Etzion DCL

This is a difficult report to write because both  problems which were presented to us were very confused. Sometimes we feel that the Palestinians are their own worst enemies. But we remind ourselves that for the Palestinians the bureaucracy is even more difficult than it is for us. Also that they do not know which details are relevant. 

I will try to be as clear as possible. In the beginning we understood from a Palestinian that he had been called in by the GSS and that his ID had been taken from him and he had been told to wait outside where he had already been for an hour. By law the soldiers are not allowed to separate the person from his ID. He told us that he had three wives and 20 children. That he had had a flourishing business which had collapsed because of the stock exchange. Also that he only had one kidney and had cancer and was very ill. He insisted on giving us these details several times as if thinking that this would make his case stronger. In the beginning we gave him the details of Sylvia and her team as he said that he had been prevented for over 30 years. He did not show us any document to prove this. 

He then said that he wanted to go for medical treatment in Israel. It was explained to him that he had to first get an appointment and come in two weeks previously to arrange a permit to enter Israel. Thanks to Hana Barag he eventually got his ID back. 

He also spoke to Malak from LEAP and then it turned out that he had made an application for a pardon 4 days ago. She told him that it takes up to eight weeks for this to be dealt with and if it was not removed, he should go to Huwwara after 45 hours to meet her. He approached various Palestinians asking them to explain to us what his problem was. And we in turn explained to him through his various interpreters the above, time and again. Malak said that this was only possible once a year. But in this case she might be able to do something to help him. He also has a child who is mentally handicapped and had had an open heart operation at Hadassah.  

A couple came in with a little boy who has cancer in his one eye. They said that they had made arrangements for an appointment at Hadassah with the Palestinian DCO at Hebron. He had received a permit but had been turned back at the checkpoint as the mother had not received a permit to enter. Here too, it turned out, that the father could have gone through on his own but the child only wanted the mother. To us it is clear that the father should have insisted on taking the child through and that the mother should go back to Hebron to arrange her permit. It is not clear why the mother who is not prevented and is over 40 was not allowed through. We suggested that he take the child to the hospital and that the mother again should go to the Palestinian DCO at Hebron to arrange a permit for herself.

This is what the flags at the DCO look like. By the end of a shift we feel that the middle flag portrays well the feelings of the Palestinians and of we ourselves.