MK (Yahadut HaTorah) MK R’ Menachem Eliezer Moses used the Knesset plenum on Wednesday to raise the issue of discrimination against chareidim residing in Tel Aviv’s Ramat Aviv neighborhood.
Moses explained that for decades, the secular and Shomer Shabbos residents lived side-by-side in a harmonious relationship, adding there are shuls in the area and about 65 shiurim a month, on a regular basis. There is a community rav as well he explained, who routinely deals with requests from residents, frum and non-frum alike.
He stated there is a small element that opposes the chareidi presence in the area, and is using “undemocratic” means to prevent them from moving in, but added ironically, the more they work to distance the chareidim, the more support the chareidim seem to be amassing among residents.
Moses stated the proof is that a number of prominent buildings have become hubs of Torah learning, places where shiurim and kollelim are now based. He lamented that certain decision reached of late by the committee opposing the frum presence would have elicited the ire of Jews and non-Jews in Western countries, labeling the decisions anti-Semitic, but here, in Israel, they are permitted to pass without opposition.
Decisions include reporting mitzvah booths and stands around the area to the city inspectors, to have them removed for operating without licenses. They also call for printing up anti-chareidi literature to be distributed by parents in schools, and mapping the area to indicate where chareidim live, to request that landlords make certain to only rent to secular tenants.
Moses expressed his hope that the area residents will continue living side-by-side, respecting one another, and attending shiurim.
Responding on behalf of the government was Interior Minister Eli Yishai, who sided with Moses and decried the actions of the few in Ramat Aviv, adding “this could not occur anywhere else in the world”.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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2 Responses
respecting one another—BOTH SIDES OF THE COIN.
Azi – It is true that there are communities in Israel that you have to be Charedi to live in, but there are areas that are designated for Mizrachi only as well. As far as an area (outside of kibbutzim and Moshavim) that are designated only for secular Jews I am not aware of at this time, but nothing is stopping them from creating one.
However, Ramat Aviv is not one of those areas. I don’t blame those few secular Jews that are trying to oust the religious from their community. In all honesty there are those in the frum community that would do exactly the same. The question here is in regards to legality. Are they acting within the legal parameters of the Judiciary system here or not? That seems to be the real complaint here. If their actions are clearly illegal and the government is not taking action, then there is clearly a double standard here that needs to be rectified.
The nice point of the story is that it seems that the majority of that diverse community seem to live in mutual respect of one another (according to the article). That deserves respect.