| The Dead Sea is for us: Palestinian youth affirm right to walk on beach despite Israeli actions |
| 21.08.09 - 11:05 | |
| Bethlehm / Hiba Lama for PNN - A group of Palestinian youth went to the Dead Sea in an affirmation of their right to utilize its waters. On the beach they celebrated their right to wander on the sand. A political message was communicated: the sea Dead is for us, not them. One of the young organizers of this week’s celebration, Tariq Za'anun, told PNN that the initiative was aimed at Palestinian youth and families. “They travel to the Dead Sea for enjoyment, to pursue their right to utilize its waters and keep a presence at the beach.” He stressed a pressing need to strengthen the sense of the Palestinian right to go directly to the waters that are in the West Bank, particularly as the “feeling has started to fade with time.” Za'anun indicated that Palestinians are impeded from continuing to visit the Dead Sea because of the checkpoints within the West Bank, the Israeli presence, and the fear of trouble on the long road. "You must feel your right to be there.” More than an interest to be involved in a political fight, there are youth who simply want to enjoy an afternoon, something that is often denied Palestinians who live under occupation. Perhaps ironic is that when maps and boundaries are looked at, as the Director of Maps in Jerusalem’s Orient House told PNN, the situation should be radically different than what it is on the ground. “Since 1948, after the end of the war, what remains for the Palestinians is approximately 200 km squared of the Dead Sea. But after 1967 the Israelis took it all, along with the Jordanian government. The rest of the Dead Sea was newly declared, ‘property of the State of Israel.” The Maps expert says that it is Palestinian land under international law, but that has not stopped the take-over. The reasons for the Israelis to annex the remaining territory of the sea are several. The first is because of the water. There is a project to extend the sea channel between the Red Sea and the Dead, from which the Israelis are able to acquisition water and electricity, and force Palestinians to purchase both. Another reason is purely economic regarding the extraction of minerals: salt, potassium and magnesium. There is also the issue of tourism. With the Palestinians effectively banned from ownership of the area, it is impossible to boost the Palestinian economy with hotels. The Maps expert says, “This is why Israel decided to acquire the remaining land near the sea.” The political factor is the fourth reason that the Israelis are seeking to exploit the cutting of communication between Jordan and Palestine, and this is most wanted by them, says the Maps expert. “We, in the maps, are often warned of the steps of Israel's with the aim of getting hold of the Dead Sea and to deny Palestinians real access. We finally discovered the futility of talking to those who do not advocate. The Palestinian government is waking up a bit, and going back to sleep again.” The youth who took the celebratory visit to the Dead Sea this week said that they may not have changed anything, “but it is better to progress a step forward than to stay idle or retreat.” |
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