Prevention of the exclusion of women from the public sphere

According to the government decision made following the recommendations of the ministerial team for examination of cases involving the exclusion of women from the public sphere, the Ministers of transport and road safety, health, internal affairs and religious services are required to report to the government within 90 days which activities have they carried out towards an examination and implementation of the guidelines included in the ministerial team’s report. In parallel, the minister of Communication will be required to request that The Second Authority for Television and Radio provide a report regarding the implementation of the decision of the Council of the Second Authority for Television and Radio, to remove all barriers preventing broadcasting of women’s voices, as well as their employment in broadcasting roles, and to report to the government within 90 days. Within 120 days a follow-up government meeting should be held in order to examine and discuss the reports received.

This decision follows government decision 4052 dated 29/12/2011 by which the Civil Service Commission would publish guidelines regarding the prohibition of the exclusion of women in governmental and national ceremonies; the Ministry of Religious Services will amend the licenses granted to the Hevrot Kadishah (Jewish burial  associations) so that it is completely clear that women may eulogize their dead and accompany them in their funerals; the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety will establish and publish a special Hot line for complaints of women harassed in public transport; A Hot line will be established by the Authority for the Advancement of the Status of Women in the Prime Minister’s Office to handle complaints involving the exclusion of women; A bi-ministerial team would be established in order to present the government with ways of coping with the  exclusion of women from the public sphere and propose possible solutions.

As at November 2016 this decision has been only partially implemented. Quite a number of actions have been taken on various levels towards eradicating the exclusion of women from the public sphere, with the encouragement of the Ministry of Justice and the Deputy Legal Advisor. A notice was issued by the Civil Service Commission prohibiting the exclusion of women from governmental and national ceremonies; A notice was issued by the Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Health, by which the Health funds will not provide services separating between men and women; The Ministry of Transport controls public transport lines in which separation between men and women are the custom, and opened a Hot line for complaints of women harassed in public transport; A Hot line was established by the  Legal Advisor to handle complaints involving the exclusion of women; The Second Authority for Television and Radio initiated regulator proceedings against the “Kol Barama” radio station regarding its policy of not broadcasting women, and the station commenced to broadcast some female voices. However, in practice there is still separation in buses, and even if theoretically it is a voluntary decision of female passengers to adhere to this custom, this decision often originates from fear of being harassed by Ultra-religious passengers. In addition, the Ministry of Interior has not acted to prohibit placement of street signs requesting that women walk on separate routes, or dress modestly, and did not issue a notice prohibiting separate seating arrangements in national ceremonies and events.