Two weeks after an Australian court sentenced Malka Leifer, 15, principal of the Adas Israel ultra-Orthodox school in Melbourne, to 56 years in prison for sexually abusing two of her students, two of the three sisters at the center of the case are speaking about their feelings at the end of a decade and a half of stubborn struggle.
The two, who were teenagers at the time of their abuses, are sharing for the first time details that until now they have refrained from revealing publicly, for fear of harming the legal process.
In a special interview for the "Shabbat" supplement, which will be published this Friday, Nicole Meyer, 38, and Eli Sapper, 34, reveal that many elements in the school and community were aware of Leifer's exploits – but chose not to act to prevent them.
Malka Leifer in court, photo: AP
Nicole: "This is something I couldn't share before the verdict was read: There are people who witnessed Leifer's inappropriate behavior toward female students, including close and inappropriate contact, and did nothing about it. Someone in the community told me that when she walked into the principal's room one day, she saw Leifer sexually abusing me. She explained that she didn't know how to define what she saw, but now, looking back, she realizes that it was sexual abuse, and she feels terrible, both because of what was done to me and because she kept silent.
"Dozens of people, in fact, witnessed the terrible things that happened, but kept it to themselves. And despite the great impact that their testimony could have, to this day none of them have come to testify that we shouted the truth."
"They said she didn't hurt"
Nicole: "Queen Leifer was admired there. I would expect synagogue rabbis in Melbourne to stand up, knock on the table and announce that survivors of sexual assault abuse and Leifer's victims need to be supported. But they didn't."
'Destroyed our lives': Malka Leifer's victims after being sent to prison // Photo: Reuters
Eli: "People don't understand that if you know about something like this, you can't act like nothing happened. Either you help victims or you help the abuser. It's as simple as that. Sitting on the sidelines and doing nothing is helping the abuser. Period."
In the special interview, the sisters talk about the rabbis who tried to prevent Leifer's extradition from Israel to Australia ("We were deeply disappointed with them"), the reactions they received from the ultra-Orthodox community in Melbourne after the verdict ("Opinions on the matter are divided, but some say that the punishment is not severe enough"), and their longing for their older sister, Dalia z"l, who died nine years ago of cardiac arrest at the age of 39 – just a day after receiving threats that she would "lose her good name" if she did not act to persuade her sisters to drop the complaint against Leifer (" We will never know for sure whether it was the stress she experienced that caused her sudden death without warning").
In an interview with Shabbat, Shanna Aharonson – the executive director of Magen, a center for victims of sexual assault in the ultra-Orthodox sector, and the person who is largely responsible for the fact that Leifer was extradited after years of evasive attempts on her part – to whom attempts have also been directed over the years to remove her from this affair.
"I also received calls from an important Rebbetzin from Bnei Brak who said she knew Leifer personally, and that she couldn't have hurt. She said the girls probably didn't realize it was just a motherly hug, and that it would be a shame to ruin Leifer's life. That rabbi didn't know what rape of a woman was."
The full article will be published on Friday in the "Shabbat" supplement
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