The government has decided to send children in the first to fourth grades back to school, in pods, starting Sunday. But the pods will be in effect only during morning school hours, and not during after-school programs or on school transportation. Meanwhile, there are still disagreements about how to lift additional restrictions on business activity.
Given all this, Israel Hayom has asked three experts from diverse fields for their opinion about how Israel is handling the exit from its second lockdown, and if it was possible to prevent a third lockdown. They were not optimistic.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
Dr. Amir Perry, an expert in risk management and a senior lecturer at Ariel University, thinks that the current decision-making process will lead Israel into a third lockdown, and it's only a matter of time.
"The whole issue of reopening the school system right now isn't being taken seriously, because there will be separation in the morning but not after school or on transportation … in other words, we haven't done anything," he says.
"The moment the students mingle, everything goes back to where we started. The rides from one end of town to another take more than 15 minutes. Similarly, why do supermarkets operate with hundreds of people inside and privately owned shops, which can maintain hygiene and public health rules, are closed? Why can't B& B's, where each family stays in its own accommodations, be open?"
Perry says all these questions lead to one conclusion: "The decision-making process is political, not professional. The government works based on political pressure, and there is no professional decision making … this is a recipe for a rapid return to a third lockdown."
Historian and culture scholar Professor Yaara Bar-On, rector of the Oranim Academic College of Education, thinks that the way decisions are currently being made is very bad for the school system.
"Politicians don't know the field or the ability of each local authority or each school, and make decisions that are detached from reality," Bar-On says.
"The government should have transferred authorities to school chains, to local authorities, to various councils, and to the principals. They know what is possible in each place and what makes no sense."
"I can't say whether a third lockdown hinges on the schools or not, whether or not children spread the virus more than adults do. Do you want to open the schools? Forgo your power, and let it be handled at the local level. I know politicians don't like to give up their power, but this is the only wise thing to do right now. The school system has been in trouble for years, and the COVID crisis is bringing all its problems to light," Bar-On says.
Professor Ronit Calderon-Margalit of the School of Public Health at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, thinks that the main problem is the public losing its faith in the country's leadership, and if it is not resolved, it will be very hard to implement any framework.
"If they break the school 'pods' in the afternoon or on transportation, it's a joke. I don't necessarily think that children spread the virus more than adults, but it shows that the decisions being made have nothing to do with what actually goes on. A personal trainer can work with a small group outside, for free, but not for pay. When such bizarre decisions are being made, the public doesn't understand or believe that there is any reasoning behind them, so we have a big systemic problem."
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
