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26 Iyar 5763 - May 28, 2003 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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NEWS
Emergency Conference in Netanya
by G. Kleinman

Hundreds of principals, roshei yeshivos and yeshiva directors gathered for an emergency one-day conference at the Galei Tzanz Hotel in Netanya on Tuesday 11 Iyar-May 13 to discuss the Sharon government's harsh economic plan, which contains decrees that pose a serious threat to the Torah world in Eretz Yisroel.

Organized by the Union of Yeshiva and Torah Institute Directors, the conference brought together representatives from across the country who came to express their dread and opposition to the current threat to the continued existence of the holy yeshivas, kollelim, seminaries, schools, talmudei Torah and cultural foundations, as the Finance Ministry prepares to sap their funding base.

Over the course of several hours various speakers talked about the Sharon government's cruel refusal to heed the chareidi outcry, their plans to systematically destroy chareidi families and Torah institutions and the ideological motivations behind the drastic budget cuts. Several speakers provided specific details on the decrees: slashing child support payments ("kitzvaot yeladim"), discontinuing government mortgage loans, discontinuing the birth grant ("ma'anak leidah"), cutting 11,000 classroom hours from the budget for chareidi educational institutions, possibly firing hundreds of Chinuch Atzmai teachers, hacking the yeshiva budget, closing the Ministry of Religious Affairs and the Religious Councils, canceling support for yeshiva students from abroad, closing Torah institutions with fewer than 100 talmidim, cutting the stipend for avreichim over the age of 23 by 50 percent and significantly cutting the budget for yeshivos ketanos for talmidim age 14- 18. In total, the yeshivas and other Torah institutions could face a reduction of 82 percent.

Decisions Formulated at the Emergency Conference

A. The conference calls on all talmidim at the holy yeshivas, kollelim, seminaries and other educational institutions to strengthen themselves in Torah and tefilloh and yiras Shomayim, for we have been promised that Torah will not be forgotten in our generation or the generations to come.

B. The conference is deeply concerned over the gnawing away at the status of the yeshivas and various Torah institutions based on the manner in which the present government has been relating to them. The conference calls for the cancellation of all the decrees appearing in the plan and an equalization of the budget with the higher education budget.

C. The conference is deeply concerned over the sections of the Israeli economic recovery plan that deal with the following areas: uniform reduction, support for Torah institutions and integrating avreichim into the job market. This is a serious, unparalleled form of discrimination towards the Ministry of Religious Affairs relative to other government ministries and constitutes decrees against religion, both from a moral and an economic standpoint.

D. The conference is deeply concerned over the new decrees emerging from the Ministry of Education of late, such as the closure of chareidi seminaries for girls and a further cut of 20-25 percent for Chinuch Atzmai talmudei Torah and post-elementary institutions [i.e. yeshivos ketanos].

E. The conference calls for a closing of the ranks among organizations and individuals--every man according to his rank and status--involved in the present struggle, with the goal of maximizing resources and coordinating activities. The conference also calls on the public at large to gird its strength and rally in support of the battle.

F. At the conference far-reaching proposals were made, such as setting up a worldwide fundraising drive for Torah institutions, boycotting products, a tax revolt, a High Court appeal, a mass demonstration and fast days, etc. A committee will be set up to evaluate their implementation and to present them to gedolei Yisroel, shlita.

The conference thanks all those who contributed their time and energy to ensure the success of this important gathering.

 

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