Former residents of Gush Katif sent a letter to every Member of Knesset on Monday, asking them to remember the plight of Jews from Gaza, many of whom have been living in temporary dwellings and dealing with serious financial hardships for more than three years. The authors invited each and every MK to visit former residents of Gush Katif in the caravan villages in the south.
The letter was sent in honor of the first day of the Knesset's seventh session. As the session began, Knesset speaker Dalia Itzik announced that the Knesset would be dissolved in favor of new national elections.
The letter was as follows:
The seventh Knesset session that will begin today will bring with it another announcement of elections in Israel. This reality is likely to seriously hamper the steps taken in previous Knesset sessions and to further postpone the treatment of Israelis from Gush Katif that has been delayed for a long time.
Before you immerse yourself in the elections campaign we wanted to remind you that most residents of Gush Katif are still living in caravans and dreaming of permanent housing.
It must be said that efforts are being made in various domains, however, the proportion between the determination shown during the expulsion and the determination to build permanent housing and solve other problems is as far as East from West.
It took an average of seven minutes to wipe out a family's entire life, but in the seven Knesset sessions that have passed since the Disengagement, the issues have not yet been completely addressed...
Soon 40 months will have passed since the expulsion from our homes in Gush Katif, the expulsion agreed on by the Knesset and the government, and still:
1. Thousands of residents of Gush Katif are living in temporary housing.
2. In 50 percent of the towns which we are supposed to live in, the initial construction of infrastructure has not yet begun.
3. No solutions have been found regarding farms and businesses despite lengthy negotiations.
4. Even when it comes to “small” and basic budgeting, such as NIS 7 million for education (for which every government office recognizes the importance and need) the Finance Ministry and Education Ministry continue fighting over who will provide funding.
We hope that you will do everything in your parliamentary power to help us so that in the upcoming winter we will move towards permanent solutions for all of the problems facing the Jews of Gush Katif.