Who threw the drop out youths in Chedera to street? Exposure

A serious conflict, in which all means are kosher, is taking place between the Chedera municipality to a remedial Yeshiva for drop out youth, and threatens to cause the collapse of the institute and leave tens of students who have returned to the straight and narrow without a suitable educational framework.

The absurdity: the municipality's battle is seemingly led by its hareidi representatives, with the backing of the hareidi kehilla in the city.

A bit of background: the "Netiv Ohr" organization has been running an educational institution and dormitory in the city for tens of years, which served girls with special needs. They were sent there by the welfare authorities. But the organization was forced, for lack of funds, to close the dormitory for girls.

At the same time, the heads of the organization left the building in its original purpose, and opened instead a remedial Yeshiva, aimed at boys who fell through frameworks and deteriorated. The Yeshiva has reached nice achievements so far, and according to its members, many boys who have already been on the verge of crime, returned to good ways and to Yiddishkeit thanks to it.

Over the last year, the harassments started. According to the heads of the Yeshiva, although they were recognized by the Ministry of Education as a growing institution, i.e. an institution with great potential, suddenly the municipality started bothering them with complicated bureaucracy. Many different demands to pay water bills from years back, demanded the Yeshiva pay the debt immediately. Factors in the Ministry of Education explained to the heads of Yeshiva that the municipality is demanding to close the institution.

After an in-depth check, the members of the organization discovered who stands behind the harassment. According to them, these are a few of the heads of the hareidi kehilla in Chedera, among them the representative of Degel Hatorah in the municipality, Ben Zion Nordman.

Attorney Elad Halevi who represents the people of Netiv Ohr, explains to Behadrey Haredim: "what happened was that we got calls from the people of the local kehilla to evacuate the building for them. When we refused, the harassment started, which also included harsh threats, some of them were recorded by us".

Halevi explains that the building is necessary for the local community, most probably because of the lack of space in the Beis Yaakov which is close by to the Yeshiva. "One has to understand," he explains, "that the buildings were completed by the organization with money that it got from the Ministry of Education in '96 and 2007. Actually, the ground itself also belongs to the organization, but it transferred it to the municipality so that the Ministry of Education could fund the institution".

The organization tells of methodical and intentional annoyances, blown up water and electricity bills and disconnecting of water, but things reached a climax when the students left for the summer vacation. Then the municipality employees arrived and quickly took control of the place.

"The municipality handed in an evacuation demand, and things are still being sorted out in court, but all that did not disturb the municipality to send a municipal cruiser to the place already on the first day of vacation, to change locks and take control of the building. We called in the police, but what can it do against the municipality?" notes Halevi, and concludes: "What bothers us is not only that the municipality is acting in a violent way, but actually the battle is taking place against the hareidi kehilla which is the one who is actually harming the drop out youths".

"What we're asking for is just to help more youths return to the right path and to prevent them from deteriorating to crime, but people who envied the buildings decided to ruin the institution in order to take the buildings from the organization", says one of the Yeshiva people in pain. "Could it be that a hareidi public figure will harm a Yeshiva which helps rehabilitate youths in such a way?" He doesn't understand.
At the Yeshiva, they also mention a severe tznius problem which could arise if indeed the building which was "confiscated" will become a Beis Yaakov in proximity to the institution of drop out youths.

But in a talk with Benzi Nordman, representative in the hareidi kehilla in Chedera, things sound different. "One has to understand that the first interest of the kehilla is not to be in this place at all, the building is situated far and in an inconvenient place for us. The hareidi kehilla is in the Shlomo suburb which is in the center of town and southwards, in contrast the building is located in the Beit Eliezer suburb which is in the west part of the city, so that the kehilla is not at all the address in this story.

"The negotiations of this important institution are only against the municipality and the one who heads it, Chaim Avitan, and in this case against the executive, Iki Zur. Today there is a summoned committee in the city, so that I have no possibility to help even as a member of the council who has any influence".

Nordman adds and emphasizes: "We wanted a different solution altogether, and therefore to tie me in personally, or the entire kehilla to the story – this is ridiculous. Their attorney phoned me and I told him I am the first one to cooperate with him to find an alternative. He didn't get back to me, but I am the first who will be glad to find another solution".

In conclusion, Nordman relates to the tznius problem which might arise, and mentions that efforts are being made in the last hours to organize so that there will be boys in the building, "especially since it really suits boys better".
It was not possible to obtain the response of the Mayor of Chedera, Chaim Avitan, and when it is received – it will be published.

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!