Up to 70,000 Bedouins Could Be Impacted or Displaced by Israel ~ Interview with @Moe_Diab
July 25, 2013 
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Published on Jul 24, 2013by The Real News
Moe Diab: Israeli Prawer Plan violates of human rights law and Israeli law
Full text of the Prawer Plan
The Prawer Plan: What you need to know
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What is the Prawer Plan
Demolition and Eviction of Bedouin Citizens of Israel in the Naqab (Negev) – The Prawer Plan
By Adalah.org
On 24 June 2013, the Israeli Knesset approved
the discriminatory Prawer-Begin Bill, with 43 votes for and 40 votes
against, for the mass expulsion of the Arab Bedouin community in the
Naqab (Negev) desert in the south of Israel.If fully implemented, the Prawer-Begin Plan
will result in the destruction of 35 “unrecognized”Arab Bedouin
villages, the forced displacement of up to 70,000 Arab Bedouin citizens
of Israel, and the dispossession of their historical lands in the Naqab.
Despite the Arab Bedouin community’s complete rejection of the plan and
strong disapproval from the international community and human rights groups, the Prawer Plan is happening now.
The Prawer-Begin Bill is an unacceptable proposition that
entrenches the state’s historic injustice against its Bedouin citizens.
Adalah and our NGO partners have been challenging the Prawer Plan before
courts, government authorities and the international community, but we
need your help to stop what would be the largest single act of forced
displacement of Arab citizens of Israel since the 1950s!
Please sign our petition and visit our Facebook page to find out what you can do to Stop the Prawer Plan!
What is the Prawer Plan?
Arab Bedouin citizens of Israel, inhabitants of the Naqab (Negev)
desert since the seventh century, are the most vulnerable community in
Israel. For over 60 years, the indigenous Arab Bedouin have faced a
state policy of displacement, home demolitions and dispossession of
their ancestral land. Today, 70,000 Arab Bedouin citizens live in 35
villages that either predate the establishment of the State in 1948, or
were created by Israeli military order in the early 1950s. The State of
Israel considers the villages “unrecognized” and the inhabitants
“trespassers on State land,” so it denies the citizens access to state
infrastructure like water, electricity, sewage, education, health care
and roads. The state deliberately withholds basic services from these
villages to “encourage” the Arab Bedouin citizens to give up their
ancestral land. If Israel applied the same criteria for planning and
development that exist in the Jewish rural sector, all 35 unrecognized
villages would be recognized where they are.
In September 2011, the Israeli government approved the Prawer Plan,
the brainchild of former Deputy Chair of the National Security Council,
Mr. Ehud Prawer. The Prawer Plan will result in the destruction of the
unrecognized villages and the forced displacement of up to 70,000 Arab
Bedouin citizens. This plan was completed without consultation of the
local community, and is a gross violation of the constitutional rights
of the Arab Bedouin citizens to property, dignity, equality, adequate
housing, and freedom to choose their own residence.
Prawer is Happening Now
Despite complete rejection of the plan by the Arab Bedouin, and
strong disapproval from the international community, Prawer is happening
now. More than 1,000 houses were demolished in 2011 alone, and civil
society observed the same practices in 2012. Since Prawer was announced,
the government announced plans that will displace over 10,000 people
and plant forests, build military centers, and establish new Jewish
settlements in their place.
The Prawer Plan is today being turned into an Israeli law. On 6 May
2013, the Ministerial Committee on Legislation approved the proposed
“Law for the Regulation of Bedouin Settlement in the Negev – 2013” (“the
Prawer-Begin Bill”, after recommendations by Minister Benny Begin were
included). On 24 June 2013, the Knesset approved the Prawer-Begin Bill
with 43 votes for and 40 votes against. The bill will now be sent to the
Committee for Interior Affairs and Environment to be prepared for the
second and third readings.
The international community has repeatedly expressed its opposition
to the Prawer Plan. In March 2012, the UN Committee on the Elimination
for Racial Discrimination called on Israel to withdraw the proposed
implementing legislation of the Prawer Plan, on the grounds that it was
discriminatory. In July 2012, the European Parliament passed a historic
resolution calling on Israel to Stop the Prawer Plan and its policies of
displacement, eviction, and dispossession.
Adalah calls on the Israeli government to:
- Cancel the Prawer Plan
- Recognize the “unrecognized villages” and the land claims of the indigenous Arab Bedouin community
- Halt home demolitions and forced evictions
- Engage in meaningful dialogue with the Arab Bedouin community and the Arab political leadership to justly resolve the land claims
- Invest in greater health, education, and employment opportunities for Arab Bedouin citizens of Israel
Find out More:
Introduction
Report: The Arab Bedouin and the Prawer Plan, 2012
Factsheet: Myths and Misconceptions about the Arab Bedouin in the Naqab
Article: Four Reasons to Reject the Prawer Plan, by Dr. Thabet Abu Rass and Professor Oren Yiftachel
Legal letter: Adalah and ACRI Objection to the Prawer Plan
Briefing/Position Papers:
Briefing Paper: The Prawer-Begin Bill and the Forced Displacement of the Bedouin, May 2013
Position Paper: From Al-Araqib to Susiya: The Forced Displacement of Palestinians on Both Sides of the Green Line
Briefing Paper: Understanding the Prawer Plan Law, 2012
Briefing Paper: Analysis of the Prawer Plan, October 2011
Videos:
International responses
EMHRN Statement: Time for EU action on Prawer Bill, 2 July 2013
UN CERD Calls on Israel to Withdraw the Prawer Plan Law, 15 March 2012
European Parliament Passes Resolution Calling on Israel to Stop the Prawer Plan
Press Releases
Knesset Approves Forced Displacement of Arab Bedouin, 25 June 2013
NGOs to Knesset: Do Not Support Prawer-Begin Bill, 21 April 2013
Cabinet approves Begin recommendations to Discriminatory Prawer Plan, 28 January 2013
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