Al Nashshash, Beit Ummar, Bethlehem (300), Nabi Yunis, Mon 13.8.12, Morning
7.40 Husan
07.50 Al Nashshash
No-one came to consult us
08.30 Beit Ummar
We gave Sylvia’s telephone number to a man whose work permit was taken from him three months ago, and he was put on the GSS-denied list. He is a father who cannot feed his children, and of course he is extremely worried.
Another fellow, denied by the police, said that “they extended my term”, meaning the length of his denial. This is almost standard (procedure) because usually the police give a longer restriction period than was set by the court. And how will he be able to feed his children ?
Lately, more and more people have been referring to the matter of food for their families.
09.00 Nabi Yunis
1. Achmad has a big debt in Israel because of (police) reports
back to the year 2000. Of course he is on the police-denied list and cannot get a work permit. Ada arranged for the sum to be reduced and payments spread over many months. It is impossible to pay the money into banks in the occupied territories, so each month he meets us and gives us the 315 shekels that was fixed. Today he was already paying the seventh voucher out of eighteen. He also asked us to find-out whether at long last he can receive a work permit, because after-all he has been punctual with his payments (and anyway, if he misses a payment, the permit will be revoked). We shall ask, but the chance is small.
2. We gave Sylvia’s telephone number to Ahmad’s brother, who
is also on the GSS-denied list.
3. Nimmer – an elderly man – met us for the second time. Last
week we spoke to the policeman at the Etzion DCL about
Nimmer coming to receive the traffic reports that his
son, who was abroad, was late in paying. The policeman
agreed. When Nimmer met him, the policeman said :
“where is the son’s power of attorney ?”, and sent him home.
Later, when we asked the policeman if being a family
member isn’t sufficient (after all, the son is abroad), he said
that he would give the vouchers to the father. So Nimmer
will have to go again to the Etzion DCL, after we have
spoken again with the policeman.
In addition to the above, Nimmer told us, and even showed us, official letters about it, that 65 dunams were taken from him in order to build another suburb of Kiriat Arba ( and he even suggested to me that I should drive with him on Road No 60, and he would show me the lost land). This was the reason for his son going to Norway, but there also his situation is hard. When the father has the reports in his hands, he will send his son money to pay for them, and then – if everything succeeds – the son will be able to come for a visit without being arrested at the Allenby bridge.
I could continue to detail several more cases of hardship that we heard about today, but I will stop here.