Olim Hotline – If you are down Call…but only in Russian, English, French, Spain and Amharic.

Being Olim is often not easy, even difficult. Mental stress can easily occur, which may improve with professional help. The Ministry of Aliyah, together with the association ‘Eran’, has now set up a hotline in mental distress for Olim in five languages, which is generally commendable and a good move.

Who does not know the evil proverb that one soon hears in Ulpan: Israel loves aliyah, but not olim. Unfair and inaccurate, no doubt, but there may be a grain of truth hidden.

Integration into a ‘mosaic society’, as President Herzog recently addressed Israeli society, is not easy. Which piece of the mosaic is the right one?

The association ‘Eran’ explains its claim and the challenge to be addressed on its website: “Immigrating to Israel is complex, so it is important to us that you know that you are not alone. We at the Immigration and Absorption Ministry and the ERAN Association are aware of the many difficulties and mental pressures that accompany the process of immigrating and acclimatizing to Israel, that is why we have launched a new service that provides professional psychological assistance for you“

The five languages offered are: Amharic, Spanish, French, English and Russian. The hotline is available from Sunday-to Thursday between the hours of 16:00-21:00.

In the ministry’s press release, the areas of responsibility are set out again in detail:

Culturally and linguistically adapted emotional support for immigrants experiencing distress due to absorption processes

Alleviation of loneliness

Supporting and strengthening personal and family resilience

Assistance in the parent-child relationship

Mental support provided to immigrants who take care of nursing parents

Acquiring tools to deal with stressful situations at the family level and improving the ability to cope with

Mental support in stressful situations against the background of living in the shadow of the corona virus

Initial assistance to immigrants who find themselves in situations of stress and crisis, encouragement to apply for continued professional help

If necessary - referral to professional care and support"

As a suggestion: The feeling of loneliness and isolation is more likely to be felt more severe by Olim from language groups that are small in Israel than those Olim whose language background is common, such as English or Russian.

These latter are also excellently organized and a lot of associations, clubs and centres exist. In every office, which is undoubtedly a stress factor, there is at least one person who speaks fluent Russian; English, maybe, sometimes.

However, those groups with an “exotic” language background, such as Chinese or German, experience far more massive and urgent feelings of loneliness and isolation.

It is also a little surprising that German, Yiddish, and Ladino, i.e. languages whose communities have preserved, continued, and developed Judaism over the millennia, and finally, those few, who survived the Shoa were completely left out. That should be fixed urgently.