Parties to use coalition talks to boost support for educational institutions to replace dried up US funds.
By MATTHEW WAGNERAvraham Ravitz 224.88(photo credit: Courtesy)
As the yeshiva world faces an imminent budget crisis in the wake of the international financial market meltdown, pressure is mounting for haredi MKs involved in coalition talks with Kadima to increase state support for haredi educational institutions.
"The rabbis have directed our MKs not to enter the government coalition unless we receive a promise that our educational institutions receive aid to help us through this difficult period," said a haredi source who holds a high-ranking administrative position.
MK Rabbi Avraham Ravitz (United Torah Judaism), who is involved in coalition negotiations, said that the Kadima-led government coalition is aware of the critical budget crisis faced by haredi educational institutions.
"There is a real understanding of our plight and that there is a need to increase state aid to institutions that provide education to the haredi population."
Ravitz said that Degel Hatorah has drafted an emergency aid plan for haredi educational institutions under the guidance of Rabbi Aharon Leib Steinman, a nonagenarian spiritual leader considered the "father of the yeshiva world," that has been presented to Kadima.
Ravitz declined to say how much the plan would cost.
Haredi educational institutions, which demand complete curricular autonomy and are, therefore, only partially funded by the state (approximately 40 percent), rely heavily on tuitions and donations from Jewish communities abroad, especially the US.
But haredi education budgets are expected to plummet as thousands of Jewish businessmen and entrepreneurs hurt by the ongoing financial calamity rethinking their generous financial support for Torah institutions in Israel.
United Torah Judaism's two factions - the Hassidic Agudat Yisrael and the Lithuanian Degel Hatorah - are split over the issue of entering the government coalition.
While Agudat Yisrael has joined Shas in its demand for larger child allowances, Degel Hatorah has focused almost exclusively on haredi education budgets.
"Agudah is repeating the same the mistake it made last time we were left out of the government coalition," said Ravitz.
"They are making huge demands for parts of the population that UTJ does not even represent. Child allowances are not our battle. We have to focus on the issues that affect our unique constituency.
"It makes sense for Shas, which represents a much broader swath of the population, to fight for child allowances. But we should not be in that battle."
Ravitz said that although Degel Hatorah would prefer to join the government coalition together with Agudat Yisrael in a united UTJ list, he did not rule out the possibility that Degel Hatorah would split from Agudat Yisrael and join if Kadima meets its demands for haredi education.
if(catID != 151){
var cont = `Take Israel home with the new Jerusalem Post Store
