Three accusers of former school principal Malka Leifer given permission to speak publicly

Three accusers of alleged child sex offender Malka Leifer have been granted permission by a Melbourne court to speak publicly about their allegations.

Elly Sapper, Dassi Erlich and Nicole Meyer in May.

Elly Sapper, Dassi Erlich and Nicole Meyer in May. Source: AAP

Three Melbourne sisters are allowed to speak out about their alleged abuse by former school principal Malka Leifer, with a court overturning a privacy order accused of silencing advocates.

It comes after survivors said they'd been gagged by Victorian law changes requiring them to seek a court's permission before speaking publicly and under their real names.

Three sisters - Dassi Erlich, Nicole Meyer and Elly Sapper - allege Ms Leifer abused them when she was the head of Melbourne's Ultra-Orthodox Adass Israel School.

The trio have been vocal advocates in Australia's long-running bid to extradite Ms Leifer from Israel to face 74 child sexual abuse charges.
She fled Australia in 2008 when the allegations came to light.

Magistrate Joanne Metcalf on Wednesday granted the sisters' applications to continue speaking out under their real names.

The ruling only applies to the trio but Ms Metcalf noted its broader significance.

"I'm conscious of the importance of the issue for each of the applicants," she said.

Ms Meyer said the decision was "extremely validating".

"I feel a bit more empowered," she told AAP afterwards.

"I can talk again.

"We can continue to advocate for those who don't have a voice or can't talk."
Acting for Ms Meyer and her sisters, Adrian Strauch said their voices were "powerful and important as part of the justice system".

"This is solely an application about victims, or alleged victims', right and ability to identify themselves in the public domain," the lawyer told Melbourne Magistrates Court.

The Victorian government has said the changes enacted in February aim to protect survivors' privacy while clarifying the process for those wanting to go public.

But Attorney-General Jill Hennessy last month said she would revisit the changes to address survivors' concerns.


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Published 2 September 2020 2:18pm
Updated 2 September 2020 4:05pm
Source: AAP


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