Will volunteers stay in Israel?
Kibbutz officials concerned that terror attack will reduce number of international helpers
In recent years, despite ongoing Qassam attacks on southern communities, volunteers from across the world continued to flock to area kibbutzim. However, Kibbutz Movement officials are concerned that Tuesday's terror attack, which claimed the life an Ecuadorian volunteer, would deter others from coming to Israel.
However, in Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha, where Carlos Andres Chavez was murdered Tuesday morning, other volunteers said they are determined to stay.
In the past year, about 1,500 international volunteers offered their assistance at 35 kibbutzim across the nation. Kibbutz officials noted that Ecuador, where terror victim Chavez came from, is among the countries that send the highest number of volunteers, along with other South American countries like Columbia and Chile.
Difficult moments following kibbutz attack (Photo: AP)
Kibbutz Movement Spokesman Aviv Leshem told Ynet that only last week, a group of 43 volunteers arrived in Israel from South Korea. The volunteers, who are all organic agriculture students, were spread among several kibbutzim in order to learn about organic agriculture in Israel.
Love for Israel
Despite the security situation, the Kibbutz Movement has not encountered many requests to avoid high-risk areas.
"There are some requests like that, and we accommodate them – but many times the situation is the opposite," Leshem said. "During the Second Lebanon War we had volunteers in kibbutzim like Baram, where Katyusha rockets were falling, yet they insisted to stay."
"We are talking about young people who come to support Israel. They come because of their love for Israel, and that's why they prefer to stay," he said. "The group from Ecuador, for example, comprises about nine members who arrived here because of their love for Israel."
Rina Keren, who is in charge of international volunteers in the Kibbutz Movement, spoke with the mother of one of the volunteers at Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha, where the terror attack took place Tuesday morning.
"She called this morning and after praising me for what we did with her son, and saying how much he enjoys his stay, she turned to the tough questions. When you sit far away from here it's hard to understand why we send the volunteers there," Keren said.
Keren added that the volunteers receive information regarding the kibbutzim they are expected to go to.
"We show each one where we are sending them, and overall there were no complaints," she said. "Some volunteers actually want to be near the Gaza border, but there are those who are not really familiar with the country."
