Bethlehem, Etzion DCL, Thu 27.11.08, Afternoon

14.00 – 17.30 PM
Etzion DCL:  since we are usually here on Mondays, When the Bethlehem people are due and the place is very crowded, we wondered at the small amount of people present.
 
Immediately after we arrived at the parking lot a Christian lady (from Bethlehem) approached us and complained about the treatment she got. She is the mother of a 24 year old man who suffers from Cystic fibrosis since he was born. Once a month she comes to the DCL to acquire licenses for the sick and his parents and brother who in turns accompany him to get treatments in the hospital. Today, after she waited since early morning, she met a new officer who granted licenses only for her and for her sick son. When she told him that for years she gets permits also for the other family members he said: "OK come again on Sunday and we will see". She begged, in wane, not to make her waste another whole day since "she is already here".

We suggested to come back to the waiting room where we will try to help her. She was reluctant to return there since the "Officer told me to go home". We persuaded her at last, and called Dalia Bassa, who knows the case and was very surprised that she does not get the permits since "no one in this family is a Shabac detainee". We asked Dalia to call the officer and tell him that. The woman was skeptical and made us call the officer and find out if he got Dalia's call. We got the soldier at the window who was very polite and helpful and promised to look into the matter and let us know. A few minutes later the lady was called to the window and told she will get what she asked for. Although it was very cold she was asked to wait outside for the papers. There was one more superfluous delay when a soldier came out to say that they cannot find her documents! Some more enervating time passed before a smile was seen on the woman's drawn face.And now, will this story repeat itself next month?

16:30 PM, Checkpoint 300: many people were returning from their work. Four windows were open and the passage was smooth. When a large bus came and unloaded its content a small line was formed, but it dissolved quickly. The civilian security man was friendly and polite to the Palestinians. We watched quietly for a while and when we saw everything was working well we decided to leave. The security man was almost sorry: "you leave already?" We complimented him for his behavior.