Israel Radio on Monday, 1 Iyar 5772 released a report addressing an abusive and violent Egged bus driver, a driver who was driving school children home on a number 12 bus in Jerusalem.
The driver believed one of the riders, Ethiopian school children ages 6-11 did not pay. He felt this was sufficient cause to stop his bus between stops and gather the children at the bus’ rear door, where according to the children and passengers, he became violent, abusive and used the opportunity to express his disdain for the Israeli Ethiopian community. He began pushing the children, including a 4-year-old, and then he threw some of them off the bus while alarmed siblings shouted “my brother!! My brother, please wait!” but the driver drove off without permitting older siblings to get off.
The mother went to Egged to file a complaint as well as Israel police. She reports police are investigating. Egged has suspended the driver and issued a statement condemning his actions and behavior. Mom says the children were “very traumatized” from the incident. Ministry of Education Jerusalem District supervisor Meir Shimoni is also involved, and he promises the mother and children full support to assist them in overcoming the trauma.
In its official statement to the press, Egged explains the recommendation is to fire the driver but before this occurs, he will be given a chance to defend his actions. He was however suspended immediately after the company heard of the alarming incident, condemning all forms of racial discrimination against any sector of society.
The mother added that as alarming as this incident is, it is not an isolated one decrying widespread racism in Israeli society.
On Tuesday, 2 Iyar 5772 at 11:30am, a hearing addressing widespread discrimination is scheduled to take place in the High Court of Justice.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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6 Responses
With the hot weather season beginning in ISRAEL, time for cooling of tempers and anger management strategies.
Egged drivers for the most part can do whatever they please. Racism and abuse are probably the worst but I’m sure they are not isolated incidents. The drivers feel total impunity to leave kids standing in the rain at a bus stop because the bus is too full, leave people running to the bus or not stop at all of their stops when there isn’t another bus for another hour, as well as other various violations of normal human decency when carrying out a vital service to the community (which they get paid pretty well for I’d say). I’ve even heard of a story where the child called her mother to say that the driver informed her that he was not going into her part of the neighborhood (even though it was on the route) late one night, forcing the child to get off half a kilometer from their house in an area not far from an Arab neighborhood. They basically feel that they are beyond reproof. Complaints to Egged have usually gone completely ignored. I have recently found some success in complaining in their online site, but still they are difficult to get much reaction from them and the same problems continue to persist.
Perhaps this good time to install security cameras in buses, especialy school buses? Egged could then have a reward program to encourage good drivers and also have firm evidence of any bad behavior.
No American or even European bus driver would even dream of doing any of this.
So why does a post-Jewish Zionist R”L whose society is integrated with, and therefore influenced by, Pereh Adam, do this to his own people? The question is rhetorical, as 2 answers are implicit.
People don’t think twice that it is absolutely abnormal that a rachman ben rachman could do such things, regardless of level of observance, and what might be the cause. Hashem yishmor.
If Egged does not response; write to the Minister or Transporation. The lack of respect has caused Egged to loose routes and they are taking the situation seriously. A friend of mine [charedi] has been driving a bus for 2 years and he told me; the older drivers lack respect because Egged was a monopoly which it no longer is. Egged is looking for Charedi drivers since they no how to respect people
Wow! So many complaints about Egged. I agree what this driver is alleged to have done is terrible. But where is this typical? It certainly isn’t typical of the Egged drivers here in Haifa.