Disabled continue blocking roads as part of protest to raise benefits
Protesters block Highway 1 entrance to Jerusalem and Highway 4 from the Geha Interchange towards Givat Shmuel, asking drivers to film the demonstration and send their footage to Knesset members; 'We argue that you can't live off NIS 2,342, we're suffocating,' says spokesman of 'Disabled, Not Half A Person.'
Highway 4 was blocked on Thursday morning from the Geha Interchange towards Givat Shmuel by disabled protesters seeking to compare disability benefits to minimum wage.
Several hours after blocking Highway 4, disabled protester blocked the Highway 1 entrance to Jerusalem.
The protesters asked drivers to film the demonstration and send the footage to members of Knesset. They also asked drivers to write about it to Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon and Coalition Chairman MK David Bitan.
They called out "The people demand justice for the disabled," and "Where's Kahlon? Wicked Bitan, today you're healthy. Tomorrow you might be a poor disabled man."
After requesting from the High Court of Justice (HCJ) that the disability benefits in Israel be raised to NIS 4,000, the Knesset responded by telling the HCJ that handicap must first "prove that they cannot live off of NIS 2,342."
Many disabled people and their supporters found the Knesset's response outrageous, prompting them to demonstrate at Tel Aviv's Rokach-Namir junction during rush hour earlier this month.
"The entire Israeli society is on the verge of collapse. It is time for the prime minister to hear the disabled and stop the abuse," said Alex Friedman, who heads an organization called 'Disabled, Not Half a Person.'
"We argue that you can't live off NIS 2,342, we're suffocating. To the prime minister and finance minister I say: We sat down with you, discussed this with you, and told you we can't live off this sum," said Naor Levi, the organization's spokesperson.
Ultra-Orthodox residents living nearby confronted the protesters, complaining about the blocking of the road.
"What happened to solidarity? You shut down the country for yeshivot budgets," one protester told the ultra-Orthodox.
The disabled protesters have blocked roads before, but mostly during evening rush hour.
The police said this protest did not receive their authorization. "The Israel Police respects and will allow the freedom of protest, but will not permit a violation of the law and the disruption of everyday life for the area's residents," the police said in a statement.
Hannan Tal, also of 'Disabled, Not Half a Person,' explained why their campaign focuses on road blocking. "The disabled are not part of the workforce; the Histadrut Labor Federation doesn't support them. They have no other way to express their protest except blocking roads. The police are facing issues with evacuating a person with disabilities from the road," he said.
He added that organizing large-scale protests is also a complex operation they have a hard time pulling off. "For the protest we did at Rabin Square in January 2015, three days before the elections, some 3,000 disabled persons showed up. We had to organize shuttles, places for them to lie down, portable toilets for the disabled, special parking," Tal said.
The disabled are protesting a plan presented by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to raise disability benefits to NIS 4,000 a month starting January, demanding instead the benefits equal minimum wage—currently at NIS 5,000 a month.
According to the Prime Minister's Office and the chairman of the coalition, MK David Bitan, in January 2018 the pension for disabled people with a medical disability of 90 percent or more will be increased to NIS 4,000.
Meanwhile, people with a medical disability considered less than 90 percent, who are deemed unfit for work by the government and are living under the poverty line, will see their pensions increased to NIS 3,200.
Finally, in an effort to raise disability pensions for the remaining disabled individuals over the next four years to NIS 4,000 per month, the government will raise pensions for those with a medical disability below 90 percent over several stages to ensure the plan stays within budget. Nevertheless, it has yet to be determined whether or not this will apply to all people suffering various disabilities.
But the protesters rejected the plan soon after it was made public. "We reject completely the prime minister's plan. In reality, this plan will leave us at exactly the same place we are now," she said.
She maintained that "there are false pretences here, because only about 30 percent of disabled people have a medical disability of 90 percent or more, meaning 70 percent will get nothing besides an increase to NIS 3,200. We object completely to this discrimination and the creation of first and second class disabled."
