BICOM

A bill designed to regulate Bedouin settlement in the Negev region of southern Israel, and to provide the Bedouin community there with improved amenities and services, passed a first reading in the Knesset by a slim margin of 43-40 votes last night.

There are an estimated 200,000 Bedouin living in the Negev, but many live in illegal villages and encampments without access to amenities and public services. In addition, around 12,000 Bedouin have ownership claims on land in the Negev which are not recognised in Israeli law. A government commission chaired by former Supreme Court justice Eliezer Goldberg investigated the issue in 2008 and called for the recognition of many of the villages and compensating the land claims. Proposed legislation, known as the Prawer plan, was drawn up in the Prime Minister’s office, and subsequently revised by former-minister Benny Begin, following a period of consultation with the Bedouin.

According to the proposed law the state will compensate those Bedouin who have land claims with a combination of land and money. It also provides for the legalisation of unrecognised villages where the government deems it viable. According to the proposals, it is estimated that a minority, some 20,000 to 30,000 Bedouin will have to be relocated to recognized Bedouin towns, in order to be connected to Israel’s national water, electricity and energy networks and to be served by the state’s health, social and welfare services. The plan stipulates that those who are moved will receive financial compensation as well as new plots of land. The government is already investing hundreds of millions of shekels in infrastructure and social development programmes for the Negev Bedouin, in the hope of tackling poverty, crime and unemployment in the very fast growing population.

However, the government bill is vehemently opposed by many Bedouin, who object to being moved, from land which they consider their property dating back to before the establishment of the State of Israel. In addition, there are objections to disrupting the traditional Bedouin lifestyle by forcing Bedouin to settle in urban areas.

During yesterday’s Knesset debate, Welfare Minister Meir Cohen, the former-Mayor of Dimona, which is located in the Negev, said, “This is a sad human story that must be fixed. Believe me that this is possible.” However, MK Ibrahim Sarsur of the United Arab List was one of several Arab legislators to condemn the bill, calling it “unfair, immoral… It is a bill that treats a large population as numbers and does not consider their opinion.”