A DESTRUCTIVE
CONSTRUCTION
A question of human rights

Australia should play a more active role in opposing Israel’s construction of the Security Wall in the West Bank. The Howard Government must be willing to stand up for the basic human rights of the Palestinians. As a nation, we cannot simply just sit back and watch innocent people being deprived of their own land and livelihood, innocent civilians that have been caught in the crossfire are being denied access to resources like water, schools, and health care.

This is the effect of The Security Wall, The Separation Barrier, The Apartheid Wall or whatever you may choose to call it. The Sharon Government says the fence is for security; to protect the innocent Israelis from the Palestinian suicide bombers. But what about the innocent Palestinians who are being pushed out of their own homes? There will never be peace in the Middle East if Israel continues to refuse to recognise the basic human rights of a people.

Qalqilya, a West Bank town of 42 000, is now encircled by the Israeli security fence. The Palestinian residents feel like they are living in an open-air prison. There is an eight metre high concrete wall with watchtowers and security cameras surrounding the city. There is only one exit to the other side. The crossing points that have been made available can close at any time without notice, largely depending on the whims of the soldiers on guard. This not only dehumanises the Palestinians, but it has had a great economic effect on the encircled city. Australia needs to voice its protest against this destructive construction.

The ‘apartheid wall’ separates Qalqilya from 45 percent of its agricultural land and one third of its water supply. Many residents can’t even get to their land which has been cut by the fence; families can no longer reach their olive groves for harvest. Obviously, this has not pleased the Palestinian residents, but there isn’t very much they can do about it. While the Israeli settlers have a great influence in the Sharon Government, the Palestinians don’t even have the simple human right of judicial protection. In fact, Israeli courts have refused to block construction of the fence as they have deemed it a security issue, therefore a military issue.

The majority of Palestinian residents view the fence as a “land grab”. Through it’s weaving and winding around settlements, the fence is in fact seizing the most fertile land on the West Bank. The separation barrier isn’t even consistent with the Green Line established after 1967. In many places, the fence is clearly being built inside Palestinian territory, separating Palestinians from their neighbours, families, schools, employment, and land. Some say that Israel is trying to capture as much Palestinian land as possible to prevent the formation of a future Palestinian state.

The apartheid wall is a violation of human rights for the Palestinians; it restricts their freedom of movement and completely ignores property rights. It is about time Australia voiced its objection to a construction that denies people their basic human rights.

By Feda Abdo