ELI

ELI Helps Children in Africa

Dr. Hanita Zimrin and Barbara Reichel, an ELI Senior Social Worker were sponsored by "Save the Children, Norway" to travel to Ethiopia to begin educating social workers and other professionals in Ethiopia about Child abuse.

A few months earlier, Dr. Zimrin and ELI were introduced to an Ethiopian Social worker who was in Israel participating in a 10 day seminar offered by "Mashav", a section of the Israeli Foreign Ministry dedicated to good-will in the third world. Dr. Zimrin was one of the lecturers in the seminar. After completing the seminar, the Ethiopian Social Worker returned to Ethiopia and convinced "Save the Children, Norway" to sponsor Dr. Zimrin and ELI to come to Ethiopia for 3 weeks to begin to replicate in Ethiopia, the work that ELI has been doing for children in Israel for years.

While in Ethiopia, Dr. Zimrin and Ms. Reichel learned the following: A major cause of neglect, (a form of child abuse particularly prevalent in Ethiopia), is the astounding HIV rate. According to recent surveys, approximately 35% of the population in Ethiopia is infected with HIV. As a result, 11% of all children in Ethiopia are orphans.

This newsletter is published by the American Friends of ELI, the Israel Association for Child Protection. In the absence of a progressive welfare program, these children live in the streets. No one takes care of them. Besides the abhorrent conditions, the children are subject to abuse from adults. Sixty Eight

percent of marriages in Ethiopia involve the abduction of young girls, eleven and twelve years old. The girls are abducted so the husbands can avoid paying the traditional "dowry." After the abductions, the girls are raped, and frequently deserted by their husbands.

Another factor accounting for child abuse is the philosophy as to the status of children in the Ethiopian family and society. In Ethiopia, unlike the western world, children are the last priority. ELI learned this through their work with the Ethiopian community in Israel. It was noted when Ethiopians started arriving in Israel en masse, that malnourished infants stayed malnourished despite the provision of formula and food. Authorities came to learn that the parents were consuming the formula themselves, and leaving nothing for their children.

While in Ethiopia, ELI found a very enthusiastic and motivated group of professionals, in law enforcement, welfare, health and human services and the education fields. They were eager to learn in order to help Ethiopia to adopt a more modern philosophy and infrastructure concerning children's rights. Although three weeks is a short time, Dr. Zimrin believes that she and Barbara Reichel "succeeded in shaking up their world, and beginning a process of change." Over the course of the three weeks, ELI taught this group a great deal, but also found the opportunity to learn from them, in particular in order to better serve the Ethiopian population in Israel.

During their stay in Ethiopia, Dr. Zimrin and Ms. Reichel were exposed, first-hand, to Ethiopian culture. ELI is now better equipped to deal with built in cultural barriers such as the tendency not to show emotion which previously made therapy more difficult. The traditional Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony is a two hour ritual which takes place twice daily, where neighbors gather and gossip while roasting, grounding and preparing, and drinking the coffee. There are several objects used in the ceremony including a primitive grinder, a small portable stove etc. ELI purchased authentic Coffee Ceremony accoutrements in order to replicate the ceremony for the Ethiopian community in Israel. ELI will use the traditional ceremony in which Ethiopians feel comfortable, to infuse therapeutic content.

The time in Ethiopia proved valuable for ELI, as well as for the professionals in Ethiopia who will in turn begin to improve the lives of their neglected and abused children. As a supporter of ELI you are not only helping to ease the pain of child abuse in Israel, but internationally as well.

In mid-April, Dr. Zimrin was invited back to Ethiopia once again by "Save the Children, Norway" in order to begin training Ethiopians on the subject of cooperation between governments and NGO's, (Non Governmental Organizations). The second trip will take place this summer.

As a supporter of ELI you are not only

helping to ease the pain of child abuse in

Israel, but internationally as well.

"Aftershock"

While abuse may happen several different ways (sexually, emotionally, physically or by severe neglect), all abuse victims have something in common. Without exception, they are all faced with an excruciatingly difficult healing process, one that demands qualities that are nearly impossible to expect of an abused child - openness, trust, and the sheer will to recover and live on.

ELI's therapists have learned that the healing process can go faster or slower or not at all, depending on how supportive the victims' environments are after an initial abuse or trauma occurs. Sometimes, friends, families, teachers and counselors act with empathy and compassion, which helps the child to heal and rehabilitate, but sometimes they react indifferently, or even with wickedness, which doubles the burden on the shoulders of the already despairing child.

ELI planned and hosted a two day professional conference devoted to the issue of "Aftershock". The conference was designed to help practitioners in the healing professions understand that additional abuses may occur after initial abuses or other traumas (aftershock). Therapists and other professions will now be better equipped to help children and their families to cope with these painful scenarios.

What follows are some of the issues that were discussed in the conference:

Secondary abuse by either an abusing parent or a non abusing parent.
Therapists may unknowingly abuse a child by not understanding the child's situation, not caring, or being too afraid to help.
The court system may be abusive as in a case where a judge said "the best interests of the child are balanced by the interest of the court," which is to say that a child's welfare is a secondary concern after the courts' procedures.
A non-abusive parent might falsely claim that he or she did not know that abuse was taking place, so that a child has no one at home to trust.

When parents accuse an abused child of lying about the abuse or imagining it, the child has nowhere to turn and faces a hopeless scenario alone.
The strain of divorce may lead to abuse or neglect.
The welfare system, overloaded with cases, may abuse a child by ignoring a case or by not intervening properly.
If one parent murders the other, the child or children become orphans, because the murdering parent is also taken away, to prison. This is the first time ever, anywhere that this subject was discussed on a professional level.

Through this conference ELI sheds light on a crucial issue, expands our knowledge and the way we deal with abused children. ELI is more committed than ever to learning about and treating all forms of abuse whatever they may be. The conference was attended by 150 therapists and school counselors.




ELI, the Israel Association for child Protection, works tirelessly to and terror in the home, stop the vicious cycle of violence, and give voice to the silent This newsletter is published by the American Friends of ELI, the Israel Association for Child Protection. A Message from Our Co-Chairs Nachum and Barbara L. Meyers have agreed to be ELI's West Coast Chairs. We would like to welcome Nachum and Barbara to the ELI Family. Nachum and Barbara reside in Sunnyvale, California and for decades, they have been committed to helping children at risk, both in the United States, as well as in Israel. Nachum and Barbara have a long association with Israel. Barbara's father, Harry Levine, was one of the founders and the first treasurer of the Weizmann Institute of Science. Nachum made Aliyah in 1948 as a long-time member of Hashomer Hatzair. Their children and grandchildren have all served Israel in many ways and today they have extended family on kibbutz, in Jerusalem, and in other cities in Israel. Over the years, Barbara and Nachum have given of their time and resources to many Jewish institutions. In addition, they volunteered for seven years with children and families at risk, in the Bergen County, New Jersey, Probation Department. They have seen first hand the value that professional intervention can have on young lives. When asked, they immediately agreed to come join ELI helping victims of abuse. We are privileged to have the Meyers' with us, and we know that they'll help us make a difference in the lives of many more abused and neglected children in Israel. ~Arthur and Adam Sheer