Tuesday, July 30, 2013

A Checkpoint through a Wall into Peace?

I am not a scholar of the Middle East. In the time that I have lived in Jerusalem, I've worked hard to develop a deeper understanding of life here. I've tried to learn more about the current situation by reading and by talking to people (granted, mostly Israelis) and asking difficult questions. I am grateful to everyone who generously shares their perspective with me. There are heaps of challenges here, and none of them is uncomplicated -- change your frame, add some context, and you may change your opinion. Nearly everything comes up grey around here if you dare to dig beneath the headlines and you aren't personally invested. This piece of land, at the crossroads of three continents has seen many peoples (and much biodiversity!) call it home over the last several thousand years and the layers contribute to interpreting the situation today. In some ways it seems curious that the eyes of the West focus so acutely on Israel-Palestine; for at least four reasons it isn't surprising at all. First, Jerusalem is the home of the three Abrahamic religions -- if you grew up anywhere near the synagogue, the church, or the mosque, you probably carry a story or an image of Jerusalem. Second, a vocal evangelical Christian population believes that Jews must inhabit the Holy Land in order for the Messiah to return (some Jews appreciate this support, but know that after the Messiah comes in the evangelical narrative things go downhill for Jews). Third, some people view Israel, a nation of many Western values and a democracy (yes, it's imperfect), as a Western bulwark against perceived rising Islamic fundamentalism. Wrapped up in here is a global geopolitical game that seems to work to keep things here in the region perpetually unstable. Fourth, America contributes USD 3 billion annually to Israel's defence budget, for some folks that alone makes it worth keeping an eye on what's going on here and gives them the privilege of opinion. 

If you haven't been to Israel or Palestine (also known as the Palestinian Territories, the Occupied Territories or the Territories), you may be wondering how the security checkpoints work when going between the two. The answer is complicated: it depends on where you are going, how you are getting there, and what kind of travel documents you have. Travel to and from the West Bank is straightforward for foreigners. I have visited parts of the West Bank and travelled through the West Bank. To go to Gaza requires a special permit; I haven't been. Friends of mine went on a day trip to Gaza with a group from St Andrew's Church of Scotland (the Church is lovely and sits on the hill as something of a sentinel to the entrance of the German Colony). To visit Gaza independently is difficult, for many tourists this is moot because Gaza has no historical religious attractions, but it does keep Gaza somewhat isolated in one's mind.

Part of the complication of explaining checkpoints relates to the administration of the territory. Based on the Oslo Accords there are three temporary administrative areas -- A, B, and C -- pending a final status agreement. Area A is all Palestinian cities and surrounding areas, civil and security control by Palestinian Authority (about 18% of the territory); Area B is Palestinian civil control and Israeli-Palestinian joint security control (about 21% of the territory); Area C includes settlements and is under Israeli civil and security control (about 61% of the territory). 

As noted in my post about Bethlehem, Israelis are forbidden to enter Area A:

At Beit Jala (Area B), just before entrance to Bethlehem (Area A)
As a foreigner living in Israel, if I go to the West Bank it's to visit touristic sites in Area A (e.g. Bethlehem) or to drive from Jerusalem through the West Bank (Area C) to get to other parts of Israel (e.g. the Beit She'an Valley in the north, Masada in the south). If you rent a car in West Jerusalem you can drive in Area C, but not Area A. To get to Area A, it's easier to take the Palestinian buses from East Jerusalem from Damascus Gate (at the western depot, blue and and white buses go to southern destinations in the West Bank (Bethlehem); at the slightly northeast bus depot the green and white buses go to northern destinations (Ramallah)).

If you drive on the highways that pass through Area C, you pass through security checkpoints on your way back into Israel. Sometimes the checkpoint officers will ask you a question or two, but more often you slow down and they wave you through.

If you are re-entering Israel from Area A or B, by bus, you will pass through a security checkpoint on foot that will include a passport check. I have been through three of the checkpoints on foot (I've never passed by private car) -- Qalandia, Beit Jala, and Bethlehem -- and they are all a bit different.

At Beit Jala passengers get down off the bus and line up, the bus pulls forward about 20 metres. Once all passports or travel documents are checked -- you show your passport to the IDF soldier -- passengers reload the bus. Certain exceptions are made for the elderly and pregnant or people with small children who are permitted to stay on the bus. This process is analogous to what happens at the Peace Arch crossing when you take the bus from Seattle to Vancouver. You get off the bus, collect your luggage, pass through customs, and reload the bus. Actually, the Beit Jala crossing is probably more pleasant than that business at the Peace Arch.

At Qalandia, passengers get off the bus: Passengers with foreign passports or East Jerusalem ID go to one queue, West Bank residents (no Jerusalem ID) go in a different queue in another area of the border compound. The bus drives ahead about 300 metres. The locals made sure I followed them through the process and back to the bus. The entrance to the passport screening area is an outdoor concrete pathway about two and half persons wide. The pathway is on three sides sides gated -- on each side of you and above. It's a bit like being in a tunnel of iron grating. Just before the xray and passport screening area there is a security turnstile -- one person at a time passes through the narrow revolving gate there is space for you and your small bag. It seemed to me that the turnstile would lock when the screening area filled up to a certain capacity. (When I was at Qalandia a person about four people ahead of me in line got stuck in the turnstile when it locked. I admit to focusing all my energy on not being the person who was going to get stuck in the turnstile next. I'm not sure that person could have avoided getting stuck, and it looked awfully stressful to me.) Once in the xray screening area, you pass through a metal detector, collect your bag from the screener (just like at the airport) and then pass by the guard flashing your passport. Even though it went smoothly for me, I found the Qalandia checkpoint intimidating.

We crossed the Bethlehem checkpoint (aka Bethlehem 300) on foot, and boarded bus 24 to Jerusalem on the Israeli side of the checkpoint, after we cleared security. At the Bethlehem checkpoint you walk about 200 meters up a steady incline to first pass Palestinian security (remember you are in Area A) and then cross the small no mans land (looks like a parking lot) and follow a pathway with railings (that looks like you would find on the ramp entrance to a sport stadium ) to arrive at a mini indoor terminal (a bit like an airport customs). First, you pass through the security turnstile, then clear the xray screening area which was unmanned on my visit, so we walked through without screening our bags. Then you enter the main hall and queue for an officer wicket. While waiting I noticed the terminal was decorated with touristic posters of Israel, which struck me as a curious interior design choice: visit Akko, Israel! visit Nazareth, Israel! And, I noticed the poor dress code choice of two other female tourists -- short-shorts. [editor: Do yourself a favour, don't wear short-shorts in the Middle East. Unless you are in Tel Aviv (where anything goes) you really don't need to should not wear short-shorts. It's offensive; try a below-the-knee skirt or some capri pants. Bonus - you won't burn as much skin! Dress in Jerusalem is pretty modest -- students wear shorts, but you usually still have to make some anatomical guesses. And dress code among Muslim women remains conservative although skinny jeans with hijab seem to be increasingly de rigeur in East Jerusalem during the winter.] After showing my passport to the young IDF officer, I was quickly waved through the checkpoint.

I have never had a problem at these checkpoints, I have been well treated and passed through without long waits or any inconvenience or ill treatment. Also, apart from the person who got stuck in the turnstile that day at Qalandia, I have not seen anyone poorly treated at a checkpoint. Also, I have not sought to cross the checkpoints at rush hour when many Palestinian labourers cross on their way to work in Israel. The waits can be long and, based on the queuing infrastructure at some checkpoints, I would imagine intensely uncomfortable. There have been reports of mistreatment and an Israeli organization, Machsom Watch, exists specifically to witness the IDF's operations at the various checkpoints. Machsom Watch documents on their website their observations of compromised or violated Palestinian human rights at checkpoints. Also see their website for some pictures of the checkpoints.

From my limited perspective, much of the security infrastructure that exists today -- the Wall, the checkpoints -- operates in the context of the Second Intifada.  The great terror that gripped Israel, especially in the years 2000-2003 (Wikipedia has a list of attacks on Israelis, and a list of Palestinian casualties including who claimed responsibility) is why the security wall was built. The Wall changed the geography here by creating new spaces. In certain spaces certain individuals have different rights. When individual human rights are compromised that compromise is justified (by those in power) by the need to protect the collective.

... When I was in first year law school at Victoria, as part of my criminal law class I got to do an overnight ride-along with a police officer. Victoria is not the liveliest town, so your ride along officer has lots of time to tell twentysomething lawyer-wannabees how it works on the street. At about 1 am, my cop pulled the car up to a prostitute who was a regular he knew and she was clearly tweaking on something. He got out of the car, asked her what drugs she had on her. She demurred, he searched her and found a packet of smack or crack (I don't remember which anymore). What I do remember is that after he'd lectured the young woman, he moved on to baiting me to challenge him for his violation of her s. 8 rights. (In the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, s. 8 is freedom from unreasonable search and seizure. It's the idea that you and I can walk down the street with the reasonable expectation that we won't be subject to a random search. Charter rights can be limited in the service of a free and democratic society (e.g. limitations on s. 2 (freedom of expression) in order to squash hate speech and obscenity). Balancing of the rights of the individual and society is understood to be a dynamic process.) My cop told me he couldn't do his job if he didn't perform the occasional search and seizure; in other words his unlawful search of the woman had been necessary to fulfill his role to keep the peace on the wild streets of Victoria...

Back in Israel, the conflict simmers on and the balance between individual and collective rights arguably remains skewed in favour of collective rights. The Israeli perspective is that the Wall is a legitimate response to terror, a crime against humanity. In 2004, the International Court of Justice opined that the Wall is illegal and limits Palestinians' freedom of movement and freedom to seek employment, education and health. It's clear that the Wall does both: it reduces terror and it restricts Palestinians' freedoms.  In this case, members of one collective are subject to a set of rules (and infrastructure) that is designed to improve the security of the other collective. Because of the Wall the amount of terror in the conflict has been greatly reduced and this has benefited both sides. Tourists have returned; commerce is strong. It's also clear that the Occupation has great costs for both parties (see the movie The Gatekeepers for the Israeli perspective on the costs of the Occupation). And, it's clear Palestinians have less freedom of movement than they did before the Wall was built.

Does the Wall create the right balance? Not over the long term. I can tell you that many Israelis I have spoken to hate the Wall and really regret the limitations it puts on Palestinians, but they believe the Wall is essential to their survival -- this is not hyperbole. The scars from the Second Intifada are real in Israel -- everyone I know in Jerusalem knows someone who was killed, and some people had the harrowing experience of surviving near misses. I have witnessed the still raw, profound fear and anger of some Israelis. I don't know about the Palestinians, but the glimpses I have had suggest they are equally, if differently, emotionally scarred. "Where can we go from here?" is a question begging an answer. And how do we deal with people who don't want peace, the extremists on both sides who actively work to derail peace progress?

Here we arrive back at the new round of peace talks that started last night in DC and are scheduled for nine months (can you birth peace in the time it takes to gestate a human?). Everyone seems to agree there is a sense of urgency to get to peace. People speculate on when and where the Third Intifada will start, not if it will. If you were sitting at the peace table as the US envoy where would you start? How do you start to make peace between two peoples who each: have claims to the same land, stories of profound loss (both recent and historic), so little trust left, and collectively carry so much pain and suffering?

Perhaps the best inspiration comes from the groups of bereaved families from both sides (the Parents' Circle-Family Forum and the Combatants for Peace) that have reached across the chasm to find solace in each other and to show us all the tremendous human capacity for reconciliation and healing.  Earlier this month the NYT featured a short article and photo essay (Bereaved) on some of these incredibly brave people. Embracing the message of these groups may be a good starting point for peace talks. They say:
...it is critical to learn the other side’s narrative, because the only hope for ending the bloody struggle is through empathy and reconciliation.
This is a message relevant for every struggle, not just the one here that the world never looks away from.

Monday, July 29, 2013

Bethlehem

Yesterday, with other foreign friends from Hebrew U, I went to Bethlehem.  (Bethlehem is in Area A, Israelis are not permitted to enter.) To do that you take the blue and white Palestinian bus from Damascus Gate (or along the Hebron Road) and ride south. Only 7 km separate Jerusalem and Bethlehem physically -- they are closer than the middle of Burnaby to the middle of Vancouver --but, of course, these days they are not part of a contiguous metropolitan area. Moving between the two requires passing through the checkpoint.

Here's a map of the area found in St Catherine's Church:
Bethlehem mosaic map - Milk Grotto, Jerusalem, Shepherds' Field


When you do get to Bethlehem, it looks much like Jerusalem, but more like East Jerusalem because the signs are in Arabic (and its socio-economic composition is similar). It's hilly with white Jerusalem-stone faced buildings. The streets are narrow and windy in the Old City near Manger Square. There are hummus and falafel shops, churches, and mosques.

Manger Square Bethlehem
The main attraction in the Old City of Bethlehem is the Church of the Nativity, sitting atop the reputed birthplace of Jesus. Commissioned by Constantine in 326 CE, the Church of the Nativity is the oldest continuously operating church (as in, it never served as a mosque). The entry to the church is through the Door of Humility, a small Ottoman era door around which you can see larger doors once existed. The door is about 4 ft high:

Door of Humility
 Once inside, the orthodox feel of the church is immediate.

Inside the Church of the Nativity
Parts of the original 4th Century mosaic floor can be viewed in the main hall:
4th Century mosaic floors




For pilgrims, the key site in the church is the Chapel of the Manger, this is the specific spot where Jesus is said to have been born. On one side of the grotto (the chapel is below ground level), is the scene of the nativity, the other is the Altar of the Adoration of the Magi.

The Star

The Crib

Adjoined to the Church of the Nativity, along a hall:

exiting from Nativity to St Catherine's


through a courtyard
Courtyard in front of St Catherine's church


 is St Catherine's Church:


St Catherine's Church
St. Cath's is famous as the site of Christmas Midnight Mass, broadcast around the world on Christmas Eve.

There are other sites to see in and near Bethlehem: the Milk Grotto, Shepherds' Field, Rachel's Tomb, and Mosque of Omar. And, there's the Herodium, built by King Herod around 20 BCE (the same guy who built Masada), but the idea of hanging around too long outside in 30C at 3pm yesterday was not in the least appealing. So, we wandered the souk a bit:

curtains

main mall

bottleneck
Then we headed back to Manger Square to hire a taxi to take us to the checkpoint.
Manger Square
A post about checkpoints is upcoming.

Monday, July 22, 2013

Sad news...

One of my erstwhile flatmates is missing:

oh no!
As much as I don't miss Tina peeing in my laundry basket when she really felt I ought to have been paying more attention to her, I was very saddened to learn that she is lost. It's been more than a week. Yarden, Tina's BFF, is heartbroken, so I'm holding out hope that Tina planned a short vacay from the neighbourhood and will BRB. But, I have two nagging thoughts: (1) construction sites abound near the house right now with no shortage of places where a little dog could meet a nefarious end; and (2) Tina is a seriously elderly pensioner and  she might just have left home for the final journey. 

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Maccabiah 2013

It's the Jewish Olympics! They are a bit like the Commonwealth Games, in that they are a subset of international sporting competition in the sense that they are not quite the Olympics. Held every four years in Israel, the Maccabiah is open to Jewish athletes from around the world and all Israelis regardless of religion (so Arab Israelis can win medals). Still, casual observation (reading the newspaper) suggests many athletes are drawn to the games to be among people with a common (Jewish) identity (that's what the athletes say).

Maccabiah 2013 flags
Sidewalk stencils


This, the 19th Maccabiah Games, opened Thursday night and will run until July 30th. With some 9000 athletes representing 78 countries this is a pretty major sporting event. Bibi and Shimon were at the opening ceremonies, I wasn't. Reports from Teddy Stadium note that Bibi was able twice in his speech to state that Jerusalem is Israel's "eternal and undivided capital". This is a phrase he uses frequently (if you've listened to his speeches in the US you've heard this). So, we're clear on Bibi's starting point for any peace discussions on the status of Jerusalem. On that front, Bennett is still in the coalition. To Washington we go, next week. Just don't anybody hold her breath...

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Peace Process?

It seems John Kerry's political capital has shot up over the last few days. What had been widely panned as his bumbling and hopeless efforts to reignite the peace process have suddenly produced fruit, perhaps more due to the EU's threats of sanctions, but that might be neither here nor there. For now, let's focus on the fact that the parties might just start talking.

Embarking on peace talks for either Israeli or Palestinian politicians is a potential political minefield. Of course, many of each side's constituents want peace, but they have radically different conceptions of what that might look like and from where they might want to start that process. For example, on the Israeli side, the governing coalition, led by Bibi, includes Naftali Bennett, leader of the Jewish Homeland party. Bennett was elected on a platform that included a one-state solution: he suggests there is no viable Palestinian state west of the Jordan river. If the terms of the proposed negotiations with Palestinians are to start from 1967 borders, Bennett has threatened to leave the ruling coalition. We shall see.

Among the main issues that have proved so intractable in Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are:
  1. the status of Jerusalem
  2. borders; land swaps for settlements
  3. right of return for Palestinians (e.g. some 70% or more of Jordan's citizens consider themselves to be Palestinians)
  4. Israel's security concerns; recognition of the state of Israel
  5. emotional wounds related to the conflict
It's true that many people have lost faith that peace is attainable here, but at the same time, everyone (I know in Israel) wants the conflict to end. From the mothers who from the moment they birth a son (daughters have more options) know he is destined to serve in the IDF with unknowable consequences, to the teachers who bid their senior students goodbye to an uncertain future (not a four year undergrad degree), to the veterans who have served and stay on reserve to protect Israel, to those who have seen, in action, that the occupation exacts real costs from Israel: There is a resounding chorus of "enough". Obviously, it is a huge leap to think Israel's defence concerns will be resolved if peace with Palestinians is made; it is uncertain how countries in the neighbourhood will respond to a peace between Palestinians and Israel.

Still, let's hope for progress on peace.

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Keeping Time

Today I finally visited the museum in my neighbourhood -- the LA Mayer Museum for Islamic Art. I say finally because this museum is open on Saturdays when few other things are and it is easy to walk to from any of the 3 places I have lived.  Inevitably, I found other things to do on Saturdays. As it turned out today was perfect. It's gotten rather hot; the museum was a welcoming air conditioned refuge. And, with few other people in attendance there was no jostling for position in front of exhibits. Sadly, the exhibits on early Islam and Ottoman Art were both closed today.

Opened in 1974, the LA Mayer was founded with the objective "to promote within the Israeli pubic an interest, appreciation and understanding of the cultural heritage and artistic achievements of the Islamic peoples". The museum exhibits Islamic art (ceramics, metal objects, jewelry, and textiles, and weapons) of the Islamic dynasties over one thousand years; in some ways it is the not flashy, little sibling of the Doha Museum of Islamic Art. Small but fantastic in Jerusalem is the "Harrari Hoard" - a collection of eleventh century silver found in a ceramic jug somewhere in Persia, presumably stashed by a wealthy merchant under duress and found centuries later. The fine craftsmanship seen in the museum's collection is a reminder that we do indeed stand on the shoulders of giants.

The Museum includes space for seasonal exhibits by contemporary Islamic artists. On right now is "Between Sorrow and Beauty" by Fatma Abu-Rumi in which she explores "the tragic condition of Arab women".

Also housed in the museum is The Sir David Salomons Collection of Watches and Clocks. Totally amazing, incomparable; a delight. Two famous things about this collection:
  1. It includes a watch commissioned (possibly by her lover - the intrigue!) for Marie Antoinette and not finished until long after the guillotine finished her. The watch contains every "complication" (bit of technology) that was available at the time.
  2. 106 pieces of the collection were stolen in 1983;  to date 96 pieces have been recovered (read the story at Wikipedia's LA Mayer entry). Details of the heist have become part of the exhibit.
I have always loved watches and been fascinated by the practice of timekeeping so this exhibit was a great treat. Breguet's genius is overwhelming: perpetuelles, the sympathique clock and its watch, and the montre a tact (the indiglo of the 19th century -- you can tell time in the dark by feel on the side of the watch).

The LA Mayer is a very good small museum; a neighbourhood treasure.

Monday, July 8, 2013

My favourite local summer refreshment

With apologies to Jane Austen, "It is truth universally acknowledged that a hot summer day puts a person in need of a refreshing drink."

The best microbrew in Jerusalem is Taybeh, made in Palestine. 




Taybeh is by far the best brew in town, but you cannot get it everywhere. A discerning liquor store (the one on Agrippas across from the market) sells it for NIS 11 a bottle (it was 10 until the VAT went up in June); it's not a cheap drink, but well worth the price. It is also available on tap at one bar in West Jerusalem.

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

A bus stop

Earlier tonight...

18:37: I get on the #18 bus at Mahane Yehuda. I have two full bags of groceries. Not plastic bags - my backpack and a messenger satchel -- it's a packhorse of a shopping trip. I just moved into my new place on Saturday and I needed stuff, lots of it. My friend Amit and I shopped together; we parted at the bus stop, he walked home. I chose the bus because (1) I have a lot of stuff today  (2) the bus stops just a block from my new place and (3) I have a bus pass. The bus was a no brainer.

18:40: Finally, everyone and their shopping cart has loaded. The bus is packed. To get from Mahane Yehuda to the German Colony (mostly due south)  the buses first go northeast to cross Jaffa Road (the tram tracks) and then east, before changing course south east, then south, to head through the city centre, where they cross back over the tracks. If you followed that, it's a bit of a loop. If you walk, you don't have to cross the tracks; you stay on the south-west side.

18:45: There's a bus stop on King George Street just before the tram tracks on Jaffa. We stop to pick some folks up.  And, we don't leave the bus stop. There are police vehicles in the intersection. The tram is not running. Police officers are reeling out streamers of red do not enter tape. There are crowds of people on the sidewalks and in the road. People are being evacuated from the shops all around the intersection. It seems the problem is somewhere east of King George, but there is no view down Jaffa unless you are standing on it; the buildings are set right at the corners. I'm sitting on the bus, so my view is limited. I could get down, but there is no where to go. Pedestrians cannot cross the intersection. Gathering crowds of Israelis are waiting, chatting on the phone, smoking.

18:50: The bus driver turns the bus engine off. We sit and wait. Crowds of pedestrians grow. The speculation is that someone left something on the tram or at the tram stop. The bomb robots have been called in to remove the threat. 
 
18:58: The bus driver starts the engine. He's been asked to move the bus. It must be because of the coming explosion. Security wants our bus further out of the way. We back up about 7 metres. The engine idles.

19:25: An explosion. A few screams -- of surprise -- in response to the sound.

Wait. Wait. Wait.

19:28: Another explosion. No screams. The bus continues to idle, the air conditioning blasting away. It's not even hot today, maybe 25C. At this rate we'll run out of fuel before we get to Emek Refaim.

People are still waiting. In the streets there are seculars, Orthodox, Haredim, Arabs...maybe Jerusalem doesn't need the F1 to get people of all sorts to stand in the street amiably.

19:40 A police van enters the intersection and the pedestrians make a break for it, ducking under the red police tape. The bus has a green light, but we don't move -- the intersection is full of pedestrians.

19:43 We are still waiting at the intersection. There's an acrid smell. And several emergency vehicles. Finally, we cross the tracks again.

The event doesn't make the news. No one is hurt. This is life in a country that has been plagued by terror. No chances are taken.