The Double Standard of 'Honest' Relationships: One for Israelis, Another for Immigrants

תקציר

This paper compares the regulation of marital and semi-marital relationships within the Israel general legal regime, with their regulation within spousal immigration policy. The comparison demonstrates that while traditional marital values are cherished within the general legal regime, they are balanced against to values of individual autonomy and justice. When it comes to spousal immigration policies the hegemony of traditional marital norms is unshakeable. The paper asserts that the different approaches can be attributed to the articulation of spousal immigration policies as the system of allocation of privileges to aliens, and the lack of transparency and democratic accountability, which to an extent seems as a natural result of this articulation. These features, coupled with the alienage of those affected by immigration policies make the price of reproducing the marital ideal, through immigration perquisites almost invisible. The paper aims to challenge the perceived naturalness of the current immigration regime and to bring the heavy price of sustaining the marital ideal that is now hidden in administrative back-yards into the light and public eye.