UTJ Chairman MK Moshe Gafni insinuated that he thinks Israeli pop star Noa Kirel doesn’t cover herself enough in a rant in the Knesset plenum on Monday morning.
In his speech, Gafni said that Haredi school students don’t deserve to be given a smaller budget for school than the rest of Israel’s students.
After telling the plenum that his daughter had learned in a haredi high school and then gone in to work in high tech, Gafni underlined that her school experience was different from other schools in Israel.
“My daughter who I just spoke of didn’t learn about Noa Kirel,” he said. “So what? Because of that, she doesn’t deserve a budget?”
After a pause, he then added that he would donate some clothes to Kirel, insinuating that he doesn’t think her clothes are good enough.
The comment was met with protests from other MKs
“With the NIS seven billion that Gafni and his friends are taking from us for the destruction of the future of the State of Israel and national education, he can indeed donate some clothes,” wrote MK Vladimir Beliak on Twitter in response.
MK Merav Ben Ari called it a “repulsive comment.”
“Why is he interfering in what Noa wears,” she wrote. “Noa Kirel built herself up in a difficult career from a young age. In all that, she enlisted in the army and did a full army service. She was also an outstanding soldier, and in the end, she represented Israel wonderfully and in an inspiring way. All these things, Gafni didn’t do and knows nothing about.”
“Noa Kirel presents Israel’s good face to the world, MK Gafni makes sure to remind the world about the darkness we will not allow here,” said Naamat Chairman Hagit Pe’er. “Noa, you are wonderful, strong and empowering. You’ll probably be fine also without Gafni.”
“Noa Kirel is a strong woman who phenomenally teaches us willpower, leadership and success,” said Director-General of The Women’s Lobby Hadas Danieli Yalin. “We condemn anyone who tries to belittle her and reduce her to her clothes. The eyes of girls and boys around the country are looking to her and also to you, MKs. The message Gafni gave today with his comments is offensive and belittling and there is no room for it in the Knesset. We call on him to apologize for that comment.”
“Don’t be surprised if, in a year or two, the current government will work to cancel our participation in the Eurovision because of modesty and religious values,” said Building an Alternative. “Gafni’s and his friends’ revolting, sexist and primitive comments about our representative at the Eurovision and one of our biggest Israeli stars are not only embarrassing but also attest to the direction in which they want to take our nation. Once again, the men in positions of power are using the body and clothes of a woman to belittle her. Each one of us who hears Gafni today and [Bezalel] Smotrich, Avi Maoz and [Itamar] Ben-Gvir generally, needs to understand that we are on the way to the abyss and have to stop this conservative nonsense.”
Source : Jerusalem Post
