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|  | Alma Zohar with one of the kids Photo: Roee Gazit
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| | | | | Dan Toren and a friend Photo: Roee Gazit
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Artists meet with foreign workers' children
Israeli artists rally to cause of preventing deportation of illegal workers' kids; meet children in effort to raise awareness
Rafi Barbiro
Israeli artists met Wednesday with children of foreign workers who are facing deportation, as part of an effort to raise awareness to their situation and encourage public support for their cause.
The special gathering was organized by the "Guitar Festival",
which brought together the children with artists such as Alma Zohar, Alon Abutbul, Dudi Levy, Gilad Kahana, Yael Goldansky, Dan Toren, Michael Greilsammer, Yael Dekelbaum and Boom Pam band, which did a sing-along with 3 to 10-year-olds in south Tel Aviv.
"There are a few important facts that led me to initiate this event today," said Alma Zohar, "1,200 children are facing deportation. They were born in Israel, they never left this country, and Hebrew is their mother tongue.
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"These children are victims of the government's 'revolving door' policy, according to which they deport foreign workers, while simultaneously importing new ones. It is a cruel policy that is meant to perpetuate the foreign workers' lack of rights and defenseless status in Israel.
"It is important to remember," added Zohar, "that foreign workers do not deprive us of anything. They are an imperative work force in the Israeli economy. If they are gone, houses wouldn't be built, crops would rot in the fields and old people would lay neglected in their diapers. No Israeli would do the type of work that they do."
In addition to the gathering held Wednesday, the festival's producers joined Zohar's initiative, and will use the festival's stage along with the participating artists to call against the children's' future deportation.
The festival's producers along with Hotline for Migrant Workers
and Israeli Children,
will invite to the festival a group of foreign workers' children, who will arrive in a special bus and enjoy a day of music, craft workshops and musical shows.
The festival will also employ volunteers from the participating organization, who will offer information and recruit volunteers.
"The festival's revenues will go to the welfare of the foreign workers' children" said Omry Dolev, one of the festival's producers.
"This is Alma's (Zohar) initiative. We are proud of her and glad to help with whatever we can in order to raise awareness and make our little friends happy. We feel we are substantially supporting this important struggle, and hope it will prove to be a success," Said Alon Abutbul, the festival's founder.
The Guitar Festival will be held November 5-7 in Chan Hashayarot near Sde Boker
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