A just, democratic society requires gender equality
Tal Hochman
Last April, several months after the outbreak of the war with Hamas, Iran launched its first rocket attack on Israel. Panic spread across the country, and the government decided to shut down all educational institutions. But then, at 1 in the morning and just a few hours before the school day was set to begin, it reversed its decision.
As in many parts of the world, women in Israel are still the primary caregivers. Many of the women reading this will understand the chaos that such a last-minute change can cause. If your government suddenly shut down schools, you would scramble to find a babysitter, take time off work, or adjust your plans. When that decision is reversed in the middle of the night, there’s no time to undo the arrangements already made. Money is lost, time is wasted, and effort goes down the drain.
This seemingly small case is an everyday example reflecting a much deeper issue: the absence of women in decision-making roles.
Only 25 percent of the members of the current Knesset are women, and many of them hold weak political positions, often placed low on their party lists. Out of 33 government ministers, just five are women. Of those, only one holds a high-impact portfolio – the Ministry of Transportation – while the others have been placed in low-budget roles or newly created ministries.
And here’s another telling detail: out of 29 chief executive positions in government departments, there are no women.
This is our reality and this is exactly why the Israel Women’s Network exists. As one of Israel’s leading women’s rights organisations, we’ve been advocating for gender equality for over 40 years. Our mission is to build a more just Israeli society by creating the social, economic, legal, and physical conditions for women to thrive. Over the past decades, we’ve led landmark efforts to increase female representation on public company boards; open new roles for women in the IDF; pass legislation to combat sexual harassment; expand the legal interpretation of equal pay laws; and strengthen employment protections for female workers.
In the face of this unacceptable situation, we led, together with Na’amat and Forum Dvora, a petition to the supreme court demanding action. In a historic victory for gender equality, the court ruled in February that the government must fulfill its legal obligation to appoint women to senior roles in the civil service, including senior “loyalty positions” (political appointees made by ministers). The ruling recognised the systemic failure to ensure adequate female representation in leadership and ordered the government to establish a mechanism for compliance within six months.
While this is a crucial step towards dismantling the exclusionary “old boys’ club” and ensuring women have a seat at the table where decisions are made, there is still a long road ahead. The real challenge lies in ensuring that this ruling is upheld by the current administration.
At the same time, we must acknowledge that not all women’s voices are currently being heard. Two major political parties, the ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) parties, prohibit female representation altogether. As a result, Haredi women remain entirely unrepresented in the political system at the national level.
This is precisely where we step in. Our well-established hotlines include a dedicated line for Haredi women, offering support, information, and guidance to help them exercise their rights. Remarkably, 40 percent of the calls we receive come from Haredi women seeking legal advice. As one of the most marginalised groups in Israeli society, strengthening their ability to demand their rights in the workplace is a core part of our mission.
Through these calls, we identify recurring challenges and collect data that allows us to understand the broader issues affecting this community. This insight guides our advocacy efforts, both in the Knesset and in the courts. Just recently, we represented a class action on behalf of 2,200 Haredi women who worked in a kindergarten chain and were denied their employment and social rights for years. The petition resulted in a 7.5m NIS (£1.57) settlement in their favor.
Since the war began in October 2023, the lack of women in decision-making roles has seen not only Haredi women’s needs gone unheard, but also those of women directly affected by the conflict. In response, we opened a new hotline, similar to our dedicated line for Haredi women, specifically for women impacted by the war: reservists, spouses of reservists, displaced women, and others.
In just the first few months, we received around 1,500 calls. These calls revealed serious policy gaps, and thanks to this direct channel, we’ve been able to advocate for changes to laws and governmental benefits that had overlooked or harmed women’s rights. Currently, we are working to amend regulations that deny benefits to ex-wives of reservists, even when they are the primary caregivers for their children. These changes are essential to ensuring women are not left behind during times of national crisis.
Another major step we took toward amplifying women’s voices was the establishment of our international department. As the war unfolded, we felt that Israeli women were not being heard on the global stage. Our voices were often represented by politicians and diplomats who, in many cases, used the trauma of the sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas on 7 October for public diplomacy purposes – “Hasbara” – rather than focusing on justice for the victims.
Despite international conversations about the rape and horrific sexual assaults committed on that day, there have been no official investigations or reports issued by the Israeli government. Nor have international organisations been granted access to investigate or assist in the recognition and justice process for the survivors.
Recognising this void, we understood that women had to be our own voice in this critical arena. That’s why we established an international department to advocate for both a wide-ranging national investigation that will lead to indictments that include the sexual atrocities and an international protocol that standardises how states respond to sexual violence used as a weapon of war. To strengthen this effort, we’ve partnered with global allies and organisations. Together, we are calling for accountability. Without justice, this horrific war crime is legitimised.
A central mission of this department is also to build connections with feminist and human rights organisations around the world: to collaborate, share strategies, and learn from each other’s experiences. As we face a global backlash against women’s rights, threatening to undo decades of progress, these alliances are more important than ever.
We are committed to resisting this pushback, both within Israel and on the international stage. That’s why we were proud to be the Israeli women’s rights organisation leading on this issue and participating at the recent UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York, where this issue was a central theme. We also hosted a dedicated event on the importance of including women in peacebuilding processes and at decision-making tables during conflict and resolution efforts.
At the IWN, we believe that a truly democratic and just society cannot exist without full gender equality. Whether in government offices, on the battlefield, in courtrooms, or around the negotiating table, women’s voices must be heard, and their rights must be protected. In a time of deep crisis and uncertainty, we remain committed to ensuring that women in Israel have the freedom to be whoever they wish without any restrictions based on gender. We invite our allies around the world to stand with us in these current challenging times – not just for Israeli women, but for women worldwide.
Tal Hochman is the executive director of the Israel Women’s Network. This article is part of LFI’s Voices for Change series.
