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NEWS
Government to Raise Allotments for "Second Circle"
Holocaust Survivors
By G. Lazer
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Finance Minister Ronnie Bar-On
and Welfare Minister Yitzhak Herzog held a joint press
conference with Noah Peleg, chairman of the Center for
Organizations of Holocaust Survivors. The four presented a
government aid program for poor elderly people, including
numerous Holocaust survivors, which would increase the
allotments they are entitled to by NIS 1.5 billion ($370
million).
"No previous government has handled the issue of poor
Holocaust survivors," Olmert said during the press
conference, "and the budget increase for Holocaust survivors
is the right thing to do in order to put a halt to their
financial straits." Ze'ev Faktor and Dubi Arbel,
representatives of the Foundation for Holocaust Benefits,
said, "A historical step has been taken to expunge the
injustice carried out by the respective governments of Israel
until now."
According to the decision, all Holocaust survivors from the
"second circle" — people who fled from areas under Nazi
occupation but were not incarcerated in ghettos and
concentration camps — would receive an allotment of NIS
150- 500 ($35-$125) based on the recipient's age and
financial situation. According to estimates the government
will pay a total of NIS 1.5 billion ($370 million) in
allotments, to be distributed through Bituach Leumi (National
Insurance).
The details of the agreement were hammered out through
negotiations between representatives of umbrella
organizations for Holocaust survivors headed by Noach Peleg
and a group comprised of Raanan Dinur, director of the Prime
Minister's Office, Nachum Itzkovich, director of the Welfare
Ministry, Prof. Manuel Trachtenberg, head of the National
Council for Economics, Dr. Avi Bitzur, director of the Office
for Pensioners' Affairs, and Finance Ministry
representatives.
According to the agreement, which is implemented through
directives issued by PM Ehud Olmert, a total of one billion
shekels will be added to elderly allotments and NIS 500
million will be allocated for all needy elderly people,
including "second circle" Holocaust survivors.
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