Israel is a beacon
Re: “Abuse of women’s rights is being ignored in Israel,” Naomi Lakritz, Opinion, Dec. 7.
Naomi Lakritz casts Israel, the only true Middle East democracy and stalwart protector of women, as their oppressor. Israel stands out as a beacon for the rights of women, not its serial abuser.
The incidents Lakritz refers to deserve opprobrium. They should be investi- gated by the authorities and dealt with using the fullest extent of the law. But let us not equate the state of women’s rights in Israel with the Arab world’s and broader Middle East’s statesponsored persecution of its females. Iranian girls are stoned to death for allegedly committing adultery, Syrian women are tortured, raped and murdered by the Assad regime, and Saudi Arabian women are treated as chattel under monarchy-sanctioned gender apartheid.
Israeli women like the late prime minister Golda Meir, Tzipi Livni, head of the Hatnua political party, and Ambassador Miriam Ziv have led their country with distinguished honour. Israel recently ranked 11 among 59 developed countries for the participation of women in the workplace. Israeli women serve in Israel’s independent judiciaries, civil service and public sectors, and are leaders in the business and labour communities, while serving important roles in the Israel Defense Forces.
Israel’s treatment of women is not “Taliban-lite” as per Lakritz’s suggestion. Israel is always seeking to improve and find more ways to safeguard women’s rights. The Jewish state is one of the world’s most progressive defenders of women, not their abuser.
Mike Fegelman, Toronto Mike Fegelman is executive director of Honest Reporting
Canada.