SHATIL Sponsors First Ever Conference on Ethiopian Domestic Violence  

The excitement was electric and the tears flowed as five white-turbaned kessim (traditional Ethiopian Jewish spiritual leaders) chanted a specially commissioned prayer they composed for peace in the home before an audience of 300. The haunting strains of the prayer filled the auditorium at Bar Ilan University, launching the daylong conference sponsored by SHATIL's Yachdav: Coalition to Prevent Violence in the Ethiopian Family in cooperation with the Ministries of Absorption and Health and Bar Ilan University. Until the coalition of Ethiopian women activists formed two years ago, the subject of family violence was taboo in the community. But the silence was broken as Ethiopian activists, volunteers and community workers joined government and law enforcement officials and academics to discuss the painful topic at the historic July 4th conference.

Attendants at the Conference on Domestic Violence leaf through the Coalition’s publication; a memorial for Lamlam
is illuminated with yortseit candles.

In the past decade, eighteen Ethiopian women have been murdered by their husbands or partners comprising 30% of such murders in Israel, although Ethiopians comprise only 1% of the population. Most of the men then committed suicide. Yachdav's mission is to reduce this number by addressing the roots of the problem, and convincing the government to allot resources toward more Amharic-speaking social workers and traditional mediators. In addition, they seek occupational training for Ethiopian men during long stays in absorption centers and better preparation of immigrants for a dramatically different family dynamic in Israel.

At the conference, the Coalition distributed its newly published-booklet enumerating resources available in Amharic and Hebrew for families needing help with domestic violence issues. In addition to the experts, officials and Coalition members who addressed the audience, Lemlem Tsahai's brother and sister spoke movingly of their loss. It was Lemlem's murder that led her Ethiopian activist colleagues to establish the Coalition. "The light turns to darkness," said her brother, Avi Tsahai, pausing to compose himself between words. "The murders and suicides destroy the lives of entire families. The pain never heals." Tsahai spoke against a backdrop of film clips from Lemlem's life. He then read a heartbreaking list of the names of all the women victims.

"We haven't succeeded in building a bridge between Ethiopia and Israel and the community is paying the price," said Dr. Malka Shabtay, an anthropologist who has been helping the Jewish Agency to deal with family violence. "The community brought with it cultural treasures such as the shmegeleyoch (wise elders who act as traditional mediators) and we have to use them."

"The connection between the community and officialdom at the conference changes the whole picture," said SHATIL's Yachdav Coalition Coordinator Shulamit Sahalo, who coordinated the conference. "Past accusations and blame between the community and the establishment are giving way to cooperation to solve this tragic problem."