NCJW Israel Program Report, December 2008
In this edition:
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Message from Shari Eshet
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2009 Israel Granting Program
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African Refugees in Israel
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Save the Date: NCJW Mission to Israel
Message from Shari Eshet
Dear Friends,
On the heels of America's historic presidential election, Israel recently held its own municipal contest. Over 30 women ran for mayoral positions, but only two were victorious, the incumbent candidates in Netanya and Herzlia. While more and more women are stepping up to be counted, very few have broken through the glass ceiling. Israel may very soon have the first woman prime minister since Golda Meir, and our chief justice and the speaker of the house are women, but our track record on women as parliamentarians is abysmal: Israel is ranked right behind Ethiopia, South Korea, and Vietnam.
The good news is that there are many new mayors who ran as independents, not party hacks, and won on the basis of environmental concerns and social agendas. But I am sure many of you remember Emma Goldman's quote: "If voting changed anything, they would make it illegal." That is why we need to make sure that the word "change" means action and doesn't just become a campaign slogan in the coming national elections here. The "Obama effect" -- talking about change -- has caught fire here in Israel as well. Everyone is talking about clean politics, education reform, and rectifying gender imbalance. And yet the new 2009 federal budget, for example, raises public transportation fees (60 percent of all passengers are women) and raises taxes on medical health fees for "homemakers" (overwhelmingly women). I am looking forward to reporting on new efforts to protect the women, children, and families of Israel as much as possible from the economic woes ahead.
Sincerely,
Shari Eshet
NCJW's 2009 Israel Granting Program
The NCJW Israel Granting Program (IGP) met this past month to review allocations for 2009. Forty percent of NCJW's grants go to at-risk populations through Yad B' Yad: NCJW's Initiative to Nurture Knowledge, and 60 percent go to women's empowerment through the Women to Women: NCJW's Empowerment Initiative. Our grants reflect NCJW's commitment to economic empowerment for women, combating domestic violence, and continuing our legacy of encouraging knowledge for at-risk Israelis. A particularly poignant grant was made this year to the NCJW Research Institute for Innovation in Education in memory of Prof. Avima Lombard, the founder and creator of the HIPPY programs, who passed away in October. You can read more about Prof. Lombard and her incredible legacy on NCJW's website, where past president and Florida State Senator Nan Rich has shared memories of this courageous and compassionate pioneer. You can also log on to the NCJW website for a complete list 2009 grant recipents for Yad B' Yad and Women to Women and to learn how to underwrite these grants as an individual donor or through your section.
African Refugees in Israel
NCJW members and supporters have spoken out twice to Israeli policy-makers on the issue of the African refugees. As reported by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, "The bottom line is that the state was requested to give an update (by Israel's Supreme Court) by mid-November on the method it uses in its conduct vis à vis African refugees. In the meanwhile -- "business as usual."
The main plea of the state is that the reports presented by the human rights organizations on the risks to the African refugees returning to Egypt are not relevant. The government claims that the only body that could demand that Israel not return refugees to Egypt is the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, and since they have not explicitly done so, Israel is permitted to continue returning African refugees to Egypt from whence they try to slip over the border into Israel. Furthermore, the government claims that because Egypt has some kind of shelter system, Israel has no responsibility to examine what happens to the people it returns there. To date, 100 refugees have been returned, and we are unsure what has happened to them back in Egypt. Another court hearing on this issue is set for late December. In the meantime, make your voice heard and speak out for justice through the NCJW Action Center.
Save the Date: NCJW Mission to Israel
The next NCJW Mission to Israel is November 3-9, 2009. For more information, please contact: ncjwisrael@gmail.com