TIME EUROPE
July 03, 2000 VOL. 155 NO. 25
War on Harassment
Israel cracks down on sexual harassment within its army
By LISA BEYER Tel Aviv
While reconsidering the draft, the Israel defense forces are also rethinking another army tradition: sexual harassment. The issue, long derided in macho Israeli society as an absurdity, has lately stirred public discussion after General (ret.) Yitzhak Mordechai, a cabinet minister who spent most of his career in the military, was charged with three counts of sexual assault and one of harassment after allegedly jumping and pawing three women, two of them soldiers, within the past eight years. Mordechai, who resigned as Transport Minister, has denied the charges.
Sexual harassment is particularly pronounced in the I.D.F. Unlike any other First World army, Israel's drafts women as well as men. Young female soldiers usually serve under older male commanders, who have enormous control over their subordinates' lives. Because Israel's is a fighting army, its mostly male warriors have an aura of potency and, often, a corresponding sense of entitlement. In the past, the equation produced what Carmela Menashe, military correspondent for the Voice of Israel, calls "rampant licentiousness."
The I.D.F. has been addressing the issue for years, but never as earnestly as now. Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz proclaimed a policy of zero tolerance in 1998. A year ago, the Knesset passed a strict law criminalizing sexual harassment and compelling employers to begin programs to combat it, prompting the I.D.F. to worry that under the new code, victimized soldiers will sue the army itself. For two years, all female conscripts have been put through a course defining harassment and specifying how to complain. A similar seminar is about to begin for male inductees. "Unfortunately, we don't have a program yet for generals," says one officer.
Last year, the I.D.F.. averaged one harassment complaint a day. Those found guilty—by a disciplinary officer or, in the worst cases, a military court—are subject to demotion and jail time. They can also be ejected from the army. In 1998 and 1999, 54 officers and non-commissioned officers were thrown out. Even consensual dating between commanders and soldiers is now forbidden, because of the inherent imbalance between the ranks. "Sexual harassment is a norm that we want to take out of the army," says Brigadier General Suzy Yogev, head of the Women's Corps.
High-profile cases like Mordechai's help improve awareness of the problem. Last year, the Supreme Court blocked the promotion of a high-ranking officer, Brigadier General Nir Galili, because the army had earlier found him guilty of misconduct in connection with a relationship with a female subordinate. "Every incident like this empowers women soldiers to complain," says Yogev. "Rank doesn't give you immunity." But do Israeli men "get it," as Americans say? "If they don't know it's wrong, I don't care," says Ya'el Dayan, the parliamentarian who initiated the tough new legislation and is the daughter of the late Israeli war hero Moshe Dayan. "If we've put the fear of God in them and this is the reason they don't do it, it's enough for me."
—By L.B. With reporting by Aharon Klein/Tel Aviv
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July 03, 2000
C O V E R
Beyond 2000
In its fifth and final Visions issue, time examines how technology will change our lives in Tomorrowland
E U R O P E
Strangers at the Door
An influx of immigrants is recasting the Continent's identity. European economies need more of them
The Wages of Hypocrisy
Europe's ambiguous approach to immigrants
Snaking Toward Death
Desperate illegal migrants are risking their lives to enter Europe. Many are perishing in the attempt
Dying for a glass of water
Further anecdotes on illegal immigration
B U S I N E S S
Military Intelligence
A Swedish Internet entrepreneur models his strategy along Napoleon's lines
A Guerrilla's Best Friend
Human rights groups are focusing global attention on the role diamonds can play in fueling conflicts
Shall We Dance?
Vivendi's takeover of Seagram is just the latest in a string of foreign acquisitions by French companies
M I D D L E E A S T
Unorthodox Army
Defending Israel was once an obligatory act of faith for all, but today's I.D.F.. seeks quality not quantity
War on Harassment
Israel cracks down on sexual harassment within its army
A F R I C A
Letter From Niamey
The global effort to eradicate polio is a tough war to fight. In remote areas of Niger, tiny drops of vaccine signify hope
E U R O 2 0 0 0
Back on side!
After the violence of the opening rounds, the true contest for Euro 2000 can begin
The Real English Patient
The problem of English hooliganism
T H E A R T S
Revel Without a Pause
Three decades after it began, Britain's Glastonbury Festival still kicks off Europe's musical summer
D E P A R T M E N T S
World Watch
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