WEST BANK: Palestinian farmers say Jewish settlers and Israeli restrictions are endangering the annual olive harvest

Record ID: 566427

  • Title: WEST BANK: Palestinian farmers say Jewish settlers and Israeli restrictions are endangering the annual olive harvest
  • Date: 19th November 2009
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF WOMEN BUYING SOAP BARS MADE FROM OLIVE OIL (2 SHOTS) WIDE OF PEOPLE ATTENDING FESTIVAL
  • Embargoed: 4th December 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVA2QV6F2PF585CDEVHH986QDJZC
  • Story Text: Palestinian farmers say Jewish settlers are endangering the annual olive harvest, critical to many Palestinian livelihoods. In Italy, the Palestinian agriculture minister speaks of challenges facing Palestinian farmers. The minister speaks on the sidelines of the FAO meeting in Rome where world leaders are gathering to discuss strategies to feed the world's hungry.
    As the olive harvesting season kicks into action in the West Bank, Palestinian farmers said Jewish settlers are endangering the annual harvest, which is critical to many Palestinian livelihoods.
    This year, as in recent years, many Palestinian farmers said harvesting the prized crop has become increasingly difficult due to Israeli security restrictions and interference by Jewish settlers, who Palestinian farmers say often cut down their olive trees.
    Farmers believe Jewish settlers' destruction of olive trees is part of a series of efforts to disrupt Palestinian livelihoods in the West Bank.
    "The olive harvest season is a blessed season, but each year the crop has been declining. This year it is a very short supply, but we take care of the olive trees. As for attacks from settlers, this is not the first time they have attacked us. Since last year, we have been undergoing attacks from settlers," said farmer Bilal Eid, of the Burin Village in the West Bank.
    About 300,000 Jewish settlers live in settlements built by Israel in the West Bank, an issue that has bedevilled western-backed peace talks for decades. Palestinians say settlements rob them of land they need for a viable state.
    According to eye witness accounts and a video released by Israeli human rights organisation B'tselem, Jewish settlers are seen heading into groves of olive trees, and many trees cut down.
    "Well, throughout all of this season, we've had a number of incidents, unfortunate incidents, where people take things into their own hands. It's unacceptable," said Peter Lerner, co-ordinator of Israeli government activities in Palestinian Territories.
    Israeli soldiers sometimes intervene and chase away dozens of settlers who interfered with olive harvesters near the West Bank towns.
    "We have instances where we've involved the police force in order to press charges against people who are instigating violence. Unacceptable from our side and something we are working to prevent. In all cases where there have been friction between Israelis and Palestinians within the harvest, in all cases after the issue has calmed down, the Palestinians have been able to reach the trees and carry out the harvest and that is the most important thing," Lerner added.
    In Hebron, Palestinian farmer Muhammad Jaber said settler attacks are a daily occurrences.
    "The settlers attack us. They prevent us from working here. Look, they are fighting us and bullying us," said Jaber.
    "What happens is the settlers prevent us from entering our land. They do not allow us to harvest the olives, or pick the peaches and the grapes. They do not even let us enter to our land. The army protects us from them, but also the army expels us, and we fight with the settlers. Everyday the same story, there is no hope," Jaber added.
    The months of October and November are olive-picking season in the Palestinian territories, where the fruit is a major agricultural crop.
    But drought, on top of Israeli-imposed restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in areas near Israeli settlements, or in areas where Israel's separation barrier is being constructed, have led to bad recent harvests. Palestinian farmers expect no better from this year's olive crop.
    Many extremist settlers have been accused of threatening violence against Palestinians during this year's harvest.
    At the annual Olive Festival in the town of Beit Jala, two kilometres from Bethlehem, farmers gathered to showcase their output.
    "If we compare the quantity of olive oil this year with last year, we had less olives this year than other seasons, so the prices of the oil increased. When we spoke to exporters of oil, they said let's wait for next year to export oil. We don't have quantities of oil to sell abroad this year. It is good if we have enough for the locals," said olive oil vendor, Ibrahim Bandak.
    Olives are an important cash crop for thousands of Palestinians among the three million Palestinians living in the territory captured by Israel in the 1967 war.
    Meanwhile, in Italy, Palestinian agriculture minister, Dr. Ismail Daiq, spoke of the challenges facing Palestinian farmers.
    The minister addressed the issue on the sidelines of the Food and Agriculture Organisation's (FAO) World Summit on Food Security meeting in Rome on Wednesday (November 18) where world leaders are gathering to discuss strategies to feed the world's hungry.
    "First of all, Palestinian farmer's freedom is being constrained, especially in terms of the take-over of their land, because this land normally belongs to the farmers who harvest and plant it to make a living. Therefore, any additional expansion in the settlements means further coercion of Palestinian agricultural property," said Daiq.
    "Another issue is that of water. Israel controls 80 percent of water supplies in the West Bank, so people often have a shortage of drinking water. An average Palestinian citizen consumes 70 litres of water per day, whereas an Israeli consumes 300 litres a day. We are prohibited from reaching the river in Jordan to use the water. In Gaza, the water tank is 90 percent polluted and it's not applicable for consumption as drinking water, according to the specifications of the World Health Organisation (WHO). Additionally, there is the issue of transporting from farms to markets -- we are talking about approximately 200 to 250 military barriers that prevent farmers from transporting their products in any normal pattern."
    Daiq stressed that the circumstances facing Palestinian farmers are not experienced by any other farmers around the world.
    "We now have more than 25 percent of residents in the West Bank suffering from severe malnutrition -- in Gaza, 65 percent. Of course the problem in Gaza is that the barriers prevent the entry and exit of all agricultural supplies. They are partly allowed to receive Israeli supplies, but they are not allowed to receive agricultural supplies, fertilisers or seeds and even if they do go in, they come in very small quantities. We are talking about Palestinian farmers suffering from catastrophic circumstances, the kind of circumstances that no other farmers in the world struggle with."
    Daiq said the Palestinian authority has implemented a programme in the last five years to provide assistance to the struggling farmers.
    "The Palestinian authority, particularly the ministry of agriculture, has offered close to US$40 million in assistance to Palestinian farmers in the last five years. But following the recent military campaign on the Gaza Strip, which cost almost US$270 million in direct damages and in the West Bank in particular, US$120 million, the authority does not have the budget. Of course there are institutions, the United Nations provides some assistance, and there are some local institutions that offer assistance, but overall, this assistance accounts for only 10 percent of the overall damages we encounter through the Israeli occupation. Therefore, as the Palestinian Authority, we have now put in place a plan to allocate larger budgets towards the agricultural sector, to provide more support for farmers as well as helping them proceed with agricultural work, to continue harvesting their land and taking care of it."
    The Israeli barrier that snakes through the West Bank is a network of concrete walls, wire fences and ditches.
    Israel says the barrier is a security measure that has prevented Palestinian attacks and in particular suicide bombings by militants.
    Over half of the planned 709 kilometre barrier has been built despite the International Court of Justice in the Hague issuing an "advisory opinion" - a judgement with no legal force - in 2004, declaring it illegal.
    Palestinians say the barrier is part of a land grab annexing viable land for an independent Palestinian state.
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