As the ministerial committee on sharing the burden headed by Minister (Yesh Atid) Yaakov Peri continues efforts to hammer out the nation’s new draft law, it appears some committee members favor drafting religious women too.
If reports are accurate, there is discussion to compel frum women to serve in a national service, which would represent a change from the agreement that has been in place since the establishment of the state. To date, frum girls receive a letter from the Chief Rabbinate after declaring they maintain a frum lifestyle and the IDF grants a draft deferment on religious grounds, in line with the law. Most girls form the dati leumi sector volunteer in one of the sheirut leumi programs but this is not the case among chareidi females.
Now, some of the ministers feel that all women must serve in a national service. In addition, despite objections from Bayit Yehudi, there appear to be a loud call to compel hesder talmidim to serve 24 months instead of the current 16.
On Monday, 26 Iyar 5773, a representative of the IDF addressed the committee, presenting the IDF’s new induction plan which calls for reducing mandatory service for combat soldiers from 36 to 32 months. In addition, the IDF is now recommending what is being called a “differential induction plan”, explaining that not all soldiers will serve the same length of mandatory service. The new concept would release clerks and other non-combatants after a shorter period of service, which experts feel will save the military a sizable sum. Backers of the plan believe that since there will be additional inductees, i.e., the chareidim, it is possible to curtail service which will permit discharged soldiers to continue their education and/or hit the workforce at a younger age and become wage earners and begin paying taxes.
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon stated there are hidden risks involved in curtailing military service, but a decision must be made. He added that curtailing service may not be on the backs of reservists, who cannot be called upon for additional service to compensate for the standing army’s shortened service.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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13 Responses
Like Duh! Their agenda has always been to draft all hareidim and hareidiot, and not for relatively benign national service within the frum community. The hilonim need to break the “Am ha-Torah.” Taking the children away from the community will at the very least be disruptive. It is certainly designed to cut the marriage and birth rates. They need to act now or they will wake up to discover that Eretz Yisrael will look like Boro Park. Those who are continually trying to minimize the impact of each blow are like the European leaders who after of each of Hitler’s steps in the 1930s (e.g. invading Rhineland, then Austria, the Bohemia, murdering mentally handicapped, sponsoring pogroms, etc.) kept trying to find some way to say “it’s not that bad”. As many of our gedolim have been saying (and be critized by the apologists), this is not the time for appeasment any more than 1933-1938 was time for appeasment.
Anti-Semites.
Where is Rav Schach when we need him. In I believe it was 98 or 00 when they wanted to draft bochur; Rav Schach z’tal said if you draft one bochur we will move the yeshiva out of Israel. Now he is going after the girls. People are not stupid if they draft the frum girls people will move outside of Eretz Yisrael and the economy will tank
#3- The hilonim would love to get the yeshivos out of Eretz Yisrael, and all the hareidim with them — but a bunch of countries decided recently that “ethnic cleansing” is what in international law is a “big no-no”. As it is, drafting anti-zionist yeshiva students is clearly illegal under international human rights law. I’m sure Lapid and friends are bemoaning the fact that it isn’t the 1930s anymore, when such was perfectly acceptable (it would still be legal, but Hitler really ticked off a lot of people by trying to conquer Europe, and gave genocide and religious persecution a bad name).
Dear Editor: National Service is NOT service in the IDF. In fact, National Service is an option that is only open to those who have been EXEMPTED from military service. It is not even administered by the IDF or by the Ministry of Defense, but by the Office of the Prime Minister. The service is performed in educational, health or social service institutions. Support it or object to it as you choose, but please don’t mislabel it.
Girls in USA do plenty of chessed work voluntarily. There is no harm in frum girls contributing to society. Breaks them of “self deserving” attitude. The yeshivas have been getting lots of money from the government and now guess what? It’s payback time! The chareidim have to have more respect for those that have given them financial support. Many of them act like ingrates! The mizrachi girls do sheirut leumi in hospitals, it’s a beautiful thing. There is no reason frum girls can’t do that. FYI in Boropark girls visit the elderly in nursing homes, feed patients in hospitals, without the government forcing them to. It’s high time the frum girls in Israel learn some chessed from their sisters in the diaspora! Be careful lomdei torah how you treat machzikei torah. In shamayim, both get the same schar and know just as much Torah. Hashem sees you as equal, why do lomdei Torah think of themselves as superior and holier than thou of machzekei torah?
They dont want chesed work (they will never count Bikur Cholim as national service.) They want shmad.
The Chazon Ish said yeherag val yaavor.
1. Frum girls (and men) do much hesed without being conscripted. “National services” is to prevent hesed, not enhance it.
2. The above posters are saying how “national service” is not “army services” – but the above posters aren’t about to draft anyone. The people who run the Israeli government are the ones talking about drafting women into the army (needless to say, I doubt they participate in YWN).
3. The rabbanim of the Eidas Charedis (and their allies and supporters) have always cautioned against accepting money from the government. Pirke Avos also mentions it, famously. It is a sign of the great humility of the anti-zionist rabbanim that they are not walking around with a sign saying “WE WERE RIGHT – YOU WERE VERY WRONG”. There will be a political realignment within the frum community as many who have happily been collaborating with the zionists realize the error of their ways.
ravs daughter
there are many frum girls in Israel that do a lot of chessed work voluntarily but you must understand there is a tremendous difference between doing chessed work voluntarily or having a secular government with an anti chareidi agenda forcing them where, when, and how to do it .
The last intentions they have is chessed, Its time you realized what their intentions are
#6 — Chareidi girls in Israel do plenty of volunteer Chessed work too. All Bais Yaakov high school’s and seminaries require it, and most girls do well beyond the requirements. They certainly visit hospitals, work with disadvantaged and handicapped children, help the elderly,etc. The issue here is requiring them to do it under the supervision of the government rather than their schools, etc. THAT involves significant problems for the Chareidi world, as the current structure and heirarchy of bituach leumi is unacceptable to the Chareidi gedolim. You obviously know nothing about the “frum girls in Israel” to disparage their Chessed in such a flippant way!
Regarding girls who do sheirut leumi, the issue is not that they object to nice, sublime options such as working with children or hospital patients. The issue is with the broader picture, which includes subsidized apartments or dorm-type setups for girls, which places them in settings their parents would find quite objectionable, and can lead to downgrades in Ruchniut for many. Add to that the many other financial fringe benefits, that tempt like crazy – like bribery, like the infamous candyman with nefarious motives. Socially, it is often a major compromising situation. Furthermore, since there is a commitment required for a lengthy amount of time to serve, it does hinder marriage until older (not to mention changing prospective marriage candidates due to the girls now being classified as not-so-chareidi). It is obviously not the same downfall actual military service represents, and has some redeeming qualities, but the gedolim were not naive and knew this bigger picture, as well as recognizing the eventual slippery-slope this could lead to. Though I highly doubt we will see any such mandatory service – it seems like a lot of noise and bluster – still, it needs to be protested.
And as for akuperma: however articulate you are, sir, please remember that there is a klal gadol: As soon as you bring in the Hitler analogy stuff, your argument is over, kaput. Don’t go there.
#3, where will they go and who will take them?
Generaly speaking,provoking the frei majority is a bad idea.
This is what the Chazon Ish was refering to when he instructed his nieces to jump not the window when they come get them.