Das Beduinendorf
Al-Arakib
(der Friedhof des
Dorfes
hat die Koordinaten 31,346220; 34,781118)
Email-Chronik ab 3.4.11 vom Negev Coexistence Forum (dukium.org) Neueste Email zuoberst 22.1.18 26.3.18 28.3.18 17.9.18 21.11.18 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Verweise Chronik
17.9.18 Wishing you a year of justice for all NCF invites you to purchase our yearly calendar The calendar contains photos that were taken by children from the unrecognized villages of Tal ʿArād and az-Zaʿarūrah, as part of our documentation project “Through a Child’s Lens”. Every year, NCF holds a ten-day photography workshops in the unrecognized Bedouin villages in the Negev-Naqab during which, Bedouin children learn how to use a camera and learn how to document life in their village. At the end of the workshops, participants keep the cameras and continue to document and apply the knowledge they gained. To purchase the calendar please specify the reason for donation as "calendar". You can also send a check to: P.O Box 130, Omer 84965, Israel. A4 calendar- 60 NIS. A3 calendar- 70 NIS. *FOR MORE INFORMATION: office@dukium.org 28.3.18
Greetings, On the eve of the Passover, a holiday that celebrates Freedom, I am writing you this letter on behalf of my team with hope and belief that we shall all be free. We have a whole Hagadah and a long holiday that is all about Freedom. Since freedom is the essence of life, it will be genuine only when all of us - Arabs and Jews, all citizens and people living here, will be free and equal . It is difficult to work for a shared society and justice with and for the Bedouin communities. Sometimes it seems that the subject of the shared society, as well as the subject of the Arab-Bedouin community, has been pushed aside from the agenda. This is precisely why our activity is so important. At these difficult times, in the midst of political persecution to evict NCF’s cultural center Multaka-Mifgash , located in one of Beer Sheva's city shelters, the organization's activities are growing and require resources and volunteers as we try to withstand the pressure of the missions. With the holiday in mind, I call upon you to continue supporting our activities in any way you see fit. We will be happy if you join one of the tours to the unrecognized villages and meet their people, volunteer in translating and editing our publications, standing with the unrecognized villages in vigils and solidarity visits, join the cultural activities in Multaqa-Mifgash or Arabic language courses. Let
us work together for a more free and equal Negev-Naqab for us all, 26.3.18 Updates from the Negev/Naqab: NCF's appeal against eviction order of Multaqa-Mifgash was discussed at the Be'er Sheva District Court // Government officials threaten to displace Umm al-Hiran by the end of April Last
Thursday, the Be'er Sheva District Court discussed the appeal filed by
the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) on behalf of the
Negev Coexistence Forum against the eviction of the Multaqa-Mifgash
cultural center located in a public bomb shelter. During
the hearing it became clear that Judge Eliyahu Bitan was taking the
Beer Sheva Municipality’s side, making several controversial
statements (such as comparing the activity of the Multaqa-Mifgash to
Kahanist activity in Umm al-Fahm). As the judge sees it, there is no
room for joint Arab-Jewish political activity in municipal property,
and this is not a question of freedom of speech, but rather a narrow
legal matter, since in the contract between us and the municipality it
is written that our activity in the shelter will be "communal
activity." It is distressing to see that the court gives a hand to the
limited interpretation of communal activity, as suggested by the
Municipality, without realizing that such an interpretation could lead
to a slippery slope, eventually silencing any critical activity. It is
a shame that the judge does not see the case from a somewhat broader
perspective in light of the recent gradual detraction of the freedom of
speech and public space in Israel. Instead of promoting notions of
dialogue and deliberation, even on controversial topics, as is
customary in democracy, the judge's words are a reward for all those
who seek to create a division between different groups in society and
to silence any opinion that is incongruent with the government's
opinion.
The meaning of the judge's remarks is that whenever we want to hold an event, we will have to consider our actions and censor the activity so that it will be apolitical and will be in line with the Municipality's position. Political or censored events will move elsewhere, outside the Multaqa-Mifgash. Of course, if this is the case, we will have to appeal to the Supreme Court. Our commitment to freedom of speech is absolute, and we will do our best to turn the decision in order to keep the contents of the Multaqa-Mifgash in our hands. We will not agree to the city's censorship or self-censorship. For further details on the court hearing click here. Last
Wednesday (21 March) officials from the Israel Land Administration,
accompanied by police forces, arrived in Umm al-Hiran in order to issue
demolition orders to all village structures.
For a week the residents of Umm al-Hiran witnessed representatives of police and law enforcement bodies come and go, preparing for house demolitions and displacement of the village. On Wednesday, their fears were realized and representatives of the law enforcement authorities came to the village to issue demolition orders for all houses in the village. The demolition orders handed out on Wednesday stated that the evacuation date is flexible and will take place between April 15 and 28. On January of last year a massive police force raided Umm al-Hiran in order to demolish structures. Before demolitions began, policemen fired at a local resident, Ya’akub Abu Alqian, while he was driving his car away from village, as he did not want to witness the destruction taking place. As a result of the shooting, Abu Alqian lost control over his car, which rolled down hill, killing policeman Erez Amedi. Ya’akub received no medical assistance and was left by the rescue forces to bleed to death. The police claimed, and keeps claiming, that this was a terrorist attack, despite the many contradictory findings (among others, those of the Police Investigation Department). As of now, it is still unclear whether the policemen who shot will be investigated and whether the incident will be classified as a terrorist attack by the State Attorney. More than year after the tragic incidence, the government is still exerting heavy pressure to evict the residents of Umm al-Hiran. Despite the tragedy that took place last year and the residents’ opposition, government officials continue to try to forcibly evict the residents of Umm al-Hiran to Hura and build the Jewish settlement Hiran on top of the village ruins. While residents of Umm al-Hiran are willing to be part of the upcoming settlement of Hiran, the one and only choice the state is offering them is moving to Hura, even though there are no vacant plots there. For years, the residents of Umm al-Hiran have been waging a courageous and inspiring struggle for the right to be equal citizens, the right to live in a democratic space, the right not to be transparent to their country. We call upon all those who oppose racism and segregation to support the struggle of the residents Umm al-Hiran in their difficult times. 22.1.18 Thank you for supporting Multaqa-MifgashDear supporters, It was inspiring to see that within several days we managed to reach the fund raising goal we set for the Multaqa-Mifgash, the only Arab-Jewish cultural center in Be’er-Sheva. The anti-democratic decision of Be’er-Sheva Municipality brought a wave of solidarity, and this would not have happened without each and every one of you. Your dedicated support is highly appreciated. For now, with the support of Association for Civil Rights in Israel, we managed to forestall the evacuation order. Our court hearing will take place on the 22.03.2018, and thanks to you we will stand stronger against the Be’er-Sheva Municipality. We will make clear that everyone can voice their opinion in Be’er-Sheva and that the mayor cannot censor our activity. Although we reached our goal, we still have two days left for our funding campaign and together with you we strive to reach wider circles of support. I urge you to share our campaign on social networks, with friends and acquaintances, so that we can grow stronger and keep Multaqa-Mifgash out of danger. Thank you for making this campaign work, Haia Noach Executive Director, Negev Coexistence Forum for Civil Equality |
Visit NCF's villages project website and start to read and watch photos and videos from the Bedouin villages in the Negev-Naqab at: dukium.org/maps |
Check out NCF's record of house demolitions in the Negev-Naqab |