“One in five women is refused a get from her ex-husband when they divorce, making it impossible for her to remarry.
This week, on March 17, it will be 30 years since Israel passed the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty. Thirty years of a foundational law demanding universal human dignity and liberty should be cause for celebration. But how can society celebrate when so many are excluded from enjoying the human dignity and liberty described in the law?
How can it be that in the 30 years since this law has been enacted, women can still not marry or divorce freely? Why has the issue of agunah – women refused a divorce by their husbands – not been solved?
Rachel (an alias for privacy reasons) began enduring horrific physical and verbal abuse shortly after she married. She had one young child and the couple decided to divorce. Her husband fled the country to avoid paying alimony and did not give Rachel a get (a Jewish bill of divorce). After 20 years of agunah, Mavoi Satum, an organization fighting for the rights of agunah, represented her in the beit din, the rabbinic court.”
