The mutiny at Jerusalem's Mahaneh Yehuda shuk: When will it fully reopen?
A few shops here and there are open, according to the guidelines – like butchers, bakeries or the few medium-sized supermarkets scattered mostly on the main open-air alley.
By PEGGY CIDORA Mahane Yehuda worker is arrested during a protest by merchants because of the prolonged closure of the market due to the novel coronavirus.(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)
‘We understand that we are on our own, so we will take care of our interests. We don’t trust politicians anymore,” a very angry merchant told this reporter at the Mahaneh Yehuda market on Thursday morning.Eli had come to clean up a bit and throw out produce he could no longer sell – vegetables that had rotted while his shop was shut down. He threw all his frustration into grabbing the merchandise and slamming it into a large bin nearby. “They sold us out, they simply threw us to the dogs, so they could free the arena for the large chains – Rami Levy and all the others – they are making millions while we’ll soon starve,” concluded Eli, as he lit a cigarette.The shuk looks like it’s seen a traumatic event. A few shops here and there are open, according to the guidelines – like butchers, bakeries or the few medium-sized supermarkets scattered mostly on the main open-air alley. All the bars, restaurants and eateries are closed. Some large nut shops on the main alley have put on some music, but nobody around seems to be enjoying it.For the past three weeks, there have been lots of gatherings of the merchants – some of them ending in demonstrations at the Knesset or at the entry of the shuk on the Jaffa Road side – against the refusal of the Health Ministry to allow the shuk’s opening; against what most of the merchants see as a blatant preference of large supermarket chains; against what many of them see as a betrayal of the politicians from the right wing, for whom the shuk was always a stronghold of support.At Safra Square, nobody understands the government’s attitude, and here in the shuk, frustration is high. For Mayor Moshe Lion, whose ticket has always been his good and reliable relationship with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his staff, the ongoing refusal of the government to allow a reopening of the shuk is a blow.Lion, who was a successful businessman before he became mayor, says he fully understands the merchants and empathizes with them, but his hands are tied. So far, he hasn’t shown up at the demonstrations, but sources close to him say that now that most of the shops are open, while the ban on the shuk goes on, he might reconsider his position.On top of this, political interests are also playing a role. It turns out that two – albeit not very different – plans on how to reopen the shuk in a safe way were presented to the government. So far neither has obtained a green light. Former mayor and current Likud MK Nir Barkat (and almost finance minister) presented a plan in collaboration with former president of the Mahaneh Yehuda merchants’ association Nino Peretz, while the second plan was drafted by Lion’s staff and the current chairwoman of the merchants’ association, Talia Friedman.It is not a secret that there is tension between Peretz and Friedman, not to mention which politician stands behind each one (Barkat vs Lion, respectively) but basically, there is no significant difference between the two plans. Both are proposing a gradual reopening, with checkpoints at all the shuk’s entrances, where police officers and city supervisors will check customers’ temperature, and regulate the number of patrons allowed in at all times.Ofer Berkovitch, head of the opposition at city council, supports Barkat and Peretz’s initiative and says that while he, like most of Jerusalemites, has supported the strict rules imposed by the Health Ministry at the beginning of the crisis, it is now time to ease the economic aspect.“It’s important to save lives from the danger of the coronavirus,” asserts Berkovitch, “but we have to pay attention that people don’t die from hunger. Debts or depression, that’s not less important – not allowing the shuk to reopen is wrong in my opinion, and more has to be done to change this decision.”Most of the anger among the merchants comes from the fact that during the entire crisis period, the large supermarket chains have enjoyed operating at full capacity. The straw that broke the camel’s back was the opening last week of IKEA. As a result, during the protest organized by the merchants’ association on Sunday, April 26, the major signboard at the entry of the shuk read: “Welcome to IKEA Mahaneh Yehuda Branch,” to emphasize what is perceived as a blatant discrimination.Off the record, the message from Lion’s office was that no city supervisor or police officer would engage with the protesters, but less than an hour after the protest started, and as the merchants yelled at the police that “this is our home, not yours,” a few merchants were arrested and the protest was broken up.In addition, as quite a few merchants are ready to believe almost anything to understand the decision of the government, rumors have been floating around that the shuk lockdown was not only due to health precautions.“What has begun with the need to protect the merchants and the public from the dangers of the coronavirus is now being exploited by those who have been trying to bring the shuk back to its old days – without the nightlife,” believes Peretz.“And this is a very good opportunity – these bars and eateries won’t hold on any longer. We all know who is interested in erasing this from the shuk. The virus has given them a good opportunity,” Peretz said, hinting that parts of Lion’s coalition, from the haredi sector, are behind the decision not to reopen with the hope to bring these businesses to permanent closure.From Lion’s office, the answer to this assertion is that nothing indicates such a plan exists, and the only issue at stake is to convince the Health Ministry of the right thing to do: Regulate the entry of customers under strict obedience of the rules.At press time, a video meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Mayor Lion and merchants’ association chairwoman Friedman was set for Monday afternoon. Sources at Safra Square say that chances are Lion’s plan will be approved and the shuk will fully reopen soon, perhaps even before Indepence Day.Meanwhile, the public learned that a merchant had committed suicide last week, and while it wasn’t definitively linked to the present situation, this has understandably caused a lot of emotion among those at the shuk.
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