[ad_1]
Reports of racist or discriminatory behavior in Israel tripled in 2020 compared to 2019, a new official report shows.
The report by the National Anti-Racism Coordination Unit, presented on Wednesday to Justice Minister Benny Gantz, showed that 54% of the incidents reported last year were directed against Israelis of Ethiopian and Arab origin.
The unit, which was created to lead and coordinate the fight against racism in the public administration, includes reports on government activities to prevent racism and discrimination, monitor the implementation of the recommendations for the eradication of racism by various ministries and handle complaints of institutional racism and discrimination in public service received from citizens.
During the past year, the office received 1,450 complaints about 506 incidents, compared to 497 complaints in 2019.
Unit officials say the dramatic spike in reports is due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and reached a peak around the time of the March 2020 elections in Israel.
The report showed that 26% of the incidents involved discrimination while receiving a public service; 19% involved racist language; 15% discrimination in the workplace; 11% racist / stereotyped ads; 9% involving the police; 4% are developed within the educational system; and 3% involving racially motivated crimes.
About 27% of the complaint incidents involved Ethiopian Jews, 27% Arabs, 19% ultra-Orthodox Jews, 7% Jews from the former Soviet Union, and 20% other groups.
One of the complaints involved anti-Arab discrimination in a public park in the northern city of Karmiel.
An Arab family wanted to enter the park, but the security guard at the entrance asked them to show their identification. According to the family, they were later denied entry when the guard realized they were Arabs.
A lawsuit has been filed against the Karmiel city council over the matter.
Another complaint was related to a racist comment made by the director general of a government ministry. According to the report, the official told an employee presenting an aid plan for the Ethiopian-Israeli community: “Do you think Ethiopians will play on a Jewish field?”
Following an investigation, an official complaint was filed against him for the comment that was deemed to question the right of the Ethiopian community to be in Israel.
The unit also received reports of advertisements depicting the ultra-Orthodox as propagators of the coronavirus. A discrimination complaint was filed against Haredi mothers who were about to give birth.
The complaint claimed that Haredi women in a ward of a public hospital were separated from the rest of the occupants of the ward and humiliated.
Following the incident, the Health Ministry ordered all hospitals to provide equal treatment to all sectors, stating that the health system will not tolerate any racism and that medical treatment should not be based on demographics.
“The increase in complaints over the past year and the populations that contacted the office shows the importance of unity and the strengthening of public trust in it,” said Acting Director General of the Ministry of Justice, Sigal Yaakovi.
“The persistence of the coronavirus crisis further emphasizes the importance of the unit in this particular period. The unit and the Ministry of Justice will continue to work steadily and resolutely to reduce racism and discrimination,” he said.
“The unit’s report reflects a harsh reality of racism, discrimination and exclusion for various populations in Israeli society,” said National Anti-Racism Coordinator Aweke Zena.
“We work to eradicate institutional racism wherever it may be. The unit is an important institution in the fight against racism and has managed to gain the trust of the public, which is reflected in the volume of complaints presented to it,” he said.
“The unit will continue to work to change the mechanisms of systemic denial and will highlight the racist attitudes and forms of behavior that exist in the civil service.”
[ad_2]
