The Buzaglo test is a phrase coined in

Israeli law Israeli law is based mostly on a common law legal system, though it also reflects the diverse history of the territory of the State of Israel throughout the last hundred years (which was at various times prior to independence under Ottoman, th ...

which subsequently developed into an

idiom An idiom is a phrase or expression that typically presents a figurative, non-literal meaning attached to the phrase; but some phrases become figurative idioms while retaining the literal meaning of the phrase. Categorized as formulaic language, ...

in Israel. In 1976, the

Attorney General of Israel The attorney general of Israel ( he, היועץ המשפטי לממשלה, ''Ha-Yo'etz Ha-Mishpati La-Memshala'', lit. ''Legal Advisor to the Government'') heads the legal system of the executive branch and the public prosecution of the state. ...

at the time,

Aharon Barak Aharon Barak ( he, אהרן ברק; born Erik Brick, 16 September 1936) is an Israeli lawyer and jurist who served as President of the Supreme Court of Israel from 1995 to 2006. Prior to this, Barak served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of I ...

, decided to begin a criminal investigation against Asher Yadlin in relation to the

Yadlin affair The Yadlin affair ( he, פרשת ידלין, ''Parashat Yadlin'') was a political corruption scandal that broke in Israel in 1976, involving senior members of the Labor Party (then the major faction in the Alignment). It is often seen as one of th ...

. Yadlin, an important figure in the dominant

Mapai Mapai ( he, מַפָּא"י, an acronym for , ''Mifleget Poalei Eretz Yisrael'', lit. "Workers' Party of the Land of Israel") was a democratic socialist political party in Israel, and was the dominant force in Israeli politics until its merger i ...

party who was under consideration for the position of governor of the

Bank of Israel The Bank of Israel ( he, בנק ישראל, ar, بنك إسرائيل) is the central bank of Israel. The bank's headquarters is located in Kiryat HaMemshala in Jerusalem with a branch office in Tel Aviv. The current governor is Amir Yaron. T ...

, was suspected of theft and receiving bribes. Yadlin asked to be questioned by the police in his office, but Barak refused on the grounds that the law should treat all equally, without regards to their social standing. Yadlin was questioned in a police facility, and was later convicted and sentenced to five years' imprisonment. Barak's decision was significant at the time due to the prolonged dominance of the

party in Israeli politics and society. Referring to the decision, Barak coined the phrase "the law for Yadlin is the same as the law for Buzaglo" (''Din Yadlin – KeDin Buzaglo''). The phrase was intended to mean that both the strong and the weak in society were subject to the law. Yadlin represented the predominantly

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

political elite of Israel, whereas Buzaglo represented the

Mizrahi ''Mizrachi'' or ''Mizrahi'' ( he, מזרחי) has two meanings. In the literal Hebrew meaning ''Eastern'', it may refer to: *Mizrahi Jews, Jews from the Middle East * Mizrahi (surname), a Sephardic surname, given to Jews who got to the Iberian ...

population, which at the time were considerably poorer and weaker. Although it was originally used in the context of the rule of law and specific corruption charges, the Buzaglo test has since become a

litmus test Litmus test may refer to: * Litmus test (chemistry), used to determine the acidity of a chemical solution * Litmus test (politics), a question that seeks to find the character of a potential candidate by measuring a single indicator * Litmus Test ...

for a range of inter-ethnic issues in Israel.

References

{{reflist

External links

The Jewish daily Forward; On Language—The Buzaglo Test
Law of Israel