State Comptroller Michah Lindenstrauss issued a report for
the 2007 fiscal year revealing serious of deficiencies at
local authorities in Israel. This section of the report
focuses on conditions at chareidi and Arab schools, safety
problems on school buses and minibuses, improper political
appointments, illegal cancellation of debts for individual
residents, and reckless and improper handling of lands
belonging to the authorities.
According to the Comptroller, several temporary classrooms in
Bnei Brak are unfit for use. One hundred and twenty-five
institutions lack bomb shelters and 44 schools have no
playground. Inspections conducted by workers from the State
Comptroller's Office at 66 educational institutions in Bnei
Brak revealed that 21 institutions use trailer classrooms at
least 15 years old. Most of these structures are dilapidated
and some are made of flammable materials. The Comptroller
determined that two schools make due with classrooms
unsuitable for human use: a special-ed class at a primary
school is held in the frame of an old bus without proper
windows and air conditioning, and four kindergarten classes
at another primary school are held in wooden freight-train
containers lacking proper windows and emergency escape
apertures.
The report was submitted to Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik.
Lindenstrauss says it carries great importance because local
authority elections are scheduled to be held in November,
2008. He says the report could assist in issuing directives
on how local authorities should act to provide for the needs
of their citizens.
MK Rabbi Moshe Gafni told Yated Ne'eman, "The
Comptroller's report provides official recognition of what
[the chareidi sector] has been claiming for years regarding
the poor supervision over the chareidi sector and the
suffering of our children due to the infrastructures in the
educational system." Rabbi Gafni said he contacted the
chairman of the State Control Committee, MK Zevulun Orlev, to
hold an urgent meeting on the issue.
"The State Comptroller has now revealed what we have felt on
our own flesh for many years," said Rabbi Gafni, "the
terrible suffering of our children on hot summer days and
cold winter days, studying in structures not suitable for
human habitation. Now that this issue has received official
recognition, action should be taken to remedy the situation
and hopefully the government will act to rectify this
reprehensible discrimination of Jewish children in the
chareidi sector."
The report provides figures that point to inequality in
educational infrastructures. Fifteen percent of all students
in Israel are chareidi, but local authorities shrug off
responsibility for them. According to the Central Bureau for
Statistics, in 2006 some 205,000 students were enrolled in
the chareidi school system. Between 1992 and 2006 they
doubled their proportion among the total number of students
and their numbers continue to grow. In 2011 they are expected
to represent 17 percent of all students. Between 1992 and
2006 chareidi enrollment rose 141 percent, while enrollment
at government and government-religious schools grew by a mere
3.6 percent. These figures indicate a growing need for
infrastructures in the chareidi educational system.
The construction of some chareidi schools was funded by the
State. Over the years the Education Ministry budgeted fixed
amounts for the construction of chareidi educational
facilities. In many cases resources earmarked for the
construction of infrastructures was only a direct consequence
of coalition agreements. Various governments and education
ministers, as well as the Education Ministry, did not hold
meetings and did not set an official policy regarding the
State's obligation to budget resources for chareidi
educational infrastructures.
Lacking a clear policy, fundamental questions regarding the
educational infrastructures serving 15 percent of Israel's
students remained unanswered. Questions like: To what extent
is the State obligated to provide educational infrastructures
for the chareidi sector? Does the State have an obligation to
ensure equal funding of educational resources? Should a
distinction be made between recognized but unofficial
institutions and exempt institutions when it comes to funding
for infrastructures? Is the State responsible for ensuring
that besides safety requirements that must be met to receive
licensing, private schools meet other trifling
requirements?
The State Comptroller conducted the inquiry during the first
half of 2007 at three local authorities: Bnei Brak, Elad and
Modi'in Illit. The inspections were held at 186 educational
institutions in the three cities. At 125 of these
institutions all or some of the classes were held in movable
structures.
Reaction of the Bnei Brak Spokesman
"The City of Bnei Brak supports the conclusions of the State
Comptrollers report," read a statement issued by Bnei Brak
Secretary and Spokesman Avrohom Tannenbaum. "The Comptroller
noted that planning and resource allocations for the
construction of buildings and playgrounds at educational
institutions is incumbent upon the State in all sectors, at
both public and private institutions, based on High Court
decision 8133/05, in which the government was obligated to
arrange the construction of classrooms in the City of Beitar
Illit.
"Furthermore, during the past decade the [Bnei Brak]
municipality has worked extensively with the Education
Ministry to secure monetary allocations for the construction
of permanent structures, and over the years there has been a
very noticeable reduction in the number of trailer classrooms
at municipal institutions...During this period 300 new,
permanent classrooms have been added [at nearly 20] municipal
educational institutions. Also, in recent years $8 million
for renovation work has been approved. Likewise there have
been efforts to win budget approval from the Education
Ministry for private and non-municipal institutions.
"The municipality has also accepted the remarks in the
Comptroller's report regarding oversight of non-municipal
facilities. In addition to the Safety Engineer, who is
already working on the matter, the municipality is seeking
approval to hire additional employees as part of the recovery
program in operation at the municipality, in cooperation with
the Interior Ministry."
