Succumbing to pressure from the Ashkenazi haredi United Torah Judaism Party, Israel’s Zionist Orthodox Education Minister Naftali Bennett has apparently agreed to write – and, allegedly, champion – a bill that would abolish the legal requirement for haredi boys schools to teach secular subjects.
Israel Set To Allow Haredi Boys Schools To Teach No Secular Subjects At All
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
Succumbing to pressure from the Ashkenazi haredi United Torah Judaism Party, Israel’s Zionist Orthodox Education Minister Naftali Bennett has apparently agreed to write – and, allegedly, champion – a bill that would abolish the legal requirement for haredi boys schools to teach secular subjects, the Jerusalem Post reported based in part on a report in Behadrei Haredim.
The current law, put in place by the centrist Yesh Atid Party in the previous government, requires at least 11 total hours per week of English, math and science to taught in haredi boys schools – far less than what is taught elsewhere. Haredi schools not meeting that target should have seen their government funding proportionately reduced, but the law was never properly enforced.
UTJ says the repeal of that law was one of the promises made to the party by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to induce it to join the current coalition government. Without the support of UTJ and the Sefardi haredi Shas Party, Netanyahu’s coalition would not have enough seats to rule.
Through a spokesman, Bennett said that he would not agree to champion it until the ruling coalition approves it.
In theory, that approval could be granted as soon as Sunday.