(ANSAmed) - ROME, MARCH 12 - A horde of half-naked women is
about invade the streets of Israel, first in Tel Aviv (on
Friday), then Haifa, and finally, even in the holy city of
Jerusalem. The 'SlutWalk' is an initiative started by the
international feminist movement, which began in Canada and has
already been repeated in Europe, Australia and Asia. Women are
called to stand up for their rights of sexuality and freedom of
choice by taking to the streets in scantily clad dress and in
their underwear, or dressed 'like sluts'. "The march intends to
provoke," explained Tzafi Saar, who has a weekly column on
feminism in Haaretz, while speaking to ANSAmed, "sort of like
Gay Pride. Being able to walk the streets almost nude is not
the problem for Israeli feminists. But it is a signal: we women
do not have to hide our sexuality like society tells us to." "A
miniskirt," added Saar, "is not a 'yes'. It is just a
miniskirt. Many people don't understand that yet." In Israel
in particular a women's freedom to dress the way she wants often
clashes with rigid interpretations of religious laws and
traditions, which are championed by the ultra-Orthodox
community.
"For several months there has been widespread debate in the
country over the fact that the religious community wants to keep
women on the fringe of public life. Everything began with the
bus issue: in religious neighbourhoods women are forced to sit
in the back of the bus to make room for men in the front. This
goes against Israeli law, but too often the practice is
tolerated by the authorities." The influence of the Haredim
(religious fundamentalists) on Israeli society is growing: "A
look at demographic figures is sufficient to display this.
Ultra-orthodox families have lots of children: in cities like
Jerusalem or Beit Shemesh, they dictate the rules." And last
December in Beit Shemesh, an ultra-Orthodox man spit on an
8-year-old girl, Naama Margolis. In his opinion, she was guilty
of dressing 'immodestly'. (ANSAmed).
