UNITED KINGDOM
Kol v’Oz
On 7 April 2016, Kol v’Oz sent the following letter to the UK Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse:
Hon. Dame Lowell Goddard DNZM
Chair
Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
contact@iicsa.org.uk
Dear Dame Goddard,
Firstly, I would like to commend the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse(IICSA) for its ongoing work in addressing the issue of child sexual abuse in England and Wales.
The IICSA notes that it will investigate a wide range of institutions, including those who fall under the category of ‘other religious organisations’. I would like to take this opportunity to encourage the IICSA to seriously consider including at least a segment of the Jewish community in its investigations.
While child sexual abuse occurs in every segment of society, the context of the abuse, the response by the institution and community, and other factors differ to some degree.
In the past few years, there have been numerous reports of troubling incidents within the UK Jewish community; more specifically, within the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) community there. Some examples include:
* In 2016, in a series of reports, The Independent noted that child sexual abuse is alleged to have occurred in illegal ultra-Orthodox schools and that the authorities turned a blind eye to these schools due, in part, to the fear of being accused of anti-Semitism.
* In 2015 Todros Grynhaus was convicted and jailed for sexually abusing two children. A number of unique aspects were raised in this case such as the Israel’s Law of Return, the high regard in which a rabbi and the son of a rabbi is held, and the ostracisation the victims encountered by their communities as a result of coming forward.
* In 2013, Menachem Mendel Levy was convicted and jailed for sexually abusing a child. The victim and her family were ostracised (including being driven from their synagogue and kosher shops refused to serve them) and rabbis ignored her suffering, advised her not to go to the police and publicly supported the perpetrator.
* In 2013, the Channel 4 Dispatches program aired an undercover investigation that revealed that ultra-Orthodox rabbis forbade or discouraged alleged victims of child sexual abuse from going to the police.
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