Friedman move would help suspects request anonymity

Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann is proposing that crime suspects be informed that they have the right to request a gag order prohibiting the publication of their names, the details of the interrogation and the fact they are being questioned.

The draft regulations, which require that the information be placed on signs in police interrogation rooms and any room where a suspect is questioned, were transferred to Public Security Minister Avi Dichter for approval three weeks ago. The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee must approve the regulations before they can go into effect.

The proposal calls for the signs - written in Hebrew, Arabic, English and Russian - to include the name of an official in the police station who can provide a request form for a gag order. Suspects would also be advised that they have the right to a lawyer and will be assigned a public defender if they cannot afford a private attorney.

Friedmann's initiative is actually a way of implementing a law passed in December 2002, which states that "the suspect's right to ask the court to ban publication of his name shall be brought to his attention in the manner that will be set by regulations instituted by the justice minister, in consultation with the public security minister and with the approval of the Knesset Constitution Committee."

The law also instructs the justice minister to create a form for suspects to request a gag order.

However, no such regulations have been passed in the five years since the law was passed and no procedures have been instituted to make sure suspects are informed of their right to request a gag order.

The justice minister's proposal comes as the Knesset makes progress revolutionizing the way the media covers police investigations.

On Monday the Knesset approved a bill in a preliminary reading that prohibits the media from publishing the names of suspects or details of the investigations involving them before the submission of an indictment, unless the court explicitly allows such publicity because it is in the public interest or will help the investigation.

The Justice Ministry decided to ask for signs to be posted in interrogation rooms after consulting with the Public Security Ministry and representatives of the public defender's office. The Courts Administration has also agreed to a stipulation that every time suspects are brought before a judge for a remand hearing, the judge must inform them of their right to request a gag order.

A previous attempt to implement the law requiring that suspects be informed of their rights fell through three years ago. At the time, the constitution committee failed to approve regulations proposed by then justice minister Yosef Lapid due to police opposition to the requirement that the police investigators would have to personally hand the suspects notices delineating their rights.