Bethlehem and vicinity, Thursday, 8.6.06, AM Observers: Aviva W., Rama Y. (reporting)Bethlehem CP: People coming out of the CP were smiling and greeted us happily good morning. The reason? Checking was quick and efficient, no crowding in long lines, no waiting for hours. So this is what makes Palestinians happy those days. We were told that it was like this for several days now. Ezyon DCL: No crowding here either. About sixty numbers had been distributed that morning; number 35 just came out when we arrived at around 09:00, holding his magnetic card proudly. This was the third time he came for it, but this morning all was arranged in a record time — 20 minutes. Another man approached us all beaming — after years of being refused for “security” reasons, he finally had his card today. He kept taking it out, looking at it, hardly believing his good luck. Another young man, 24 yrs. of age, was not so lucky. He is an architecture student in Jordan. He studies four months, than comes back home for four months, works and saves money, and goes back to university. But now, that only 35 year-olds and up can have magnetic cards, he won’t be able to work, and his whole future is jeopardized. And, of course, there were those on the GSS black list who asked for our help, and those who have to pay absurdly high fines for all kinds of traffic misdemeanors, the usual cases. The most amazing thing we were told about that morning was the feedback questionnaires that applicants were asked to fill in about the functioning of the DCL, the waiting time, how soldiers treat them etc. We were so astounded that we forgot to ask them whether the questionnaires were anonymous. So things can be administrated in a more efficient way in the CP and in the DCL alike. People we talked to in Bethlehem CP and in Ezyon DCL were quite cynical about the improvements and their duration — they are far too experienced with the abrupt changes and contradicting policies of occupation.