Her frustration was expressed following the presentation to President Reuven Rivlin of the annual statistical report on children in Israel.
By GREER FAY CASHMANUpdated: JANUARY 9, 2019 06:29Ultra-Orthodox Jewish children sit in class at the Shomrei HaHoma Torah School for boys in Jerusalem's Mea Shearim neighbourhood November 9, 2010(photo credit: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun)
ation’s children are the future and that nothing is more important, but the state doesn’t do enough to give credence to such claims, Vered Windman, CEO and head of the legal department of the National Council for the Child, declared on Monday.Her frustration was expressed following the presentation to President Reuven Rivlin of the annual statistical report on children in Israel.Speaking at the President’s residence, Windman said that the state has failed to close social gaps, and that more than 300,000 children in Israel are at risk. Over the past year, she continued, there was a 50% increase in the number of cases of abuse and neglect that were confided to social workers.During the 19 years in which she has been associated with the NCC, budgets for child welfare have been limited by bureaucracy and various national priorities, and there were never sufficient funds for child welfare projects which were invariably given low priority, she said.The 667-page report deals with numerous topics related to minors of all ages, and also refers to legislation enacted for their benefit.The tragedy, said Windman, is that lawmakers do not have the foresight to enact preventive legislation. It is only after a catastrophe that realization dawns. She cited electric bicycles as an example, saying a law was enacted with relation to age limits and other safety factors only after several youngsters had been either killed or maimed while riding electric bikes.“An electric bicycle is not a toy. It’s a dangerous vehicle,” Windman asserted.As is the unfortunate case every year, there is a very high ratio of children living in poverty. Of the three million children living in Israel, 865,00 are living below the poverty line, and two out of every three haredi and Arab children are living in poverty. Windman attributed this to the generally large families in the haredi and Arab communities and the high ratio of adult unemployment in those communities.Another disturbing statistic revealed that two thirds of high school students over the past year have been subjected to threats, insults and humiliation by a person or persons in the school system; and 25% of high school students have suffered shaming,embarrassment and even boycotts from other people at school.Moreover, 340,000 children from low socioeconomic backgrounds are directly at risk in terms of neglect and abuse, especially sexual abuse of which there has been a significant increase over the past year, said Windman.The worst part with regard sexual abuse, she said, is that children don’t feel sufficiently confident in their relationships with parents and teachers to tell them about the abuse, and harbor the secret to themselves. She urged parents and educators to forge stronger bonds with children, and to explain to them what sexual abuse entails, how to try to avoid it, and the need to immediately tell a parent or teacher if and when it occurs.There wasn’t much in the way of good news other than a decrease in juvenile delinquency, and an increase in school attendance among the Bedouin communities.Rivlin said that report was a very important reference for formulating policy.He also underscored that in those spheres in which there has been a noticeable improvement in the statistics, it should be remembered that such improvements derive from the dedicated work of men and women who devote their lives to creating a better quality of life for young people.As for the 50% increase in complaints voiced to social workers, Rivlin attributed this to the fact that “the public has learned to lodge complaints.”Each year, when the NCC presents its statistical report to the president, it also brings along one or more exemplary high school students who have either benefited from a project or who are aiding in its implementation. This time it was Beersheba high school student Rotem Naaman, a graduate of a mentors’ program for budding scientists. In the program, they are taught several scientific subjects such as physics, chemistry, robotics and more, after which they go out and mentor slightly younger children from low socioeconomic backgrounds. The idea is to bring them up to par in scientific subjects so that they can compete in the classroom and finish school with a matriculation certificate which will enable them to continue on to higher education.“I believe in equal opportunity for every child regardless of their background,” said Naaman. “Children from low socioeconomic backgrounds are often denied such opportunities – and that influences their lives in the future.”More projects must be created for such children so that they can realize their potential,” she said.Naaman is also a member of the Youth Parliament where child welfare is one of the subjects frequently discussed.
