Australia: the ex-director of a Jewish school tried for rape

The former principal of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish school in Australia appeared in court on Wednesday (February 8th) to answer charges of rape and sexual assault on three female students.

Malka Leifer, 56, has been charged with 29 offenses dating back to when she was principal of the Adass Israel School in Melbourne, the court heard.

The establishment is part of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish sect in Melbourne known to be reclusive.

Sex education and abuse

The charges, which span from 2003 to 2007, include the rape of a student during a school camp and the sexual assault of another girl in a school office.

She was also accused of sexually assaulting one of the students after asking her to come and clean her house.

Read alsoThe catastrophic failure of ultra-religious Jewish schools

Mafka Leifer, a mother of eight who left Israel in 2001 to teach there, has pleaded not guilty.

According to the indictment, Mafka Leifer raped a student after asking her to "

," a kind of pre-wedding etiquette class that includes sex education.

On other occasions, Mafka Leifer told students she was grooming them to be brides, prosecutor Justin Lewis told the court in his opening statement.

“

,” Mafka Leifer reportedly said after a sexual assault.

Fear of a respected teacher

According to Mr Lewis, the three pupils, who grew up in a conservative Jewish community, were afraid to raise the alarm about Mafka Leifer, a highly respected teacher.

Defense attorney Ian Hill argued that Mafka Leifer denied "

" and that her interactions with the students were "

".

"

," he said.

Australia has strict laws around reporting sexual assaults, and some details of the case have been suppressed.