Israeli Women Watch Checkpoint Soldiers
| Aug 06, 2007 |
Rony (Shalit), Osnat (Rabin), and Frances (Thaler) live in affluent neighborhoods near the city of Netanya in the central-north region of Israel. Rony is a retired social worker, Osnat has her own financial software company, and Frances' travel agency represents a number of foreign airlines in Israel.
They can definitely enjoy comfortable lives at home, but early Monday morning they go to the West Bank area despite security risks to observe and report on soldier's behavior at Israeli military checkpoints.
They are members of the somewhat renowned Israeli human rights organization called Machsom Watch. The organization claims to have 400 female-only members who participate in the weekly observation.
Established in 2001, Machsom Watch, is a volunteer organization. According to the organization's literature, the purpose of their activities is: 1) To monitor the behavior of soldiers and police at checkpoints; 2) To ensure that the human and civil rights of Palestinians in the Occupied Territories are protected; 3. To record and report the results of our observations to the widest possible audience, from the decision-making level to that of the general public.
Members of Machsom Watch comprise a wide spectrum of ages and backgrounds, with a bias towards mature, professional women. All members, called Maschsomwatchers, are citizens of Israel. The group is politically pluralistic within the context of opposition to the occupation and a commitment to human rights.
The Hebrew word Machsom means "checkpoint" or "roadblock." In the entire West Bank area there are in total 600 checkpoints and roadblocks. Some are permanent military installations and some are improvised, and others are cement blocks that seal off roads.
Why Are There Checkpoints?
They are part of the Israeli government's policy of curfew. The checkpoints aim to limit and control the movement of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and into Israel, while the vast majority of them are within the West Bank region and not at border crossings. This means that the checkpoints mostly limit the population's movement between the Palestinian towns and not in and out of Israel.
These checkpoints were established by the Israeli military after increased conflict between Israel and Palestine around the year 2000, which saw large numbers of suicide bombings in Israel. A few years later, the checkpoints achieved a state of control, but the economy in the West Bank has drastically worsened. According to data from Machsom Watch, more than 60 percent of the working age population are unemployed and live on food supplies from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
To travel between towns or to enter Israel, a Palestinian must hold a valid permit. To facilitate control, pedestrians and motor vehicles are forced to travel on major roadways. The elderly, women, the disabled or those needing medical attention are no exception. Taxis thus became popular business.
If a Palestinian wants to go to work, attend an exam at a university or take a spouse to the hospital, he or she would need to go through more than one checkpoint.
On the 12-mile road between the cities of Tulkarem and Nablus, there are two checkpoints. Machsom Watchers told a judge who lives in Tulkarem and works in Nablus has long stopped having hearings in the morning, because he could hardly know when he would reach the court. Passing through a checkpoint can take a few minutes or a few hours. The waiting time is especially long when there is a warning of terrorist attack and there is emphasis on checking people matching a certain profile. Anyone suspicious may be subject to arrest.
This is the current situation between Israel and Palestine: no peace. The grudges of the two peoples are tense at checkpoints, usually an area of several square feet.
Each day during the morning and afternoon rush hours, Machsomwatchers go to approximately 40 checkpoints. At each checkpoint, a minimum of two and maximum of four members are present, weekends included. Each observation trip of each day results in a report, published in Hebrew and English on the organization's website ( www.machsomwatch.org ) and emailed to mailing lists. Among the recipients are Members of Knesset (Israeli parliament), foreign parliaments, human rights organizations in Israel and abroad, the media, and individuals. An annual report is also published in print.
Following is an excerpt from the month of Ramadan (Islamic month of fasting) in the 2006 report: "6.10.06, Ar-Ram. We drove to the Ar-Ram checkpoint. There were many soldiers there—both Border Police soldiers and new recruits of both sexes. The hour was close to the hour of prayer and most of the traffic seemed to be in that direction. But the 'hunting' in the area continued with the aid of ATVs that drove wildly through the neighborhood and back. A little to the north was a group of Border Police soldiers on the road who did not allow Palestinians without permits to go through. ('Passage is only through Qalandiya.' 'But I live in Ar-Ram.' 'Couldn't care less … you can't pass here.' A little push and the 'refuseniks' (one who 'refuses' or 'doesn't cooperate willingly') were shoved away).
"Some elderly women and an old man who was almost blind and leaned on a cane, accompanied by his grandson, were not allowed to pass. We spoke to the soldier and he answered us with arrogant rudeness. We were just about to phone the captain when we met Yoram Halevi, the commander of the 'Jerusalem envelope.' He greeted us pleasantly, listened and asked us to allow him to deal with the problems. And indeed the women passed through, as did the old man; only the youngest was not allowed through. The checkpoint cleared. The happy women promised to pray for us, and we were glad."
Need for Machsomwatchers
Machsomwatchers say that the existence of checkpoints and roadblocks is a "collective punishment" for the Palestinian population due to the acts of a small number of terrorists.
"We are against the existence of the checkpoints," said Machsomwatcher Osnat. "But if you get rid of all checkpoints today, there might be suicide bombings in Israeli cities tomorrow." Osnat's twin sons will be drafted to the army next month.
According to some members of the group, the vast majority of the soldiers at checkpoints are well behaved and they respect the human rights of Palestinians. However, there is a small minority of soldiers that are either grouchy because they are tired or are extreme in their acts or maybe they hate the Palestinians. They abuse their power and abuse the Palestinians at checkpoints. For example, a soldier may talk with his fellow soldier instead of waving to the next vehicle to approach, while there is a long line of cars waiting to pass. When such a situation occurs, Machsomwatchers would document it and make phone calls to the humanitarian office of the Israeli military in order to make some arrangements.
A spokesperson for the Israeli Defense Forces, Captain Benjamin Rutland, says, "The purpose of these checkpoints is purely to detect and prevent terror activity. … We have a security fence, which is very successful, but it is not enough to prevent attack. … There have been nearly daily attempts from the Palestinian side to carry out terrorist activities against Israeli citizens during the past seven years. In 2006 alone, the Israeli army prevented 187 potential suicide bombers; in other words, people who were in various stages in the process of making an attack. When the Palestinians stop attempting terror against Israel and its citizens, the need for the checkpoints will cease to exist."
Captain Rutland also says, "The soldiers who man the checkpoints are given specific training to treat Palestinians with humanity and to facilitate the passage of Palestinians in case of medical emergency. However, it should be noted that in the past Palestinian terror groups have used ambulances in attempt to transfer weapons and suicide bombs."
Public Response to Machsom Watch
In the past, a member of Machsom Watch called the checkpoint soldiers "Nazis." For this act and similar ones, Machsom Watch made a negative impression with the Israeli public. Some say, "I despise those Machsom Watch women. They've got nothing to do but to disturb the soldiers while they do their jobs."
There was a time when some soldiers' mothers got organized and opposed the activities of the organization. Female member of the rightwing Likud party also established a "Blue N' White"(colors of the Israeli flag) women's group that comes to the checkpoints to show support to the soldiers. There have been cases of verbal conflict between the two groups.
Nir, a software analyst, serves reserve duty a few weeks in a year. The location of his reserve duty is a checkpoint in the West Bank. He says, "I often see representatives from Machsom Watch. Unlike what people say about them disturbing the soldiers, they just stand on the side, observe, and write notes."
Machsomwatcher Rony says, "Actually, there are all kinds people in society. Among the soldiers, most know that they should respect human rights, but there are also those who act like the king of the place when they are at the checkpoint."
"The same with our organization. Some people have the enthusiasm to support human rights, but when they join the organization there is no personality or behavior exam. So under certain circumstances some may act in extreme ways." Rony's 32 year-old son also serves in the reserves every year like other Israeli men between the ages 21 and 42.
In fact, not all soldiers and officers who serve at the checkpoints go there willingly; but due to the needs of homeland security they have no choice. A reserves soldier named D serves as a guard at one of the entrances to the city of Nablus. "If you stand here for the whole day, how would you feel?" he says with a tiresome smile.
"On the one hand, I'm afraid that someone may approach with a bomb and it would be too late when I discover him. On the other hand, I understand the situation of the Palestinians—they need to live their lives." These two sentences summarize the current state between the two peoples. As to how long this state will continue, it's still an unknown.