Beit Sahour
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Beit Sahour (Arabic: بيت ساحور pronounced Bayt Saahoor ) is a West Bank town administered by the Palestinian Authority, situated to the east of Bethlehem. The population of 13,000 is largely Christian. The town is reputed to be close to the place where, according to the Bible, the angel announced the birth of Jesus to shepherds. There are two enclosures in the eastern part of Beit Sahour which are claimed by different denominations to be the actual 'Shepherds' Field': one belonging to the Greek Orthodox Church and the other, the Catholic site, to the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land.
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[edit] Economy
The town's economy is largely based on tourism and related industries, such as the manufacture of olive-wood carvings. Agriculture and work in Israel also play a significant role. The town had a prominent role in the Palestinian national "Bethlehem 2000" project, as extensive renovations of touristic sites, hotels and businesses, and historic sites were performed prior to the millennium celebrations. Social and economic sectors have been seriously disrupted since September 2000 due to the events of the Al-Aqsa Intifada.
[edit] Civil society activism in Beit Sahour
Beit Sahour is a significant centre of civil society activism and has played a prominent role in the events of the first and second Palestinian Intifadas, with local activists pioneering non-violent resistance techniques.
During the second Intifada, the Palestinian Center for Rapprochement between Peoples, based in Beit Sahour, has played a major role in promoting non-violent activism, including the work of the International Solidarity Movement. The Alternative Information Centre is also partly based in the town, as is the Alternative Tourism Group, a non-governmental organisation specialising in tours of Israel and the Palestinian Territories which engage with current political events.
[edit] Tax resistance in Beit Sahour
In 1989, during the first Intifada, the Palestinian resistance urged people to resist paying taxes to Israel. The people of Beit Sahour responded to this call with an unusually organized and citywide tax strike. As a result of the tax strike the Israeli military authorities placed the town under curfew for 45 days and seized goods belonging to citizens in raids.
Israel's occupation military forces had the authority, independent from the rest of Israel's government, to create and enforce taxes in occupied areas. As a result, they would impose taxes on Palestinians as collective punishment measures to discourage the intifada, for instance "the glass tax (for broken windows), the stones tax (for damage done by stones), the missile tax (for Gulf War damage), and a general intifada tax, among others"[1]
Among those prominent in Beit Sahour's tax resistance were Ghassan Andoni and Elias Rishmawi.
[edit] Land confiscation and other issues
Beit Sahour residents have suffered considerable losses due to Israeli land confiscation policies. The controversial Har Homa settlement was built partially on land owned by Beit Sahour residents, as was a nearby bypass road. Life in the town, as in Bethlehem, has also been considerably disrupted by Israeli movement restrictions: Jerusalem, the main social, economic and religious centre of the region, is now inaccessible to most residents, and travel to other parts of the West Bank is impeded and often prevented. The Israeli West Bank barrier now being constructed will further isolate the town from its surroundings.
[edit] Notes
- ^ "A Matter of Justice: Tax Resistance in Beit Sahour" Nonviolent Sanctions Albert Einstein Institution, Spring/Summer 1992
