Marda village

Marda

The head of the local Council H. combines a private business with his unpaid, voluntary public job. Busy advising where to hold classes during school repairs, he was late for our 10 am meeting. An important duty is to be a liaison with the IDF, as detailed below.  

Mutual tension, caused by the recent violent events, marred our first visit but slowly dissipated. On the whole, H. received us well, and wanted to know what we in Machsomwatch actually do.

To Aliyah’s question—whether he prefers one or two states—-he said it was necessary for us all to function peacefully together.

Population:3,000 people

Education:  4 kindergartens.3 schools—1 girls’ elementary through HIghschool; 1 boys’ elementary, till eight's grade; 1 boys’ Highschool. Now, boys’ school undergoing renovations; Head of Council called to advise about temporary housing.

University: many girls attend. For instance, the Secretary of the local Council, who talked to us via Nadim till the Head arrived, has a B.A. in Business Administration.

Settlemants: on the hill, Ariel towers above Marda.

Problems:

(1) Employments: insufficient, especially for University graduates. Only 10% go abroad (need connections), some stay home.

(2) A fence now separates some of their olive groves, which are close to Ariel, from the village. During the harvest (from 6.10 till 30.10), the gates are supposed to  open 3 times a day, but  sometimes they open much later, or not at all.       

(3) A lack of roads means no vehicles, except tractors, can reach these olive groves. When there is an accident, e.g. a man falls off a tree, ambulances can’t reach him. Worse: when the Council Head asks for an ambulance and for soldiers to open the gates, they often take a long time to arrive.

(4) Building roads connecting the fence and the groves would make the lives of Palestinian farmers easier. But Israeli authorities do not allow this simple solution.

HARASSMENTS FROM NEIGHBOURING SETTLEMENTS (Ariel)

(5) Settlers sometimes get to trees before the farmers, and steal their olives.

(6) Last year, a fire started in these olive groves. Though a fire-engine was available in Ariel, no one bothered to send it to put the fire out. A great many trees were destroyed. 

These difficulties, many of which could have been avoided, make the villagers feel that they are done on purpose to make them leave their lands.

Water: more or less sufficient. They don’t water their olive trees (whch look quite dry and dusty).

Electricity: Their insufficient quota is 600 amperes, whereas they need at least1,500 amperes to satisfy their minimum needs. During this unusually hot summer, to be able to use the vilage’s 1,500 Air Conditioning units, the Council Head was forced to weaken the street lights, such that at night the village was dark. Moreover, they cannot operate an oil-producing plant, and forced to take their olives to a neighbouring village; nor can they have a sun energy plant, as H. would have liked to build.

We promised to try to help with this pressing electrical supply problem, as well as with obtaining helpers for their olive harvest.

Roads were quiet, probably due to the end of Succot weekend. In the Tapuach Junction (Za’atra), some Israeli soldiers were checking a Palestinian car driving to Shechem from Ramallah.