The Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel (ARCCI) marked its 35th anniversary on Wednesday, celebrating hard-won milestones and a measurable shift in public discourse around sexual violence, although advocates stressed systemic gaps remain and there is still much progress to be made.
“There has been a profound change in awareness,” ARCCI executive director Orit Sulitzeanu told The Jerusalem Post. “Not because sexual violence has disappeared – it hasn’t – but because survivors are increasingly willing to step forward, publicly, with names and faces.”
The ARCCI marked the anniversary with a ceremony at which it awarded the Sexual Violence Prevention Award to people whose work has advanced the rights and protection of survivors, exposed injustices, and driven change in law enforcement, public institutions, and societal norms.
The award recognized individuals who have influenced public discourse and helped reshape the way Israeli society confronts sexual violence and sexual offenders as well.
Sulitzeanu, who has led ARCCI for more than a decade following years in feminist advocacy and communications, said the most significant shift she had witnessed was not in the prevalence of sexual violence, but in how it is spoken about.
“For years, the focus was on victims,” she said. “Today, the language is about survivors.”
Legal, cultural struggles surrounding survivors
That shift, she said, is inseparable from legal and cultural struggles still unfolding, particularly around notions of accountability and access to justice.
Those tensions were underscored late last week when a new sexual assault complaint was filed against Israeli pop singer Eyal Golan – separate from the earlier, widely known case involving Taisia Zamolowski and other women who were minors at the time.
The new complaint was submitted by a woman who alleges that roughly a decade ago, during a facial treatment at her clinic, Golan exposed himself to her without consent and later pressured her to send nude photos.
This complaint was filed several months ago and is now under police investigation, including an examination of whether the statute of limitations applies. Golan has denied the allegations, stating they are part of an attempted extortion and that he possesses messages and recordings that refute them.
The question of limitations is central not only to the new complaint but to Israel’s broader reckoning with sexual violence.
Among this year’s award recipients were Zamolowski and “N,” two of the women whose testimonies brought renewed public attention to what has been dubbed “the social games affair.”
The case refers to the 2013-2014 investigation into allegations that teenage girls were sexually exploited by powerful men in the entertainment industry, including Golan, through intermediaries who arranged for paid sexual encounters.
While Golan was ultimately not indicted due to evidentiary difficulties, the case left a lasting public imprint after his father, Danny Biton, was convicted of offenses related to prostitution involving minors.
Years later, the affair forcefully returned to the public sphere in 2022 when Zamolowski and N gave televised interviews describing their experiences, the power dynamics involved, and the long-term harm they say they suffered.
Their testimonies helped catalyze Israel’s #MeToo-era conversation around celebrity, silence, and accountability – even in the absence of criminal convictions against the central public figure.
At Wednesday’s ceremony, Zamolowski said, “I am not just fighting against him, but against the fan base and public that defends him. I knew the price of going public, but I also know that secrets don’t stay in the dark.”
N said, “I believe this fight is beyond personal. I am here not only as someone who was violated, but as someone who chose to use that experience as a tool for change.”
“When we filed the complaint,” she added, “I knew we were going up against an ancient power system designed to quiet us. But our fight was about truth, justice, and a society that refuses to turn a blind eye.”
Sulitzeanu said watching the two women take the stage was emblematic of the shift she has witnessed over the years. “When the investigation began, I didn’t know them personally,” she said. “Today, you see them on stage – coherent, intelligent, strong. That’s the change.”
Advancing legislative initiatives for survivors’ rights
Despite the upheaval of Hamas’s October 7 massacre and the war that ensued, Sulitzeanu said the ARCCI continued to work quietly with lawmakers, contributing to or advancing 10 legislative initiatives aimed at strengthening survivors’ rights.
Among the most significant was a recent amendment to the Legal Aid Law, approved by the Knesset, which allows survivors of sexual assault and violence to receive free, state-funded legal representation from the moment they file a police complaint. Previously, legal aid was generally available only at later stages of criminal proceedings.
Under the reform, survivors can now be accompanied by an attorney already during the investigation phase, regardless of income – a move the Justice Ministry described as strengthening access to justice and improving the handling of sexual violence complaints.
Still, Sulitzeanu said, the legal framework remains incomplete.
Under current Israeli law, most sexual offenses are subject to a statute of limitations, with time limits varying based on offense severity and the victim’s age. In cases involving minors, the clock begins only once the survivor reaches adulthood, but limitations still apply.
In recent years, survivors’ organizations, the Justice Ministry, and members of Knesset have pushed to abolish the statute of limitations entirely for sexual offenses, arguing that trauma, fear, and power imbalances often delay reporting for years or even decades.
In June, a Knesset committee advanced legislation that would eliminate or significantly extend limitation periods for sexual crimes against minors. This marks a major policy shift acknowledged in official Knesset protocols. However, the bill has not yet completed the legislative process, and no final law has been enacted.
“Any gain is good,” Sulitzeanu said. “Even extending limitations matters. But the fight is far from over. We will continue it wherever we can.”