The Knesset Education Committee convened on Tuesday, 26 Menachem Av to discuss the over 100 Elad girls barred from high school because their parents work. Committee Chairman (Shas) MK Yaakov Margo stated that once again there are school principals who feel that can do as they please.

Margi calls on the Ministry of Education to act to bring an end to discrimination in the chareidi education system once and for all. He feels that by establishing registration regions it may bring an end to discrimination.

The head of chareidi chinuch in the Jerusalem district, Meir Shimoni, stated that registration in schools in the chareidi tzibur usually falls exclusively on municipality heads. He explained that a principal who does not follow regulations would be summoned by the head of a municipality and face the full weight of the law.

Elad Mayor Yisrael Porush explained there is a problem in Elad, that the structure of classrooms is not in line with the natural growth of the community. He stated that last year he saw to it that all Sephardi girls in the community were registered in schools in Elad. “I called on Meir Shimoni to open registration districts to prevent discrimination. The entire city was full of pashkavilim against me” he added.

Attorney Yoav Lalum, who has been behind many petitions to the courts to end discrimination, stated slight progress signaling slow change is taking place but committees responsible for dealing with the issue are moving too slow and the results are too little too late. He feels that if a school does not give an answer about accepting a girl in a timely fashion, the default must be that she gets in. he feels all quotas and caps must be eliminated, calling for a revamping of the entire system.

Margi calls on the ministry to prepare a plan of orderly registration for all chareidi mosdos while addressing the unique characteristics of the chareidi sector. He also calls on the ministry to present the mapping committee with a list of requirements of classrooms in Elad.

Margi also called on Mayor Porush and Education Ministry representatives to meet within a week towards finding a solution for the existing problem for the upcoming school year. He emphasized his regional registration plan based on family ethnicity, employment and other factors may provide an amicable solution for all.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)