BITTER HARVEST: Settlers olive trees control

APN Middle East Report, 22.10.07. “The equation that has been created here in the hills of Samaria is clear,” observed Israel Television’s Mabat Correspondent Ohed Chemo in his broadcast on Wednesday. “He who controls the olive trees controls the territory. And what can be more explosive than a Palestinian olive harvest that takes place adjacent to the fences of the [unauthorized] settlement [outpost] of Havat Gilad. Yesterday, it ended with injured [Palestinians].” Chemo was referring to an incident where a Palestinian farmer, Abed Al-Fahah Al-Hidni, suffered a head injury after reportedly being attacked by six settlers. Rabbis for Human Rights filed an official complaint with Israeli police over the incident; police have initiated a search for the perpetrators. This was the second reported attack within a week on Palestinian farmers in that area. Zecharia Seada, an activist with Rabbis for Human Rights, pointed to an intimidation campaign, telling Mabat that it is evident “from the fields that are not worked well that they [the Palestinian farmers] are scared to come and get near them [the settlers]. I, as one of the residents of the area, I say to you, that I too am scared of them. You should know that.” Yedioth Ahronoth’s Yehuda Litani writes on Thursday that such attacks have become an annual phenomenon in which Palestinian farmers “accuse the settlers of attempting to steal their only ‘poor man’s possession’ – the olive and oil harvest that tens of thousands of families live on during the long winter months… The attacks on the harvesters, the damage to the olive orchards and the uprooting of trees are regarded by the Palestinian public as an attempt to uproot them from their land, especially since security officials display unfathomable helplessness with regard to protecting the Palestinian peasants and [to] deterring settler aggression.” In this context, Litani concludes that the stakes are higher than the fate of an olive harvest: “If the security officials do not display determination this year in their dealings with the clashes and a firm hand against the phenomenon, representatives of the government will find it hard to persuade the Palestinians that their intentions are indeed serious also in fateful matters such as the establishment of a Palestinian state, the transfer of territories and reaching an agreement about Jerusalem. Despite the fact that this is allegedly a peripheral matter, perhaps it would pay for those at the helm of the government to remember the words of Ecclesiastes: ‘Thy name is better than good oil.’” (Ma’ariv-NRG, 10/16/07; Mabat, 10/17/07; Ynet 10/16/07; Yedioth Ahronoth, 10/18/07)

Olive Harvest 2007: You Are Needed More Than Ever!

Join Us in Palestine for the 2007 Olive Harvest Campaign! Palestinian
farmers and agricultural organizations, in coordination with the
International Solidarity Movement, the International Women's Peace
Service, and the Christian Peacemaker Team announce the 2007 Olive
Harvest Campaign. The campaign will begin on October 16th, after the
end of Ramadan, and will continue for six to eight weeks, depending on
the size of the harvest.

The Israeli government continues to seize Palestinian land throughout
the West Bank to expand settlements and build its illegal annexation
barrier. As this goes on, Palestinian communities continue to resist
Israel's attempts to cement its control of the West Bank and imprison
Palestinians behind walls and fences.

The Olive Harvest is an annual affirmation of Palestinians'
historical, spiritual and economic connection to their land, and a
rejection of Israeli efforts to seize it. Palestinians are the
indigenous people of this land who have farmed olives here for
thousands of years. The annual harvest is a symbol of life for
Palestinian communities.

Agricultural productivity over the last seven years has decreased
dramatically because of closures and sieges, which prohibit access to
farms and markets. Israel's barrier and increased settler attacks on
farmers and their families in the fields have further diminished
Palestinians' ability to earn a living. Over half a million olive and
fruit trees have been destroyed since September 2000. Palestinian
agriculture is being destroyed by the policies of the Israeli
government and the rights of Palestinians to their land and to a
livelihood are being denied.

International and Israeli volunteers join Palestinians each year to
harvest olives, in spite of efforts by Israeli settlers, soldiers and
bulldozers to destroy this vital piece of Palestinian life.

How It Works

The Olive Harvest Campaign provides a wonderful opportunity to spend
time with Palestinian families in their olive groves and homes. The
presence of internationals during harvest time has proven in the past
to help limit and decrease the severity of attacks. Last year (2006)
was the first year since the beginning of the intifada that a farmer
was not murdered while trying to harvest his olives. One farmer was
severely beaten, and in that instance, no internationals or Israelis
were present. Your presence makes all the difference in reducing the
levels of violence Palestinians experience while standing up for their
rights.

After a two-day training session, volunteers for the Olive Harvest
Campaign will stay in Palestinian homes or international apartments in
West Bank communities and accompany Palestinian families to their
olive groves to serve as witnesses to document and expose attacks by
settlers -- supported by the Israeli Army -- on farmers and their
families.

In addition to olive harvest, volunteers will have the opportunity to
join Palestinians in nonviolent protests throughout the West Bank
against the construction of the annexation barrier, settlements and
settlement roads.

This 2007 Olive Harvest Campaign is part of the ongoing work of the
International Solidarity Movement, a Palestinian-led movement
comprising of Palestinian, Israeli and international activists working
to raise awareness about the struggle for Palestinian freedom and an
end to the occupation. ISM uses nonviolent, direct-action methods of
resistance to confront and challenge the Israeli persecution of
Palestinians. With your help and participation, we will expose the
injustice of the Israeli occupation and send a message to the world
that the occupation must end and the wall must fall!

For more information on preparation, travel and arrival in Palestine,
please see the ISM Palestine website, www.palsolidarity.org/main/join/.
ISM support groups located around the world can help answer your
questions about the movement and Olive Harvest Campaign. Many will
provide training sessions. For information on how to contact local ISM
support groups worldwide, please also see the ISM website.


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Please consider a financial donation to help continue the important work of the ISM. You may donate securely online at our website: http://www.palsolidarity.org/main/donations

For more information, visit the ISM website at http://www.palsolidarity.org
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