Israel’s Health Ministry is beginning to get tough on enforcing a regulation banning gender separation in kupat cholim (HMO) clinics, a situation that is prevalent in chareidi areas.
The ministry has ordered the removal of modesty signs that instruct visitors to honor the local community’s (chareidi) modest dress code. In the letter released by the ministry it states the signs calling for adherence to modesty standards was the subject of discussion in a forum including the assistant state attorney general and he says the law dictates the signs must go.
The ministry has received a complaint citing in the Laniado Hospital in Kiryat Sanz there is such a sign on display to instruct visitors how to dress. The ministry probed the matter and has learned the sign is not at all uncommon in chareidi areas.
The Be Free ( ישראל חופשית) organization which calls for separation of religion and state has become active in seeing to the removal of the modesty signs. The organization has been particularly active via its Facebook page. Visitors to the site are urged to document seeing the modesty signs around the country and report the details towards pressuring government agencies to have them removed.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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4 Responses
How long before they will enact a rule prohibiting excessive modesty in dress? The idea of zionism is to erradicate Torah from Jewish life, and modesty is a part of Torah.
I don’t know. The signs that I see bear a REQUEST, not an INSTRUCTION. How can you stop someone for merely asking a favor?
The ministry is wasting its breath. The signs will reappear as soon as they walk out of the building. If they want to really prevent it they will need to hire a full-time 24/7 guard for each waiting room in each hospital to keep a 24/7 vigil.
For those that read, this post is about gender separation in Kupat Cholim. No big deal, women sit where they want to usually with their children, spouse or parents they are caring for and men sit in a different area. That’s the story in Kiryat Moshe Kupat Cholim which never had any signs and all work out fine.