Abu Gosh village
צילום: דוד הכהן
Will the Border Guard hurt tourism to Abu Gosh?
Residents of Arab village near Jerusalem object to establishment of Border Guard base, claim it will hurt tourism to area. MK Pines petitions gov’t for alternative site
Will establishing a Border Guard base at the site of an old abandoned British building in the Arab village of Abu Gosh (near Jerusalem) impact tourism to the area? According to Knesset Internal Affairs and Environment Committee Chairman Ophir Pines, who at a committee meeting Thursday proposed finding an alternative site for the base, the answer is an unequivocal yes.
The village of Abu Gosh is a popular tourist destination for Israelis and foreign tourists alike. Conveniently situated on the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem highway, and boasting an annual music festival, the village is also a favorite locale for a quick falafel and humus stop.
Having a Border Guard base on site, claim locals who attended the Internal Affairs Committee meeting, would definitely put a damper on the village’s amiable appeal.
“The abandoned British structure is stunningly beautiful and of historic value,” said Naftali Raz, a resident of nearby Mevaseret Zion and chairman of the Committee for Coexistence at the Thursday meeting. “However there will be a marked problem with the music festival in Abu Gosh if the people attending will have to enter the festival through army spotlights, barbed wire fences and military vehicles.”
Chairman of the Abu Gosh Regional Council, Yousef Jaber, added that “as a tourist village, the Border guard presence will definitely harm us. Furthermore, the Border Guard vehicles will make our already congested roads and streets even more crowded.”
Border Guard base oppressive?
Another potential problem with the Border Guard base, according to the manager of the local community center, Haye Abdul Rahman, has to do with the fact that “Abu Gosh is a fairly liberal Muslim village that affords women certain freedoms. The tourists—mainly families—that visit the village do not in any way threaten our lifestyle. They come, eat and leave,” she explained“With a Border Guard Base on site, replete with young men who will be intimately involved in village life,” adds Rahman, “the men in the village might feel threatened and resort to more oppressive measures for women. I for one do not want my father to get stressed out and try to smother me once again.”
Chairman of the Construction, Procurement & Sales Division of the Israeli Police, Yosef Gavri, responded with marked cynicism and anger to Rahaman’s assertions and stated that “there are no objections when hundred of police men come into the village in order to safeguard visitors to the annual music festival…maybe next they would want to only allow tourists over 40 into the village.”
Gavri further noted that the Abu Gosh site is the only possible locale for the new Border Guard base, though MK Pines called on the government to find an alternative location.
“Border Guard officers perform crucial operations in the area and need a base on site,” explained Pines, “but establishing such a base in Abu Gosh might prove problematic…there are alternatives to the Abu Gosh locale and I suggest that we find them.”
