Jared Malsin said after deportation from Ben Gurion Airport that he was tricked by Israeli guards
Marian Houk
January 22, 2010
Jared Malsin, the American-born editor of Ma'an's English-language website, who was deported/left voluntarily to the United States from Israel's Ben Gurion airport on Wednesday yesterday, explained in an article posted on the Ma'an website that he thought the document he signed the previous day, asking to leave Israel, was part of his lawyer's legal move to allow him to leave the country while legal proceedings appeal.
Jared had, by that time, spent 8 days in detention at Ben Gurion Airport while contesting a decision to deny him re-entry into the country after a short trip to the Czech Republic, with his long-time girlfriend, Faith Rowold, an American volunteer for the Lutheran Church who had been working in Bethlehem. Faith was deported 48 hours after being denied re-entry.
Jared signed the document offered to him, and composed an additional note at the request of an Israeli official -- apparently in the belief that this was part of his own legal strategy.
However, Jared's attorney was not present, Jared did not discuss the document with the attorney before signing, and -- from the published accounts, at least -- the attorney, Castro Daoud, apparently had no access to Jared before his deportation.
The Ma'an News Agency report that was just published says that the document Jared signed was presented "two hours after his lawyer left him for the day".
Ma'an's story quotes Jared as saying: " 'I had no idea I was waving anything, no clue', he said, explaining Israeli officials asked him to create a legal document to withdraw his case without an attorney present, and offered a misleading explanation over what he was signing. Malsin said he wrote a note indicating that he was leaving the facility 'without personal coercion' ... After writing a hand-written letter that Malsin said he believed was a 'formality', the Ministry staff sent the paper to Jusice Kobi Vardi, who presided over Malsin's case, and the judge decided to lift the stay of deportation order ... as he was transported to the plane, however, Malsin said he had no idea there were legal implications to the paper. 'I'm just so relieved to be out', he said ... 'None of this was my decision', he emphasized in a phone interview minutes after arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York early Thursday morning local time, rejecting reports that he left Israel voluntarily. 'There's no such thing as a voluntary deportation. I was deported, period' ... In an e-mail from Malsin to Ma'an staff sent upon his arrival to his parent's home in New Hampshire, he said, about the paper, 'I thought it was a formality. In retrospect I wish I hadn't signed it. I believe the prison guards were extremely manipulative, misleading, mendacious in the way they dealt with me'."
The Ma'an account added that "Malsin said he was under the impression that the papers he signed would allow him to leave the airport while his case continued. Indeed, Daoud, had filed the motion in Tel Aviv shortly before Malsin was instructed to sign the papers. Justice Vardi had called for a hearing on Malsin's case on Tuesday, and when no date was set for the proceedings by the afternoon, Malsin and Daoud decided to seek permission for him to leave the detention center as the hearing went forward. Daoud had previously indicated concern that Malsin's case was being dragged out, putting pressure on the journalist to leave before a legal decision was made".
A separate account, part of an updated press release that Ma'an also has posted on its website, here, does not contain the full comments from the email Jared sent after his arrival in New Hampshire...]
Meanwhile, it is interesting that the Jerusalem Post has reported that "The Government Press Office is pushing for the introduction of a US-style journalist visa for foreign reporters, as part of a bid to filter out political activists posing as media employees, The Jerusalem Post has learned". The JPost story today adds that "The GPO is concerned that foreign members of political nongovernmental organizations and political activists attempt to deceive immigration authorities by claiming that they are working as journalists. Some activists offer their services to foreign media outlets, and then claim they are journalists. A journalist visa would require foreign citizens who say they are journalists to demonstrate their qualifications, and to prove that they worked for a news agency before arriving in Israel," GPO Director Danny Seamen [sic - he spells his name in English this way: Seaman] said". This JPost story can be read in full here.
Jared had, by that time, spent 8 days in detention at Ben Gurion Airport while contesting a decision to deny him re-entry into the country after a short trip to the Czech Republic, with his long-time girlfriend, Faith Rowold, an American volunteer for the Lutheran Church who had been working in Bethlehem. Faith was deported 48 hours after being denied re-entry.
Jared signed the document offered to him, and composed an additional note at the request of an Israeli official -- apparently in the belief that this was part of his own legal strategy.
However, Jared's attorney was not present, Jared did not discuss the document with the attorney before signing, and -- from the published accounts, at least -- the attorney, Castro Daoud, apparently had no access to Jared before his deportation.
The Ma'an News Agency report that was just published says that the document Jared signed was presented "two hours after his lawyer left him for the day".
Ma'an's story quotes Jared as saying: " 'I had no idea I was waving anything, no clue', he said, explaining Israeli officials asked him to create a legal document to withdraw his case without an attorney present, and offered a misleading explanation over what he was signing. Malsin said he wrote a note indicating that he was leaving the facility 'without personal coercion' ... After writing a hand-written letter that Malsin said he believed was a 'formality', the Ministry staff sent the paper to Jusice Kobi Vardi, who presided over Malsin's case, and the judge decided to lift the stay of deportation order ... as he was transported to the plane, however, Malsin said he had no idea there were legal implications to the paper. 'I'm just so relieved to be out', he said ... 'None of this was my decision', he emphasized in a phone interview minutes after arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York early Thursday morning local time, rejecting reports that he left Israel voluntarily. 'There's no such thing as a voluntary deportation. I was deported, period' ... In an e-mail from Malsin to Ma'an staff sent upon his arrival to his parent's home in New Hampshire, he said, about the paper, 'I thought it was a formality. In retrospect I wish I hadn't signed it. I believe the prison guards were extremely manipulative, misleading, mendacious in the way they dealt with me'."
The Ma'an account added that "Malsin said he was under the impression that the papers he signed would allow him to leave the airport while his case continued. Indeed, Daoud, had filed the motion in Tel Aviv shortly before Malsin was instructed to sign the papers. Justice Vardi had called for a hearing on Malsin's case on Tuesday, and when no date was set for the proceedings by the afternoon, Malsin and Daoud decided to seek permission for him to leave the detention center as the hearing went forward. Daoud had previously indicated concern that Malsin's case was being dragged out, putting pressure on the journalist to leave before a legal decision was made".
A separate account, part of an updated press release that Ma'an also has posted on its website, here, does not contain the full comments from the email Jared sent after his arrival in New Hampshire...]
Meanwhile, it is interesting that the Jerusalem Post has reported that "The Government Press Office is pushing for the introduction of a US-style journalist visa for foreign reporters, as part of a bid to filter out political activists posing as media employees, The Jerusalem Post has learned". The JPost story today adds that "The GPO is concerned that foreign members of political nongovernmental organizations and political activists attempt to deceive immigration authorities by claiming that they are working as journalists. Some activists offer their services to foreign media outlets, and then claim they are journalists. A journalist visa would require foreign citizens who say they are journalists to demonstrate their qualifications, and to prove that they worked for a news agency before arriving in Israel," GPO Director Danny Seamen [sic - he spells his name in English this way: Seaman] said". This JPost story can be read in full here.
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