Interior Minister skips immigration debate attended by foreign workers' children
Yishai: Bringing immigrant workers' children to the conference is provocative and absurd.
By Dana Weiler-Polak Tags: migrant workers Eli Yishai Israel newsMinister of Internal Affairs Eli Yishai on Wednesday canceled his attendance at a Knesset hearing on Israel's immigration policies, in light of the fact that children of foreign workers, due to be deported, were to be present.
"I didn't attend because of the attempt to turn the session into a theater of the absurd and to incite provocation," Yishai said.
Yishai's absence from the conference ignited strong reactions by several of the attending members of Knesset.
Left wing MK Nitzan Horowitz said that Yishai's decision was ridiculous and pitiful.
"The Minister of Internal Affairs can't even look these children in the eye," he added.
MK Haim Oron, head of the leftist party Meretz, also responded by saying that "it is unfounded that Yishai's personal standards become public standards."
During the conference, a bill was submitted by MK's Nitzan Horowitz (Meretz), Dov Khenin (Hadash) and Danny Danon (Likud) that will be brought to discussion in the Knesset in November.
The bill proposes protecting children of illegal immigrants and foreign workers from arrest or incarceration.
Conference chairman MK Orit Zuaretz (Kadima) started crying during the conference and said that Israel today is a country that deals in human trafficking.
"Immigrant workers are exploited and live in inhumane conditions in Israel, and this cannot continue to happen," Zuartez concluded.
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Once again Extremist on the left opt for cheap press stunts and drama more than dialog and results. I think these children should be protected in Israel and not deported. How many nations and for how many centuries deported us!
Not the children, he could care less. Just the coverage of what he is doing. That will make a politician cower.
What Planet do you live on? Definitely not Jupiter, צדק.
Untrue that immigrant workers live in inhuman conditions. We employ them and they live as well as we do. Most of these people will try anything to get to stay in Israel, which is much better than where they came from. If more Israelis would do grunt work, Israel wouldn't have to import foreigners at all. All the crying about human trafficing is baloney.