'Dead' Bnei Brak child turns up alive and well in Canada

Investigation launched into alleged kidnapping of haredi baby whose parents were told he died at birth
Ynet, December 12, 2006

Chaim Levinson

A storm is raging throughout the ultra-Orthodox community in Israel and the US following testimony that a boy from the Hasidic Satmar community in NY was allegedly kidnapped from his parents more than 50 years ago and adopted by a Christian Canadian couple.

The most popular ultra-Orthodox weekly, "Family" is conducting an in-depth investigation into the mysterious story. According to findings so far, some 50 years ago a Hasidic family from Bnei Brak gave birth to twins. One of the twins died immediately after birth and doctors later informed the couple that the other child had also has passed away and had been buried.

Doctors told the family that the baby had become ill and his condition deteriorated until he met his death. The stricken parents had no choice but to accept the news, however reportedly they always bore a persistent doubt as to the circumstances of their child's death. This doubt was reinforced some 18 years later when the "dead child" received a military induction order. The shocked family attributed this to nothing more than an unfortunate error.

About a month ago, in a Canadian city, thousands of kilometers from Bnei Brak, an only child opened his mother's will after she passed away. The words darted in font of his eyes and almost made him faint.

"You are a Jewish child from the city of Bnei Brak in Israel," it was written in the will. "We adopted you when you were just a few days old and we raised you without revealing your true identity. You are now entitled to know the great secret we kept from you."

Brother found story hard to believe

The surprised son, who was raised as a non-Jew, didn't waste time and set out on a voyage to trace his biological parents.

The man in question, who works at one of the important intelligence agencies in a Western country, was quick to find his Jewish family at the Satmar community in New York, where they moved to from Bnei Brak.

The mother passed away four years ago and the father is now 85-years-old. Besides the twins, the couple had an additional 11 children throughout the ensuing years.

Two weeks ago, the man made contact with one of his biological brothers in New York, he recounted his story and asked to meet. At first, the shocked brother found it hard to believe the story, but ultimately agreed to meet his "brother." Upon their meeting it became quite clear there were clear physical similarities between the two.

For the past few days the man has been undergoing a series of genetic tests to determine his true identity and his connection to the family in question. Only after receipt of the final results will the brother tell the elderly father that his lost son has been found after an absence of 50 years.

It will also become apparent whether this man's story is the Satmar version of the missing Yemenite children in Israel.

Courts administration tender won by contractor paying less than minimum wage

Haifa court janitorial tender will pay less than minimum wage
Haaretz, December 13, 2006
By Ruth Sinai

The Courts Administration has decided to employ a contractor in the Haifa courts even though his bid is so low he will not be able to pay janitorial staff minimum wage. In a highly unusual move, the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce demanded over the weekend that the tender in which the cleaning contractor was chosen, be canceled.

"The pricing of the bid does not allow the winner to uphold both the demands of the tender and the demands of the law regarding workers' rights," attorneys Michal Pereg and Dror Atari wrote to the courts' tenders committee.

Veteran cleaning company Moria, which submitted an unsuccessful bid that accounted for all mandatory wage costs and social benefits, obtained documents pertaining to the tender.

The tender requires the contractor to supply 28 janitorial staff from 6:30 A.M until 6 P.M. in most places, and until 10 P.M. in some places. The winning bid was for NIS 6,384 per day, which translates into NIS 25.33 per hour for the cleaning staff. This sum is supposed to cover wage costs, cleaning supplies and profits for the supplier. However, calculations of minimum wage and social benefits amount to NIS 25 per hour for the first hour, rising to NIS 27.57 for later hours. Cleaning supplies are valued at a minimum of 75 agorot per hour and an 8 percent profit margin means NIS 2 per hour.

The winning bid is at least 15 percent below the minimum cost and does not calculate for any workers after 6 P.M.

"Either the contractor will be unable to perform the necessary work or will employ more workers without paying them properly. The miserable reality indicates it is easier to take the second route," Pereg and Atari write.

The pair also highlighted the fact that other bidders calculated additional jobs like windows and roofs that would be cleaned using repelling techniques and polishing large floor spaces, pricing these at tens of thousands of shekels. The winning bid covered them at NIS 7,400.

The Courts Administration stated it had not examined the charges in the letter over the weekend and was unable to comment for this report.