The Wall

In the north, the Wall is a 10 foot fence topped with razor wire

Up in “the north,” where I spend most of my time, it’s a wire mesh fence, about 10 feet high, topped with razor wire, and interspersed with “security” gates.  Here in Bethlehem, where I’ve been spending a few days on a “placement visit,” it really is a Wall – almost 30 feet of concrete with guard towers. And, on the Bethlehem side of the wall, it is a canvas on which graffiti artists, professional and amateur alike, ply their brushes with messages for the world.

In Bethlehem, The Wall is a 30-foot tall concrete barrier

It has several different names.  Israelis call it a “security fence,” and claim it is needed to protect them from the “terrorists” in the West Bank.  Palestinians – and some internationals – call it an “Apartheid Wall,” meant to keep the Palestinians separate (but NOT equal!) in a position of depravation and oppression.

Those who strive to be “politically correct,” call it a “separation barrier,” a name that acknowledges both the Israeli desire for a “barrier” between themselves and their Palestinian neighbors and the reality of the fact that it does, in fact, separate the two peoples.

And those of us who deal with checkpoints, livelihood and agricultural gates, all designed to restrict movement by the Palestinians, simply refer to it as “The Wall.”

The Wall, we are told, is already twice as long and three times as high as the infamous “Berlin Wall” – and one can only hope that it will meet the same fate!  Regardless of what one calls it, it’s an abomination – blight both on the landscape and the psyche of the Palestinian people.

While it is generally acknowledged that Israel has every right to “protect” itself (although many would question how much “protection” is really needed), there remain several problems with (what I prefer to call) “The Wall.”

If “good fences make good neighbors,” it is because the fences are placed on the property line – not intruding into one neighbor’s land.  A major problem with The Wall is that Palestinian land was confiscated to build it – and major portions of The Wall are well over the internationally recognized “green line” (border approved in the UN partition plan of 1948 and subsequently upheld in International Court) deep into Palestinian territory.  The “green line” is said to be something less than 400 kilometers; yet The Wall will be nearly 800 kilometers long when construction is completed. 

 In the meantime, The Wall stretches across many thousand dunams of Palestinian farmland – land that farmers either cannot access at all or requires a system of permits and agricultural gates, which severely limits access.

The Wall stretches across the Palestinian landscape

Another problem with The Wall is the ingress and egress.  People who live inside (i.e. Palestinians) cannot leave without permits, and these can be difficult to obtain.  Men, in particular, younger unmarried men – or sometimes even married men with no children – are rarely granted permits.  And, even if someone is lucky enough to be granted a permit, passage through The Wall involves checkpoints (see March 13 blog post) and long waits.

It is easier to enter the West Bank than to leave it but, even so, here too there are often checkpoints to slow one down.  And Israelis are strictly forbidden to enter the West Bank – signs warning them of this are prominent at entry points into Palestinian towns.

The “bottom line” is, in my humble view, by keeping the two people apart, The Wall keeps them from getting to know each other as people.  And it is very difficult to talk peace through concrete and barbed wire!

Sabastiya, settlers and sewage

One of many historic sites in Sabastiya

The latest story of settler “incursions” onto Palestinian farmland comes from the city of Sabastiya, a historical place that goes back 10,000 years.  The ancient site of Samaria, Sebaste was named in honor of Caesar Augustus who gave it to Herod the Great.  If this is sounding faintly Biblical, it should – the modern-day city (population about 4,000) is home to Biblical and other historical sites (a church-turned-mosque in which John the Baptist was allegedly beheaded is sited here, as are other ancient structures).

But my EA colleague and I are not here on this sunny morning to tour the ancient sites.  We are here because the residents of the city have organized a peaceful demonstration to protest the dumping of raw sewage on their farmlands, and they have asked that we accompany them as a “protective presence.” 

As is true of most Palestinian towns, the farmlands are not attached to the residents’ homes, but are located a short distance away.  As is also true in these days of Occupation and the Wall, the farms are located near a settlement, which makes access difficult.  In Sabastiya, this access is not through agricultural gates, but rather requires “coordination” with the settlers and soldiers – a process that causes many problems in and of itself.

The land is mostly planted in olive trees

The land is mostly planted in olive trees, but other crops grown in the area include wheat, dates, and tomatoes.  And, while the farmers have had previous problems with the settlers, such as destroyed olive trees, and wild boars being turned loose in the area, the sewage problem is relatively new.

“[The settlers] opened their sewage pipes to our land and the water reached us in December (2012),” says Ahmad Kayed, Coordinator of the Popular Committee for Sabastiya and organizer of this demonstration.  The settlement of Shave Shomeron has been around since the 1970s and, although there have been occasional sewage spillages in the past, this act is both deliberate and egregious.

Not only does the sewage contain human waste, he explains, there are also aluminum, leather and steel factories in the settlement, with their resultant pollution.  “The water is still running.  There are too many microbes; we can’t do anything with the land,” he says.

The protest, which attracted about 100 people, including other internationals, was a peaceful one, although there was some question about that at the beginning.  Israeli soldiers had entered the home of the imam who was to lead the prayer for the march at 4 in the morning to “warn” him not to participate.  And soldiers were reported to be waiting just across the main road from the protest site.

But the group remained orderly as they prayed, waved flags, listened to speeches and held signs.  “This is our land Get the S—T out of it,” – in both English and Arabic – was a popular slogan.  And, of course, it was not intended as a swear word; it was a literal statement of truth.

Towards the end of the demonstration, a man took the microphone and spoke in English.  “We are for peace and the defense of the land,” said Basel Rushdi Abdulhadi, a citizen of Sabastiya. “ We especially hope that Americans will listen and give us the right and the opportunity to defend our land.   “We want Obama to be an honest partner in the peace process and not just give the Palestinians words without action.”

Back in the center of the town, I noticed a sign recognizing the receipt of USAID money for “rehabilitation of the tourist route.”

  While I thought it a nice gesture, I thought that – just maybe – the US could be of more assistance if they would open their eyes to the truth of how US money given to Israel helps to prolong the Occupation and delays an ultimate peace

If you want to read more about the sewage discharge in Sabastiya: http://palsolidarity.org/2013/02/a-settlements-bio-war-against-the-ancient-city-of-sabastiya/