Haredi father going to prison
Photo: Noam Moscowitz
Bus bringing fathers to Maasiyahu Prison
Photo: Ohad Zoigenberg
Porush on his way to his 'new office'
Photo: Avi Moalem
Haredim vow violence if mothers jailed
Ahead of High Court ruling on fate of Emmanuel mothers who refused arrest, source from haredi protest group says, 'Every one of the men in Maasiyahu is real shahid; women will never be jailed'
As the High Court of Justice is discussing how best to deal with the Emmanuel mothers who have refused arrest, the haredi street is sending a threatening message. Sources from the headquarters for the struggle for Emmanuel parents on Sunday said, "If the High Court decides to jail the mothers, the war will become a war of modesty and not just education, and then the demonstrations will be of a completely different caliber, very violent."
Yitzhak Sheinin, one of the haredi protest's organizers, expressed hopes that "the judges will have the sense to use the ladder to come down from the tree."
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He added, "If this happens, what we witnessed last week will serve as an example alone. No woman will ever come to prison. This is a case of self-sacrifice. What, did she murder anybody?!"
According to Sheinin, the High Court has already erred by making "every one of the men in Maasiyahu (prison) a real shahid," but added, "It would be an even greater mistake to decide to imprison the women as well."
Sheinin said that judges' ruling has achieved nothing. "There is no point in sitting in jail. This is not deterrence," he said, adding that the prison terms will change nothing. "They went in proud, and you still haven't seen what kind of ceremony will be held when they get out.
"Each one of them, their parents, children and extended families, will grow to hate the High Court and the law, in a serious and obsessive manner. If you write in the verdict that the High Court is above the Torah, 200,000 will stand up and say, 'You do not count, we will go to prison with love'."
Meanwhile, in the protest tent that was set up outside Maasiyahu Prison, organizers have vowed a "cause for celebration". He said a newlyweds' 'Sheva Brachot' dinner will be held at the site each night. Rabbis and public figures will also come in support of the fathers.
Sunday morning, Deputy Education Minister Meir Porush moved his office to the protest tent in support of the struggle. MK Moshe Gafni also visited the prison.
While leaving the prison, MK Gafni slammed the social organizations, who he said are not standing up for the children whose parents have been jailed. "I was in the Russian Compound and I cried with them, and I thought, what would have happened if it was foreign workers' kids who were here against the law," he told Ynet.
"Actually, that did happen. We saw women's organizations and human rights organizations, the National Council for the Child in Israel and even government ministers defending their rights, even though by law, they should have been deported. Here, no one said a word. No one protested. This is hypocrisy at its best."
