NCJW Israel Program Report January 2011
- Message from Shari Eshet
- Ma’an – Legal Support Center for Bedouin Women
- Neve Michael Emergency Crisis Center for Children
- NCJW’s 45th National Convention
- For More…
Dear Friends,
Last week the former president of Israel, Moshe Katzav was convicted on two charges of rape and one charge of sexual harassment. Too many public figures have been charged with sexual violence lately. A president, two ministers, and a top police officer make that four too many. But as the late President Gerald Ford said immediately following his swearing in after the resignation of President Richard Nixon: “the system works”.
It is extremely rare in the Western world for a president to be indicted of a crime, let alone convicted. There are always going to be bad guys and all of these particular bad guys made it to the top through political maneuvering rather than by integrity. The question is what does civil society do about it? So far, Israeli society is 4 for 4. All four of these former leaders have now been disgraced and punished. In order for the system to work, it needs a grassroots base that is willing to speak out. Women’s organizations in particular have been the major force behind the campaigns to say no to sexual violence, no to gender segregation, and yes to equality and respect. As recently as 10 years ago, this could not have happened, but the bravery of these women and the support of women’s organizations have made it possible. While I am disappointed that a president of the State of Israel has been charged with rape, I am happy that that truth and justice have overcome.
Last week, I attended a panel discussion on gender segregation at Tel Aviv University organized by the NCJW Women Studies Forum. With 200 people in attendance, the panelists struggled with the issue at hand: The slippery slope of gender segregation into race and religious segregation. Where does it start and where does it end? As Jews we need to be extremely sensitive to this issue. As Jews we know the feeling of being a stranger in a foreign land; it is part of our DNA. Fear of the other is also part of the human DNA and that is why we need to fight it, we need to keep our moral high ground while at the same time maintaining the Jewish, democratic nature of Israel. The best way to do that is to educate and to take action. We need to work hard to defend the rights of others and to protect Israel’s integrity. By funding women’s organizations in Israel, NCJW helps Israeli women do just that. By protesting gender discrimination, we help strengthen Israeli civil society, which in turn strengthens Israel as a whole. As director of NCJW’s Israel programs, I thank you for being part of NCJW’s circle of friends who are devoted to keeping Israel strong. 
Shari Eshet
Director, NCJW Israel Office
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Ma’an- Legal Support Center for Bedouin Women 
One of NCJW’s Israel Granting Program grantees this year is Ma’an, the Forum for Arab Bedouin Women’s Organizations of the Negev. Ma’an is a member of a national coalition of women’s rights organizations titled, The Working Group for Equality in Personal Status Issues (WGEPSI). Ma’an, together with the Working Group, have recently launched a wide spread campaign against polygamy, which in Israel, is characteristic of the Arab-Bedouin community of the Negev. At Ma’an’s Legal Support Center, lawyers are regularly providing legal support to women and children who are suffering the consequences of polygamous marriages. The campaign has run into strong resistance from Islamic groups, with clerics warning worshippers in a Rahat mosque to protect their wives and daughters from the Bedouin women’s movements. Even Bedouin local politicians have publicly denounced the anti-polygamy campaigns. The director of Ma’an said she expected traditionalists to push back, but the reaction has been more aggressive than even she had expected. While in Islam a man may marry up to four wives, the practice is frowned upon and technically illegal under Israeli law. Nevertheless, the custom is still engrained within Bedouin society leading to poverty and inequality amongst the multiple wives and their children. Due to a lack of education and an undeclared Israeli policy of legal non-intervention, polygamy persists in the Bedouin communities in the Southern Negev. Ma’an continues to educate Bedouin women of their rights and to offer them legal services to attain them.
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Neve Michael Emergency Crisis Center for Children
The Neve Michael Children’s Village Emergency Crisis Center for Children in the North of Israel is an oasis for traumatized children from all over the country including Arabs, Ethiopians, and Russians. The Village also includes a special 24-hour emergency crisis center for infants up to age four. For the many children, who come to the Village accompanied by older or younger siblings, it often takes between 5-10 months to refer them to appropriate settings so that the siblings can stay together. While in the crisis center, they receive therapy every day as well as attending school. As children from Arab, Haredi, traditional, and secular homes are brought to the Center, the emphasis is to find them appropriate foster care or boarding homes that will accommodate their life styles as well as keep them close to their siblings or natural families if possible. Since the emergency crisis center opened in 2000, there have been over 550 children who have been sent to the center. For those who need to be removed immediately from their homes the center operates 24/7. The children often arrive with the clothes on their backs, and many times in their pajamas. NCJW initiated and continues to sponsor a project that provides personal arrival kits with new clothes and hygiene supplies so that all the children can be made to feel as comfortable as possible to help facilitate a new outlook on life.
NCJW is delighted to be helping to sponsor Ma’an’s Legal Support Center for Bedouin Women and Neve Michael Emergency Crisis Center for Children. If you are interested in helping support these and other causes in Israel, please write to Shari at ncjwisrael@gmail.com.
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NCJW’s 45th National Convention
Join hundreds of women from around the country for NCJW’s National Convention March 3–5, 2011, Fairmont Hotel, in Dallas, TX. Speak out and make your mark on the future of NCJW. Turn our combined strength into progressive change in the US and Israel by learning new ways to build and deliver our collective voice and take meaningful action on vital issues. Hear nationally renowned speakers share their insights on a variety of critical topics, elect our new leadership, and help adopt resolutions that will set the stage for the next triennium. Convention will also feature opportunities to advance your skills to make a difference in membership development, fundraising, leadership, governance development, coalition building, and much more. For more information, please visit www.ncjw.org/convention. The registration deadline is January 26. I look forward to seeing you in Texas!
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For more …
I, along with others, often have the opportunity to record more personal reports of our work and experiences in Israel for the NCJW Insider blog on our website. Visit www.ncjw.org/Insider for recent posts on Israel by me and others.
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