion of the investigation or the decision in principle to file an indictment - the more the president is obligated to remove himself temporarily from office," Mazuz added.
The attorney general is currently considering indicting the president on a number of charges, the most serious of which is two counts of rape.
Meretz faction whip Zahava Gal-On said that the Knesset was obligated to fulfill its responsibility and force Katsav to resign, saying he has made clear he does not intend to follow the attorney general's recommendations.
According to the attorney general, only the president himself can decide when to resign. Nonetheless, said Mazuz, should the president initiate the process of determining temporary incapacitation, it should not harm the presumption of the president's innocence.
"The purpose of determining incapacitation is completely different," he wrote. "It is designed to ensure the public interest of maintaining the public's faith in the presidency and allowing the investigation to be carried out without hindrance."
High Court Justice David Cheshin instructed Mazuz last Sunday to present his position on the petition submitted by Fox.
Mazuz had previously avoided publicly presenting his position on whether Katsav should resign prior to a final decision on his indictment, despite requests by numerous Knesset members that he do so.