Working To Defuse Tensions In Hevron
First Publish: 5/29/2002, 7:10 PM
The tensions between the Hevron police and local Jewish residents have reached so high a level that Public Security Minister Uzi Landau has appointed Col. (res.) Moshe Givati to investigate and mediate the problems. Givati serves as Landau\'s Advisor on Settlement Affairs, and was the IDF\'s Hevron Battalion Commander until 1988. Asked what he has discovered on his first days on the job, Givati told Arutz-7,
\"I discovered, first of all, that thank G-d, there has been a nice growth in the Jewish community in Hevron. Unfortunately, the areas in which the Jewish homes are located are a bit abandoned and neglected because of the security situation…\"
Getting down to the nitty-gritty of his new job, Givati explained why one initiative that he wished to promote - a special \"day of fun\" for the children of Hevron - did not work:
\"One of the officials in Minister Landau\'s office had this idea, hoping to help the children realize that they need not be afraid every time they see a policeman. I understand that the idea was turned down by some of the residents who thought that it was too early; I accepted their position with sorrow, but we still hope it will happen... It\'s just one part of what I am doing; I hold discussions with residents, children, police, soldiers, etc., in order to feel out the problems... The situation is very complex. I don\'t say that there are no problems; there undoubtedly are, and that\'s why I\'m here. Sometimes arrests were made that were unnecessary, and sometimes indictments were blown up out of proportion, etc... but this was not done systematically, and we think that we can solve the problems little by little.\"
Orit Strook, a spokeswoman for Hevron, gave her view of the situation:
\"We don\'t think that the way to solve this problem is with one day of fun, to be followed by 364 other days of persecution. The problem is much deeper. As Arutz-7 listeners know, the police have \'special guidelines\' for us that must be changed... It\'s true that we want our children not to fear policemen, but they also have to see that we, their parents, stand by their side when they suffer from them… The policemen themselves suffer from this situation when their bosses make them go against us… I think that Moshe Givati has accomplished something; there has been a change, but what we expect from a minister like Uzi Landau is something much more; we expect a fundamental change.\"
It was reported today, coincidentally, that the State Attorney\'s Office had instructed the police to investigate the participants at a Purim parade in Hevron three months ago. One or two marchers wore costumes of Shimon Peres with a gun held to his head, handcuffs on his hands, and a sticker on his back reading, \"Oslo Criminals to Trial!\" The investigation was ordered at the behest of Meretz MK Zahava Gal\'on.
\"I discovered, first of all, that thank G-d, there has been a nice growth in the Jewish community in Hevron. Unfortunately, the areas in which the Jewish homes are located are a bit abandoned and neglected because of the security situation…\"
Getting down to the nitty-gritty of his new job, Givati explained why one initiative that he wished to promote - a special \"day of fun\" for the children of Hevron - did not work:
\"One of the officials in Minister Landau\'s office had this idea, hoping to help the children realize that they need not be afraid every time they see a policeman. I understand that the idea was turned down by some of the residents who thought that it was too early; I accepted their position with sorrow, but we still hope it will happen... It\'s just one part of what I am doing; I hold discussions with residents, children, police, soldiers, etc., in order to feel out the problems... The situation is very complex. I don\'t say that there are no problems; there undoubtedly are, and that\'s why I\'m here. Sometimes arrests were made that were unnecessary, and sometimes indictments were blown up out of proportion, etc... but this was not done systematically, and we think that we can solve the problems little by little.\"
Orit Strook, a spokeswoman for Hevron, gave her view of the situation:
\"We don\'t think that the way to solve this problem is with one day of fun, to be followed by 364 other days of persecution. The problem is much deeper. As Arutz-7 listeners know, the police have \'special guidelines\' for us that must be changed... It\'s true that we want our children not to fear policemen, but they also have to see that we, their parents, stand by their side when they suffer from them… The policemen themselves suffer from this situation when their bosses make them go against us… I think that Moshe Givati has accomplished something; there has been a change, but what we expect from a minister like Uzi Landau is something much more; we expect a fundamental change.\"
It was reported today, coincidentally, that the State Attorney\'s Office had instructed the police to investigate the participants at a Purim parade in Hevron three months ago. One or two marchers wore costumes of Shimon Peres with a gun held to his head, handcuffs on his hands, and a sticker on his back reading, \"Oslo Criminals to Trial!\" The investigation was ordered at the behest of Meretz MK Zahava Gal\'on.