September 10, 2003
As part of our work on our film, we made a trip to Jalame, a border town at the northern tip of the West Bank. One of the teachers at the Arab American University, who is from a village near Jalame, went with us.
When we first arrived in this land back in August 2000, there was a commonly-used road running from Jenin, alongside Jalame, across the Green Line, up toward Afula and Nazareth. We recall our first time on the road, as we took a shared taxi from Jenin to Nazareth (costing a few shekels and taking about half an hour), and we were astonished that the multitude of shops and markets along the road all had signs in Hebrew and Arabic. Someone explained to us that these businesses rely on Israelis who come into the West Bank to buy produce and other things for less money than they cost in Israel. Similar border markets flourished all along the Green Line.
No longer, of course, is that journey possible, and no longer are those border shops in business. Or even standing. Where all those shops used to be is now razed ground. We walked along a side road coming out of Jalame, where some shopkeepers have tried to re-start their businesses, relying on local clientele to buy their tomatoes, cucumbers, and plastic kitchenware. However, recently many of these shops, too, have been demolished or given demolition orders.
One of many frustrated Palestinian vendors who have been told they will be removed “for security reasons”.
One man said shared his conversation with the officer who delivered a demolition order yesterday:
"What are you going to demolish? I only have this tarp and crates of vegetables!"
"You must leave this area for security reasons."
"What can I do now? This is my only work!"
"Go to Jordan."
"If you take my business away here at least give me permission to work in Israel and I can support my family."
"Go to Jordan."
Of course, even if he wanted to leave his homeland, he can't go to Jordan, which is enforcing extremely strict rules limiting Palestinians entering the country. Even those just trying to fly out of Amman (effectively the only airport accessible to West Bank Palestinians) can be turned away at the border. A West Bank Palestinian man looking for work to support his family is exactly who Jordan does not want to allow in.
As we turned away, a truck pulled up next to us. The driver, seeing our camera, wanted to tell his story too. "I had a shop along the main road, and every year I paid Israeli taxes on it. And then two years ago it was demolished with the rest of them. I had to start over from zero, so I moved my wares into Jalame. Now they want to destroy this place, too."
The trench, fence, and foundation of the Wall are all on the Palestinian side of the Green Line of demarcation between the West Bank and Israel.
We left with our friend and headed toward the border to take a look at The Wall (a.k.a. separation wall, apartheid wall, security fence), which is growing daily here. The foundations are laid, the barbed wire in place, the security roads in use; the buffer zone and six meter cement wall are in progress - all located on uncompensated Palestinian land inside the Green Line.
A visit from Wall Security was enough for us to head on our way.
After filming for a while, we attracted the attention of Wall Security, who eventually started to yell at us. While they couldn't exactly get past the barrier to come after us, they did have big guns, so we decided it was time to leave. We will need to come back another day with our subject, a Christian man in Jalame who has lost land to the wall.
Politics is never far away, even in a purely social gathering.
In the meantime, we're sweaty and dusty and need to get ready for a party. We've invited the foreign teachers from the University over for a get-together. There are seven new ones this fall, and we haven't had the chance to get to know them. So the coals need to be lit, the chicken marinated, and the lentil soup started. Soon enough the food and the place was ready and our guests arrived and a good time was had by all.