Tension building

Amid global focus on Jewish construction, an NGO counters illegal Arab construction.

By ALEX TRAIMAN/JNS.ORG
beduin protest 370 (photo credit: REUTERS)
beduin protest 370
(photo credit: REUTERS)
While the international community often focuses on the legal status of Jewish construction in Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria, two government initiatives – a proposed transfer of land near Jericho to Palestinians, and a law that would retroactively legalize tens of thousands of Beduin structures in the South – highlight the issue of illegal Arab building across Israel.
At the forefront of tackling this issue is Regavim, an NGO that tracks illegal Arab building and prosecutes it in Israeli courts.
A Civil Administration of Judea and Samaria proposal to transfer 200 hectares (about 500 acres) of land to Palestinians near Jericho, in the Jewish controlled Jordan Valley, represents the continuation of a pattern in which Arabs living in Areas A and B – under Palestinian municipal authority – are being legally permitted to relocate to large tracts of land in Area C – areas designated for Jewish residence under full Israeli control. The move is coming under criticism from Jewish regional councils for being conducted at a time when Arabs can build almost at will in Areas A and B, while permits for Jewish building in Area C are being severely restricted as a result of what many believe to be the government’s efforts to pacify the international community.
“If a Jewish family puts up a patio on a house – anywhere in Israel – without a permit, municipal authorities can come into your house and get you to tear it down,” says Regavim international affairs director Ari Briggs.
“Jews are forced to adhere to a very strict building framework, while Arabs in many parts of the country are given a free hand. And this is exactly the opposite view [of the one] the international community has of Israel,” he says.
The name Regavim comes from the Hebrew word regev, meaning "a small patch of land," a term originating in a Zionist poem about reclaiming the land of Israel “dunam by dunam, regev by regev.” The organization works to track illegal Arab building across the country, with particular focus on the Negev, Judea and Samaria and the Galilee.
While dozens of NGOs focus on relatively limited incidents of illegal Jewish building, Regavim is the only NGO focusing its energies on what it says is the rampant pattern of illegal Arab building across the country.
At present, Regavim has 30 cases being tried in Israeli courts, with up to 140 investigations going on at any time. Many of the group’s efforts focus on the South, where the largest numbers of illegal structures exist.
The government is currently attempting to put a stop to illegal building, but those efforts have given rise to controversy.
A new law known as the Prawer Law, which would retroactively legalize tens of thousands of Beduin structures, is drawing ire from the anti-settlement NGOs, but not because the Prawer Plan – if passed – will seemingly reward decades of illegal construction on state lands and nature reserves. Rather, the plan has angered the NGOs because it stipulates that several thousand Beduin must relocate from positions in close proximity to the Ramat Hovav Industrial Zone, a site that has been deemed unsuitable for residential zoning due to the pollutants emitted from the factories.
Beduin have been actively opposing the law in recent weeks. At a recent protest, Atiya al-Assam, head of the Regional Committee of Unrecognized Villages in the Negev, is reported to have said in an address, “We want to tell Prawer, [Justice Minister] Tzipi Livni and all decision-makers that we have endured 65 years of water scarcity and all forms of torture, and we will continue to endure and will not give up one inch of our land.”
Assam urged the ministers “not to pass their discriminatory law; do not drive us to violence.”
WHILE THE NGOs are accusing Israel of enforcing discriminatory policies against a minority population, Beduin have for many years been building with no municipal planning, permits or compliance with modern building standards on land that they never formally owned. As a result, the structures are not legally connected to the country’s electricity grid or national water carrier.
According to Regavim, more than 90,000 of the country’s 210,000 Beduin live in more than 2,000 separate unauthorized encampments, covering 80,000 hectares (about 200,000 acres) in the northern Negev around Beersheba, Dimona and Arad.
“Ninety percent of these structures are built on public lands, owned by either the state or the Jewish National Fund. And they have become much more brazen in their land grabs over the last 10 years,” Briggs says.
“Everybody understands that because Israel is such a small country, land is one of the most critical resources to safeguard,” he says. “Beduin are claiming ownership of a parcel of land more than double the size of the Gaza Strip.”
The new law would recognize more than half of the Beduin homes in their current locations and transfer additional large tracts of land in strategically planned areas to enable the nomadic Beduin to build formal communities. According to the Prawer Plan, more than half of the land on which Beduin currently reside would be legally transferred and formally established as Beduin communities. Beduin would then receive compensation for the remaining lands they now claim and receive other tracts of land for the establishment of permanent communities.
The plan calls for the investment of NIS 9.5 billion in Beduin communities over the next five years. Development of Beduin infrastructure will reportedly be administered with coordination from 16 government ministries and agencies.
There are several reasons to clamp down on illegal Beduin building, according to critics. Beduin are known for having one of the fastest population growth rates in the world.
According to Briggs, Beduin sport a growth rate of 5.6% and double their population every 15 years.
“Polygamy is a common practice among Beduin, with each male averaging three to four wives, and an astounding 20 to 30 children per male,” Briggs said.
They live in the Negev in areas of the country that no authority considers disputed territories – meaning that Beduin live under full Israeli sovereignty and must adhere fully to Israeli law.
“Living in illegal structures keeps Beduin off the legal grid, so to speak, so they can’t be tracked,” Briggs explained. “They are untraceable. They don’t have a legal address and don’t pay any forms of taxes. This is despite the fact that they have full Israeli citizenship, with formal identity cards, and the right to vote in Israeli elections.”
According to Briggs, the situation is beyond unlawful.
“The Beduin are running major crime and smuggling rings. They are responsible for the smuggling of everything from drugs to women to weapons,” he says.
Israeli farms “need to be protected with prison-like fences to protect crops, animals and equipment,” Briggs asserts.
“The government needs to do a better job protecting the land in the Jewish state.”