For more than half a year, the Free Israel Movement has been leading a campaign called "We are here - want to marry in our country", which focuses on 350,000 Israeli citizens, mostly immigrants from the former USSR, and their children, to whom the state does not provide any legal decisions to marry in their country, since from the point of view of the rabbinate they are not considered halachic Jews.
On December 5, the stories of these children will be heard in the Knesset meeting hall and deputies from different parties join the initiative of MP Yoel Razvozov (Yesh Atid) and the Free Israel movement in order to give voice to these young Israelis who came here with their parents, army, feel part of this country and this people, but are forced to go abroad to marry.
Each deputy will read the story of such a couple within a one-minute speech. Among the parliamentarians who agreed to take part in the project: Itzik Shmuli, Alisa Lavi, Meirav Michaeli, Miki Levy, Karit Elarar, Omer Bar-Lev, Amir Peretz and others.
"I grew up and got a secular education, but was brought up on a deep respect for Jewish traditions. I have a clear connection with the Jewish people, and Jewish blood flows in me. I'm quite Jewish in terms of the Law of Return to live in Israel and take on all the duties of a citizen, but not to marry here. "
Alex Moisienko, a 30-year-old student engineer from Ashdod, became a father three months ago, and since then the state's attitude toward him, which does not allow marriage to enter his country, is pressing him. He was born in Belorussia, immigrated to Israel with his family when he was 8 years old, served nine years as a military officer in the Navy. During military service, Alex participated in the campaign "Witnesses in uniform" (edim bemadim) in the death camps in Poland, and today he is engaged in voluntary activities for the benefit of survivors of the Holocaust.
"The State of Israel can not, on the one hand, invest unthinkable resources and efforts aimed at the promotion of aliyah, and on the other hand, give" unconditional "citizenship to thousands of people here, and on the most important day of their life when they want to create a family and to marry, throw out them overboard, forcing them to marry abroad, "says Katya Kupchik, director of programs in the Free Israel movement.
