Tel Aviv (dpa) – Israeli President Shimon Peres urged Israelis Tuesday to attend a demonstration against discrimination of women and religious fanaticism, after two days of rioting by ultra-Orthodox extremists in a city near Jerusalem. Thousands were expected to attend the Tuesday night rally in Beit Shemes, south-west of Jerusalem, organized by pro-democracy and equality activists. Israel's president, whose duties are largely ceremonial, normally avoids taking a political stance. But religious tensions in Israel have been high in recent weeks. The most recent spark was a Friday night television item on how ultra-Orthodox extremists are trying to force their lifestyle upon other residents in Beit Shemesh and harass those who do not conform. The code of conduct includes conservative dress and division of the sexes. The town has attracted a large Orthodox population since it offers cheaper housing than Jerusalem. The news item showed an eight-year-old girl being spat upon by fanatics, who had decided she was not dressed modestly enough. Na'ama Margolis,herself from a religious family of American Jewish immigrants, has developed symptoms of anxiety from the harassment she suffers daily as she walks to school. Since Friday, she has come to be seen by many as a national symbol against religious coercion. Many Israelis have reacted with shock at the treatment of a schoolgirl. On Sunday, a Channel 2 television crew was attacked in Beit Shemesh when it came to shoot in the town. Dozens of ultra-Orthodox clashed with police, as they tried to remove a sign, demanding that women not congregate outside a synagogue, and regarded as discriminatory. More riots followed Monday, when dozens of ultra-Orthodox burned garbage containers and threw stones and eggs at police and media crews. One policeman was lightly injured. Two people were arrested on Sunday and five on Monday, Police Spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld told dpa. “Today is a test for the nation, not just for the police. All of us, religious, secular, traditional … must as one man defend the character of the state of Israel against a minority which breaks our national solidarity,” Peres told reporters Tuesday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned ultra-Orthodox extremists, who spit at or curse women over their dress or force gender separation on them. “Israel is a democratic, Western, liberal state. The public sphere is open and safe for everyone – men and women alike. There is no place for harassment or discrimination,” he told his cabinet Sunday. Netanyahu said he ordered police to enforce the law to the fullest, and local municipalities to take down signs ordering gender separation. The controversial sign in Beit Shemesh requested women to “vacate” the sidewalk outside an ultra-Orthodox synagogue and cross to the other side of the street. Since police took it down Sunday, local rabbis have put up a new one, saying “women are asked not to linger at this location.” Israeli commentators have called Beit Shemesh a symbol of the struggle between religious and secular Israel. Some are concerned about a radicalization of Israeli society. Israel's religious population, with large families, is growing faster than the secular. According to the latest Central Bureau of Statistics social survey, the ultra-Orthodox today are 8 per cent of Israel's adult Jewish population. Israelis who define themselves as secular have become a minority of 41 per cent. Ultra-Orthodox leaders too have condemned attempts by the most fanatic stream within their community to impose their beliefs. Last week, a secular Israeli woman drew headlines when she refused to give up her front seat for a religious man on a bus to Jerusalem, normally used almost exclusively by ultra-Orthodox passengers. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/NiY1B Tags: Discrimination, Israel, Protest Section: Latest News, Palestine, Religion, Women
