When most people have their photo taken for a new driver’s license or passport, the government-issued photo I.D. is anything but becoming – think dour faces, terrible lighting, and a general look of total disgust.
But last week, IRAC’s Legal Aid Center for Olim (LACO) received faxed copies of some of the happiest-looking photo I.D.s ever issued. Four of our clients, from countries as far-flung as Japan, Russia, and Romania, had finally received their teudat zehut – Israeli citizenship cards – and in their exuberance could not stop smiling for the camera.
Our clients had been on the verge of giving up their quest for citizenship. One woman had already spent five years waiting for a final decision from the Ministry of the Interior, while IRAC was ready to petition the Supreme Court on behalf of another – only to receive a letter from the Ministry of the Interior on the same day the petition was to be filed, requesting even more documents from the client be sent. In a country where the Ministry of the Interior can only be described as Kafka-esque (letters mysteriously lost, never replied to or acknowledged), a smooth road to citizenship is no guarantee for any oleh.
So instead of the bad news I fling at you each week, I wanted to let
you know about a few of the hundreds of similar cases IRAC wins every
year on behalf of new immigrants. IRAC’s lawyers offer free legal
assistance to olim and help them navigate the often insurmountable
Israeli bureaucracy, win oleh benefits, be recognized as Jews, and
build new lives in Israel. The recognition of their Jewish status in
Israel – since our clients have all undergone Reform or Conservative
conversions – is a triumph in the name of religious pluralism and
freedom, and something to be celebrated.