'Anin, Reihan, Shaked, Mon 6.4.09, Morning

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Observers: 
Lea R. and Anna N. S.
Apr-6-2009
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Morning

Translation: Devorah K.

6:05 A'anin (Agricultural) CP
Only about 20 people are standing opposite the middle gate. There, far from sight, the inspection is carried on. In the background, the Hummer is parked with its motor running -- as always. We are reminded of other times when the CP was full of farmers who wanted to go out to their land, during the days of the olive-picking and after. Today the place is so empty and deserted. Again: The central reason for this, apparently, is that people are not being given permits. A man who tried to go through with a bag of clothes was forced to turn back. A bag of clothes is not a tractor.
Another man, who claimed that he had lost his permit, was also turned back even though the man from the DCO who was there could have found out whether that person is really allowed to go through to his farm.


6:30
Two women are accompanied by their sons aged about 16; the soldiers refuse to let the sons go through. One of the women refuses to go out without her son. She and he son sit on the ground. The soldiers are very angry and say this in loud voices. They are under pressure, want to close and go away. The argument goes on until 06:50. That was when the women agreed to go through without their sons. One of them shows us her son's birth certificate. He was born in 1994. We tried to talk to the officer at the Salem DCO. The soldier claims that the officers are asleep. A'., the DCO person who was there until 6:30 is no longer in the area and it is impossible to talk to him. Later we talked with the DCO officer, A. and he claimed that the soldiers made a mistake. They should have let the boys go out with their mothers if their age was under 16, especially since they had all the necessary documents. He promised to clarify the procedures in this matter, so that this kind of thing would not happen again.

07:15 Shaked (Tura) CP
Here too a Hummer is parked with its motor running. The soldiers claim that they have a hard time starting it again after they shut it off, and that is why they keep it running. The little matters of the waste of fuel and the air pollution do not concern them.
About 25 people on their way to the seamline zone, crowd together near the turnstile at the entrance to the pavilion. The passage is very slow. During the time we were there (more than half an hour) not all the people did get through.

07:30
The grade school pupils approach the soldiers with their schoolbags open. The high school pupils go through the pavilion. It is surprising how quickly the little ones adjust to the frequent changes in procedures at the CP.
Most of the cars now arriving are from the West Bank. There is a new procedure: The driver leaves his car, is inspected in the pavilion, returns to the vehicle, drives it to the center of the CP for an additional inspection. All the processes of inspection are cumbersome and cause a terrible waste of time. People are waiting for their friends who have not yet come out. They complain and are very angry. In the meantime, a blue (civilian) police van joins the inspection. A policeman inspects the documents of the young people after they emerge from the inspection in the pavilion, or after they went through a vehicle inspection by the soldiers. Especially the young people.
The man from the DCO, A., is here now. Our attempts to talk to him about the annoying matter of the boys in A'anin failed. Religious soldiers complain about the fact that in our report we wrote that inspection of the workers was halted because they stopped for prayers.
 
8:00 Reihan (New Barta'a) CP
This is the hour when the tradesmen who work in Barta'a go through. In the course of our short stay in this location, dozens of workers went through. We could observe pressure in the terminal but we did not go to the other opening to find out why. At this time a number of private cars on their way to the seamline zone are being inspected and from the other side - taxis on their way to the West Bank. Two pickup trucks loaded with food are waiting their turn.

8:20 We left on our way to Jalameh to pickup patients going to Rambam.