Major-General Elazar Stern
Photo: Shaul Golan
Maj.-Gen. Stern speaks out against use of religion to dodge draft
Head of Israeli Human Resources Directorate points finger of blame at girls claiming to be religious to evade army service, claims IDF in need of soldiers of both sexes. Calls on employers to prefer candidates who served in army
Major-General Elazar Stern has made the fight against evasion of compulsory army service his personal agenda. Lately the head of the IDF's Human Resources Directorate has spoken out against draft-dodging by religious Zionists and Tel Aviv residents, and has now focused his attention on girls who claim to be religious in order to evade service.
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On Monday Stern spoke in front of an assembly of representatives from the Israel Management Center, claiming the IDF is in need of soldiers, male and female alike. He added that 85 percent of IDF jobs are open to both sexes. “We are in need of women, so how can it be that false claims of religion are so well accepted by schools and society in general?”
Stern told of his visit to the Thelma Yellin high school in Giv’atayim, where many girls were reported to be evading service. He said to the soon to be enlisted students: “I look around and no one here looks like they study in Ulpana (Jewish school) with my daughter, and yet you know and the school’s management knows that 10% of those seated here have declared themselves religious.”
According to Stern, IDF research shows that one third of all recruitment-aged girls declare themselves religious, and therefore the IDF is unable to recruit them.
Prefer those who served
Two months ago the IDF began to equip discharged soldiers with honorary certificates presenting the nature of their service. Stern complained that discharged soldiers carrying this certificate do not receive the benefits they deserve, and asked the human resource managers present at the assembly to question job candidates about the nature of their service.
“What are we doing?” Stern continued. “Don’t they deserve to be asked about the two years they gave to their country? The universities take personality into consideration. Doesn’t army service say something about personality? Why can’t we ask about it?”
