The "Exile" of the Venezuelan Jews

The number of Jews has dramatically decreased since Hugo Chavez came to power.The Jewish community has become a target of the media and the government itself. As Abraham Levy Benshimol, the president of Venezuela's Confederation of Israel Associations says, " The fact is, many members of the Jewish community have left Venezuela, the more people we lose, the more difficult it becomes to maintain our institutions." This 'exodus' has many underlying consequences.Among the emigrants there were leaders of the community that were crucial in order for the community to function and develop. But now since so many have emigrated, there has been a severe decrease in donations to Jewish Social service groups making it difficult for institutions to aid those members in need, the ones who do not have the resources to leave. The number of Jews has decreased from 20,000 to 9,000. Daniel Roth claimed in the Miami Herald that the number of students of private Jewish high school has dropped 50 percent in a decade.
People's main concern is the education and lack of future for their children.In August the Chavez government passed an education bill that gives the government "excessive power over the curriculum's of private schools." For the Jewish schools this bill is extremely threatening. The passing of the bill means that the government now has the ability to restrict the teaching of religion and foreign languages such as Hebrew, which are vital to guarantee the survival of a Jewish community anywhere. Miami has become the "exile capital" for the Venezuelan Jews,especially in the last six months, where there has been a significant increase in the number of Venezuelan students in the Jewish schools.
The Jewish community has been trying to remain unnoticed during these difficult times. A choice that the principal rabbi of the Caracas Israeli Union, Pynchas Brener,says is dangerous. As Brener says, "The community must react strongly against any anti-Semitic abuse, regardless of where it comes from, silence only encourages those who wish to discredit us." This education bill is a huge problem. It only further stresses the lack of future for the Jewish community. If Chavez has already begun to privatize the schools, it is only a few years time until he controls them and other important and vital religious institutions. In order for the community to thrive they must receive government support and for now there is none.

Link to original article:http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/other-views/story/1199540.html