Qalandiya
Just before A-Ram a few BPs
were collecting IDs from bus passengers (on their way from
Jerusalem to Ramallah), just about to cross the checkpoint. All the
blue ID numbers were copied out and returned, four people with
Palestinian IDs were taken off the bus and walked after the
soldiers to the post, the bus was allowed to go on.
Qalandya, a friend (one of the porters with the
wheelbarrows) tells us, that all Jenin, Nablus and Tulkarm
residents even with valid permits are not allowed through. He
himself pretending he was carrying a certain woman's baggage
sneaked her through, she had a valid permit but alas, lives in
Jenin. We never learned the formal reason. But within the
depressing strictness we would soon encounter, this isolated
hardship was forgotten.
A soldier was sitting at the South Qalandya post,
randomly, or so it seemed, asked to see an ID, but other than that
the passage was smooth.
Altogether we seem to be witnessing a distinct narrowing
of any willingness to act beyond the bear 'draconian' instructions,
whether it is because the instructions themselves have become
stricter and harsher (both in terms of who is allowed and how the
soldiers are instructed regarding those very instructions) or that
the norms regarding the 'presumed' importance of personal
consideration and judgment have changed. What used to be obvious,
i.e. medical cases being (at least on the face of things) allowed
through is not obvious any more, we seem to need to fight for
everything, there is no category left (except blue IDs) which is
simply allowed. All other categories, within and intertwined with
the consistent inconsistencies and the variations of personal
cruelty by particular soldiers - are forbidden to pass -
'unless'... and this 'unless' has become both vaguer and
narrower...
A woman on her way home from Ramallah where she saw a
doctor, with valid papers indicating that, was not allowed: 'Anyone
can forge papers' says the soldier, and won't allow her through.
After ceaseless pressure, telephone calls, begging, and even
pretending to like Shadi using his insatiable need to be liked,
they allowed her through.
A child, who looks like a child, was not allowed because
according to the soldier he wasn't carrying his birth certificate
(when they do carry it it is my experience that the soldiers claim
there is no photo, so how can they tell he is himself). 'If my
superiors decided he cannot pass, allowing him, would be an act of
insubordination".
A man with a Palestinian ID who is a member of the Red
Crescent and has a card to prove it, who waited his turn in the
blue ID lane, was given two options: to be detained and checked, or
to stand in line again. He chose to be checked. After his details
were checked for quite some time and revealed that he spoke the
truth (which nobody suspected in the first place) he nevertheless
was ordered to stand in line again.
A woman, who lives in Jerusalem showed in addition to her
ID her UNESCO card. She was allowed through, but her UNESCO card
was confiscated by a DCO officer who happened to be there when she
passed. We called the DCO, and actually spoke to that particular
officer. He admitted to have confiscated her card on the grounds
that 'Unfortunately for her, I know the cards of the international
organizations well'. Ivonne asked him whether he tried to check, to
call and find out, 'No", said "because', he repeated his
claim 'he knows those cards.' But half an hour later he called to
say that he had inquired after all, and as he said all along, she
doesn't work at UNESCO. Ivonne told him that the next morning she
was going to call the woman's boss at UNESCO (the woman gave us
detailed information and telephone numbers) and find out for
herself, and if she didn't work there ivonne would apologize,
however if she did we would make an issue out of this.
The next day Ivonne spoke to the woman's boss who verified
what we never questioned in the first place.... And to the woman
herself who was at work... She called the DCO officer and told him
her findings... 'I believe you', he said, 'but from my point of
view she doesn't work there because my source told me so'.... After
Ivonne insisted that she most definitely worked there displaying
what seemed unequivocal proof, he said that the card looks like a
fake, and that therefore it was not honorable to carry it about....
Three women (students) who live in Bethlehem, on their
way home from university, they just began, first year, first time
out of home, first time at Qalandya, were not allowed to pass.
"They should have gone to Beit El".. "They
knew".... "They can go through Surda"... By then the
soldiers were becoming agitated with us, which was true from the
beginning just became worse.... don't stand here... you are
disturbing our 'work'.... they crowd because of you... One of the
older volunteers who has been nasty and spiteful for weeks said
suddenly that the checkpoint is closed as long as we were
there...Another old volunteer came close and said 'we should all go
to the old people's home'... 'or to cook'.... 'that we may need a
man that's our problem'... 'you don't get enough that's your
problem? he went on and on with other similarly enlightened
remarks...
We called the civil administration who said that yes we
were allowed to be there... but they can't order the soldiers to do
anything.... We insisted on staying, and finally they opened the
checkpoint again....
A mother and a daughter tried to pass. The mother was let
through, the daughter wasn't... both were becoming hysterical...
desperate....
A boy (maybe 9 or 10) who works around the checkpoint
whose cart was taken away a few days before by the soldiers asked
for our help. He wasn't sure any more which soldier was
responsible. We addressed different soldiers, one said they don't
take away carts, soldiers don't do this... another one said 'I
don't know why they took it but he is a troublemaker he probably
deserved it. Do you know him? This particular one? has he done
anything? 'They all do' he answered. So we moved from one soldier
to the other, always answered impatiently that they don't know, or
that it hasn't happened or that they can't do anything or that they
don't care, including infamous Shadi the commander. He didn't even
pretend this time, 'Nothing to do' he dismissed our pleas. There
was no one to turn to, no one that would stop and consider what in
the course of this growing malignant darkness has become less than
superfluous, just plain unseen, non existant. Who cares about the
cart of a small Palestinian child...
It seemed hopeless, and the sad thing was that we gave up
too, and in a way after a while were ignoring the desperate
unyielding child as well.. I dare say we were almost hoping he'll
give up and relieve us of his unrelenting desperation.......
7.10 pm We left A-Ram, we see a surprising line as far as
the traffic lights, for the cars heading Ramallah-wise. After a few
minutes there seems to be movement, the first car of this amazingly
long line is released, we assume that it was as usual due to our
presence, but we were wrong, it wasn't us this time but an army
jeep stuck in the line, in no time the line was dispersed. A friend
told me of Vadi Nar (which means 'The valley of Hell'): I
definitely will arrive in Heaven when I die, after having passed
through Hell twice a day when I was alive.
A-Ram, Qalandya, Thursday morning, 16.10.03 Observers:
MM, EK, RY, guest
Closure is in effect. Only blue IDs, schoolchildren and
"humanitarian" cases are allowed passage. in A-Ram a
group of 7-9 doctors and staff of Mukassed hospital are detained,
because the date on their permits is not in order. By the time
authorization for them to pass is received by phone, most of them
have disappeared, probably looking for alternative ways to get on
to work. Otherwise very few pedestrians and cars.
Qalandya is more crowded, but things move smoothly. The
officer greets us politely. Suddenly there is what seems to us to
be an alert. All movement is blocked, and the soldiers act quite
hysterically. No one seems to understand what's going on, and the
tension is high. but it turns out to be just a little
"exercise" that lasts for about ten minutes. Soon routine
is restored.
A young man (in his twenties) from Anata went the
previous day to visit some relatives in Ramallah, and could not
return. His father got very irate, and as a result the son's ID was
taken for "checking". By then the father gave up, and
just asked for the ID to be returned. After 20 minutes the ID it
was, the son went back to Ramallah and the father returned alone to
Anata.