The report, prepared by the Land of Israel Legal Forum, was submitted on Tuesday to a Knesset committee that deals with the expelled families of Gush Katif and northern Shomron. It talks of sociological and emotional problems, the most extreme of which are: youths who cut their hands and veins, youths who required hospitalization in psychiatric wards, dozens of divorce proceedings, and a high percentage of cardiac incidents and other serious diseases.
The legal forum, which has been accompanying the expellees free-of-charge for over a year and a half, included its own recommendations for speedy and efficient handling of the issues.
One of the participants at the Knesset session was Rachel Yechieli, a volunteer social worker with the youth of Gush Katif. Born in Gush Katif herself, she lived in Moshav Katif when she was thrown out in the framework of the Disengagement. She told Arutz-7's Hebrew newsmagazine,
"Everyone sees and agrees that the emotional situation is very grave, and the bottom line is that no one was prepared in advance - not SELA nor anyone else. I meet with the youth and hear their problems - such as drugs which we never had before but which have now increased many times over, very difficult psychological problems of my friends and acquaintances, and more and more."
Asked if it is truly important to go into such detail of the problems, Rachel said, "Of course it's important! This is the best proof that the government was not prepared in advance, and didn't know how to treat these problems. If the treatment would have been offered right away, and if they would have listened to us in advance, I believe that most of the problems would not have happened."
Rachel said that "lots of data were presented at the committee session, but no clear answers. Some groups are trying to help, including some municipal councils - but they have to lay out money and take a chance that they will receive budgetary allocations some time in the future. This is not the way things should be run in a normal country."
Excerpts and summations of the report, as presented to the Knesset committee:
Children - Problems of attention deficit disorders have wrosened, or developed, in a significant number of children. Scholastic achievements of many children have dropped. Many of the schools were not prepared to deal with the children's problems, especially since the arrival of the new students was not at a uniform rate, but was dependent on when the families moved from their hotels to their new locations. Post-trauma disorders have been observed, including lack of recognition of parental authority, anxiety attacks, increased violence, hair loss, etc.
Youth - Problems of acceptance of parental and rabbinic authority have increased, together with a deterioration in religious observance. Early marriages at ages 17 and 18, against parents' wishes, have occurred. Some 30% of youth do not attend school regularly, and a drop in scholastic achievements - especially in matriculation exams - is evident.
Twelve suicide attempts have been registered among youth. Youths are having difficulty in finding their place and in developing ties, as they feel that everything is transient. Drug and alcohol use is on the increase, ten eating disorders have been diagnosed, and nine youths have been hospitalized in psychiatric wards.
Adults - Some 50 divorce proceedings have been opened in the nearly 11 months since the expulsion, on the backdrop of difficult tensions and economic difficulties. Some 51% of the population is unemployed. In Nitzan alone, where live nearly 500 families - the largest concentration of displaced families - some 300 people are unemployed. Unemployment payments are ending at this time, and people are beginning to rely on the compensation money - which in many cases has not yet been paid, but in all cases is meant for building a new home and not for day-to-day expenses.
New furnishings and appliances to replace those that were destroyed or lost as a result of the expulsion, psychological treatment, and other expenses have brought many families to the verge of poverty. This results in low self-image and problematic relations between parents and children and between spouses.
Psychological problems among adults include depression, anger, introversion, mal-functioning, and deep sadness. Medicine usage is up, and there has been increased incidence of cardiac diseases, cancer and even death. Family relations were seriously impaired as a result of the lack of privacy in the hotels and even in the relatively small pre-fabs in which they now reside.
Community - The report states that the communal frameworks in Gush Katif were a central pillar of strength, mutual support, communication and help during times of crisis. Most of the communities have since broken up into several sub-communities, living at distances that do not enable the maintenance of ties as before. An important resource of strength has thus been largely neutralized.
The concept of "organizational advisors" accompanying the various communities, as arranged by the SELA Disengagement Administration, is considered to be a correct idea. The report says that the communities must continue to be helped in this way up until their final housing arrangements are finalized - even if takes, as it appears it might in many cases, years. At present, communal affairs are run in a complex and confused manner, adding to the sense of chaos in which the residents find themselves.
Some 250 families are living without any communal framework, in different locations across the country. Many of them need special support, yet are not receiving it.
The report spares no criticism of the government for its faulty mishandling of the entire affair, beginning with the very idea of moving nearly 10,000 people to the unknown. Those dealing with youth problems - the Education Ministry, Community Centers, the Welfare Ministry, youth movements - are working independently and without coordination, thus adding to the confusion. Salaries are set to be suspended at the end of the summer, and lack of sufficient quantities of youth in each location makes it hard to have activities. Only three out of 18 temporary locations have youth clubs.
The lack of qualified social workers is complex and acute. Many of the municipal councils housing the new residents have not hired new social workers, while some hired them only several months ago. Among those who have been hired are many who are not suitably trained for work with traumatized expellees. In Ashkelon, expellees who requested social work aid were turned away. The community of Elei Sinai, most of whose families are living at the Yad Mordechai tent site, has not had any professional social help from the municipality.
A private group called Maanim offers 12 sessions per family, for the purpose of dealing with loss and trauma. With the realization that this number was not sufficient, and that individual family members required different types of treatment, the number has been increased to 24 - leaving families the problem of deciding how to divide them up amongst themselves.
Among the many recommendations in the report is the following:
"If the same attention and planning that was invested in the expulsion had been invested in the people's treatment after the expulsion, things would have been very different... Nearly a year after the expulsion, it is time that all the injustices be put right. A central body should be established that will coordinate all the needs - emotional, psychological, familial and communal - of the expellees. This body must coordinate the work in a professional manner, with maximum attention to what is best for the uprooted residents."
The Lemaan Achai organization accepts donations for communal help, a free loan fund, and trauma and crisis relief services for Disengagement refugees.
The legal forum, which has been accompanying the expellees free-of-charge for over a year and a half, included its own recommendations for speedy and efficient handling of the issues.
One of the participants at the Knesset session was Rachel Yechieli, a volunteer social worker with the youth of Gush Katif. Born in Gush Katif herself, she lived in Moshav Katif when she was thrown out in the framework of the Disengagement. She told Arutz-7's Hebrew newsmagazine,
"Everyone sees and agrees that the emotional situation is very grave, and the bottom line is that no one was prepared in advance - not SELA nor anyone else. I meet with the youth and hear their problems - such as drugs which we never had before but which have now increased many times over, very difficult psychological problems of my friends and acquaintances, and more and more."
Asked if it is truly important to go into such detail of the problems, Rachel said, "Of course it's important! This is the best proof that the government was not prepared in advance, and didn't know how to treat these problems. If the treatment would have been offered right away, and if they would have listened to us in advance, I believe that most of the problems would not have happened."
Rachel said that "lots of data were presented at the committee session, but no clear answers. Some groups are trying to help, including some municipal councils - but they have to lay out money and take a chance that they will receive budgetary allocations some time in the future. This is not the way things should be run in a normal country."
Excerpts and summations of the report, as presented to the Knesset committee:
Children - Problems of attention deficit disorders have wrosened, or developed, in a significant number of children. Scholastic achievements of many children have dropped. Many of the schools were not prepared to deal with the children's problems, especially since the arrival of the new students was not at a uniform rate, but was dependent on when the families moved from their hotels to their new locations. Post-trauma disorders have been observed, including lack of recognition of parental authority, anxiety attacks, increased violence, hair loss, etc.
Youth - Problems of acceptance of parental and rabbinic authority have increased, together with a deterioration in religious observance. Early marriages at ages 17 and 18, against parents' wishes, have occurred. Some 30% of youth do not attend school regularly, and a drop in scholastic achievements - especially in matriculation exams - is evident.
Twelve suicide attempts have been registered among youth. Youths are having difficulty in finding their place and in developing ties, as they feel that everything is transient. Drug and alcohol use is on the increase, ten eating disorders have been diagnosed, and nine youths have been hospitalized in psychiatric wards.
Adults - Some 50 divorce proceedings have been opened in the nearly 11 months since the expulsion, on the backdrop of difficult tensions and economic difficulties. Some 51% of the population is unemployed. In Nitzan alone, where live nearly 500 families - the largest concentration of displaced families - some 300 people are unemployed. Unemployment payments are ending at this time, and people are beginning to rely on the compensation money - which in many cases has not yet been paid, but in all cases is meant for building a new home and not for day-to-day expenses.
New furnishings and appliances to replace those that were destroyed or lost as a result of the expulsion, psychological treatment, and other expenses have brought many families to the verge of poverty. This results in low self-image and problematic relations between parents and children and between spouses.
Psychological problems among adults include depression, anger, introversion, mal-functioning, and deep sadness. Medicine usage is up, and there has been increased incidence of cardiac diseases, cancer and even death. Family relations were seriously impaired as a result of the lack of privacy in the hotels and even in the relatively small pre-fabs in which they now reside.
Community - The report states that the communal frameworks in Gush Katif were a central pillar of strength, mutual support, communication and help during times of crisis. Most of the communities have since broken up into several sub-communities, living at distances that do not enable the maintenance of ties as before. An important resource of strength has thus been largely neutralized.
The concept of "organizational advisors" accompanying the various communities, as arranged by the SELA Disengagement Administration, is considered to be a correct idea. The report says that the communities must continue to be helped in this way up until their final housing arrangements are finalized - even if takes, as it appears it might in many cases, years. At present, communal affairs are run in a complex and confused manner, adding to the sense of chaos in which the residents find themselves.
Some 250 families are living without any communal framework, in different locations across the country. Many of them need special support, yet are not receiving it.
The report spares no criticism of the government for its faulty mishandling of the entire affair, beginning with the very idea of moving nearly 10,000 people to the unknown. Those dealing with youth problems - the Education Ministry, Community Centers, the Welfare Ministry, youth movements - are working independently and without coordination, thus adding to the confusion. Salaries are set to be suspended at the end of the summer, and lack of sufficient quantities of youth in each location makes it hard to have activities. Only three out of 18 temporary locations have youth clubs.
The lack of qualified social workers is complex and acute. Many of the municipal councils housing the new residents have not hired new social workers, while some hired them only several months ago. Among those who have been hired are many who are not suitably trained for work with traumatized expellees. In Ashkelon, expellees who requested social work aid were turned away. The community of Elei Sinai, most of whose families are living at the Yad Mordechai tent site, has not had any professional social help from the municipality.
A private group called Maanim offers 12 sessions per family, for the purpose of dealing with loss and trauma. With the realization that this number was not sufficient, and that individual family members required different types of treatment, the number has been increased to 24 - leaving families the problem of deciding how to divide them up amongst themselves.
Among the many recommendations in the report is the following:
"If the same attention and planning that was invested in the expulsion had been invested in the people's treatment after the expulsion, things would have been very different... Nearly a year after the expulsion, it is time that all the injustices be put right. A central body should be established that will coordinate all the needs - emotional, psychological, familial and communal - of the expellees. This body must coordinate the work in a professional manner, with maximum attention to what is best for the uprooted residents."
The Lemaan Achai organization accepts donations for communal help, a free loan fund, and trauma and crisis relief services for Disengagement refugees.