Qalandiya, Wed 4.5.11, Afternoon
15:40 two sleeves (1 and 4) are open, crowded with waiting people, and witnessing the procedure of recent shifts in which the entrance to the crossing is fed with people from the cage – a drop at a time... The sight of people trapped in the narrow cage is hard to bear: in fact everything humiliates, but within this unnecessary procedure is an additional humiliation upon that of all this behavior from the beginning.
Six people are waiting in line for the DCO.
Almost 16:00, a phone call to the DCO, an officer appears and promises “all will enter.” Will they also be dealt with? Apparently not. Among them a family with an appointment at Hadassah Hospital tomorrow morning. The 19-year-old son was injured in an incident at the entrance to the vehicle crossing, and was hospitalised in Hadassah for a few days. He has now been called back for a routine checkup. They demand police passes. The family runs to get. Finally – a negative answer: “Go to the clinic in Ramallah!”
It’s impossible to approve from today to tomorrow.
A phone call to Chana B., and yes, it’s true , they don’t issue passes from one day to the next and, in any case, the DCO also screens applications to check that there is financial cover (?!)
One of the men let in before 16:00 emerges, of course, without a magnetic card: come again...!
The family comes out with the injured youngster. A hard sight. A long slash across his head and neck. They all have magnetic cards, but they are all Shabak blacklisted because somebody in the extended family is sitting in prison. We promised to follow up. In this case the father had in fact paid cash for the earlier treatment.
At 16:30 another sleeve
opens. All the while, crowding and the usual unnecessary wait. A follow up on the passage through the sleeves – 30 minutes not including the wait in the cage and the check inside.
17:00 from a distance the blue ID line appears empty.
And finally, as always, a small test case proves everything. A group of secular students, boys and girls together, passes through. We are right behind them, and while in the check lane having our documents inspected thoroughly, it becomes clear that one of the young women has been delayed 15 minutes in the internal room. She is “released” and emerges with us. Almost in tears. The delay, the fear, the humiliation. In addition to all else, the turnstile suddenly locks giving her a bang on the head!!! Humiliated and mainly fuming. Why? Apparently “no reason.” They study in Nablus and return home each week, which automatically arouses suspicion(!!)