PA activists: Gov't not helping J'lem

Despite Abbas' warning against Jewish takeover of Jerusalem, many Palestinians say Palestinian Authority not doing enough to take care of situation in capital

Ali Waked|Published: 10.07.09 , 00:47

While Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas warned Tuesday morning against a Jewish takeover of all parts of the capital, there are those among the Palestinians that believe the blame for Jerusalem's situation lies with the authority in Ramallah.

"The PA has an address in Jerusalem, the people know where it is and where to turn when there are disputes, and they also know who to turn to when there is suspicions that someone is dealing with selling land. The political and ideological affinity is towards the PA, but beyond that, there is no actual body that handles things. Not only because the Israelis are watching, but mainly because the PA doesn't do enough," a Palestinian source told Ynet.

According to Palestinian activists in Jerusalem, any attempt of theirs to get financial or legal aid from the PA to deal with the issues burning in the east of the city are met with much difficulty. They say most of the burden falls on the shoulders of local Fatah operatives who are forced to deal with the problems because the PA's aid is minimal.

A leading lawyer who has assisted Palestinians in their legal struggles against land confiscation and demolition orders said the PA usually ignores the need to pay the lawyers minimal fees, and many times "the burden either falls on the lawyers themselves or the cases aren't received in court because they are not of interests or because of lack of financial support from Ramallah."

Protest in Silwan against Judaization of J'lem (Archive photo: Gil Yohanan)

Minister of Jerusalem Affairs Hatem Abdel Kader, who is considered the highest-ranking Palestinian official overseeing the situation in the city's east, said the PA's role is far from sufficient or satisfactory.

"The PA's treatment is not enough; there is not enough PA presence on the ground. While the people do come to us regarding financial matters, and matters to do with welfare, education and health, the link ends with either myself or someone on our behalf connecting them to the relevant bodies in the PA. We are in the field but we do not have a connection to very many things, such as education programs for example."

'No clear plans'

Another top Palestinian official said the PA's "Jerusalem Unit" is run from Abbas' office, but has very little influence on what goes on in the field, and that it is only the presence of President of the Office of the Presidency Rafiq Al Husseini, that keeps the PA on the map.

He said there are struggles between Fatah activists in the area and the PA on almost a daily basis in an attempt to garner support and funds for Jerusalem and for the families faced with the threat of eviction of demolition of their homes.

"The PA does not have a clear plan with regards to Jerusalem. We would like to have a proper plan on how to fight Israel and the Jewish organizations' attempts to take over the city legally, politically and financially. We would also like to have a clear plan on how to carry out the struggle over land, but there is no one to guide us and no one to fund us. Therefore, al we can do is cry to the PA, and the PA can only cry to the Arab and Muslim world," the source said.

Despite criticism, many Palestinians have recently begun purchasing property in Jewish neighborhoods such as Pisgat Zeev or the French Hill, but according to the source, these are individual cases, and not the product of some clear-cut policy dictated by the Palestinian Authority.

Jewish construction in Sheikh Jarrah (Archive photo: AP)

The source gave a list of institutes that work with the Palestinians in Jerusalem completely independent of the Palestinian Authority. "When it comes to the health system – the Palestinians use the Israeli HMOs. The education system in Jerusalem, despite its content being different than that of the state education, is subject to the Israeli education system. The Palestinian hospitals or church hospitals are not subject to Israel, but a Palestinian outside of Jerusalem in need of treatment is required to bring a financial guarantee from the PA, just as he would be required by an Israeli hospital."

'Poor management'

A more important, albeit hidden, role that the PA plays is the monitoring of Palestinians suspected of cooperating with Israeli real estate agents or Jewish agencies. The PA forces do their best to prevent and threatened such people, but in this case as well, activity is not intensive enough to say it has been successful in foiling Jewish land acquisition.

"Over all the PA's presence and activity is relatively poor and limited in the east of the city," the source said, stressing that only social activity such as the Al Hakawati Palestinian National Theater in Jerusalem continues to stay true to the Palestinians. The theater is funded by the PA, and is therefore considered east Jerusalem's Palestinians' only official flagship. Other activities are carried out under quiet and are limited.

Attorney Hatem Abu Ahmad represented a number of Palestinian families in Silwan in their legal struggle against Israel over Jews taking over their homes. "I got a verdict from the court to have a Jewish family evicted. I went to Ahmad Rawidi, head of the Jerusalem unit in the Palestinian presidency, and asked him to pay. He said they don't have the money and that as far as he is concerned, the Israelis can take over the city. The PA even refuses to pay court fees and it owes lawyers a lot of money," he said.

But there are also those that feel the PA's problems in Jerusalem are not a matter of resources, but of poor management. "Each part of the authority acts without coordinating with the other part," Palestinian Legislative Council member Jihad Abu Zneid said. "There's the presidency's Jerusalem unit, there's the Ministry on Jerusalem Affairs in the government, there's Fatah and there's the PLO. Instead of concentrating efforts, they are scattered and efficiency is reduced. I requested there be one fund to concentrate all activity in east Jerusalem, but so far, it hasn't happened."

Despite the lack of satisfaction, Abu Zneid said that in cases of land confiscation or demolition order, the Israelis in the recent period have been met with popular Palestinian committees who tackle them both publicly and legally. "We are leading many serious struggles here, and this is why the Israelis feel the PA is helping Jerusalem. These bodies are operated by Fatah and budgeted by the Palestinian Authority."