Publishing date: 26/02/2010
ACAP organized a meeting on Saturday 25.01.2010, in partnership with the National Follow-up Committee on Arab Affairs and the National Forum of Arab Mayors, in which the proposed modifications to the Planning and Building Law were presented and discussed.
In attendance at the meeting included representatives from ACAP, the Follow-Up Committee, Knesset member Dr. Hanna Swaid, mayor of Deir Hanna- Mr. Raja Khatib, representatives from the Regional Council of the Unrecognized Villages in the Negev, and representatives from various NGO’s including Mossawa, Adallah, and the Human Rights Association.
The meeting was moderated by ACAP’s urban planner, Mrs. Enaya Banna-Jeries, who emphasized the need to resolve the basic planning issues in Arab towns before making any modification to the Law. The main issues included: the demolishing of houses, the lack of master plans for Arab towns, and the problem of the unrecognized villages in the Negev.
The participants agreed that land, planning and building are the most important issues for the Arab population in the country and thus, it is required from the Arab local councils to take an active role in dealing with these issues in the best way possible. According to the reform in the Law, many of the authorities that were in the hands of the regional planning committees will be moved to the local planning committees and they will have more responsibility in planning. However, if the local planning committees are unable or unprepared to take on this task, then the Ministry of Interior will become responsible and take over.
The participants also stated that the previous Planning and Building Law was the main reason for the various planning and land issues that the Arab towns are suffering from. Thus, there is a major need for the revision of the act, but not before dealing with the consequences of the previous act.
The participants agreed that there are two major issues with the existing act. On one hand, there is the general problem that everyone is suffering from which is the excessive bureaucracy involved. On the other hand, there is the issue of planning polices which are discriminatory towards the Arab citizens in the country.
At the end of the meeting, a decision was made to establish a coalition from the organizations that participated in the meeting, alongside the Arab Knesset Members, which would study and present the Arab citizens’ point of view on the proposed revision to the Planning and Building Law (1965). It was also decided to prepare a special position paper on the subject and present it to mayors and Knesset Members in order to influence this revision