Palestinian officials confiscate merchandise produced in settlements
Move is part of plan to remove all settlement-made goods from PA markets by the end of 2010.
By Amira Hass Tags: Israel settlements Salam Fayyad Palestinian Authority Israel newsPalestinian officials are confiscating merchandise produced in West Bank settlements as part of Prime Minister Salam Fayyad's plan to remove all goods made in the settlements from Palestinian markets by the end of next year.
Although the government banned goods from settlements some time ago, it only launched a concerted effort to enforce the ban a few months ago.
Sources in the National Economy Ministry said that NIS 651,982 worth of goods were confiscated and disposed of in the second week of December alone. The goods included Ahava cosmetics and toiletries, plastic products, long-life milk made in the Golan, Mei Eden mineral water and pastries from the Atarot industrial park.
The campaign kicked off five weeks ago with the confiscation of merchandise on four trucks that had left the Barkan industrial zone near Ariel carrying metal products and raw material for diapers.
A committee consisting of officials from several ministries was set up to supervise the process. Economy Ministry officials and customs agents are seizing merchandise directly from the distributors rather than trawling shops and marketplaces for forbidden goods.
The ministry first warned merchants via regional chambers of commerce that dealing in goods from the settlements was prohibited and such merchandise would be seized.
A ministry official said he realized, after a recent meeting with a British minister, that "we can't demand that others do what we're not doing ourselves."
Products from the settlements are widespread in the West Bank, making it difficult for the authorities to remove them, officials said. For example, the offices of many Palestinian ministries have doors made by Mul-T-Lock in its plant near Barkan. But according to the Israeli web site whoprofits.org, Mul-T-Lock's owner, the Swedish corporation Assa Abloy, has promised to relocate the plant inside the Green Line.
In violation of both the Oslo accords and Israel's "economic peace" policy, Israel makes it almost impossible to market Palestinian merchandise, a ministry official said - not only in Israel, but even in the Palestinian Authority. And trade between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank is all but nonexistent.
However, said National Economy Minister Hassan Abu Libdeh, the PA is not taking steps against Israeli-made goods, only against products made in the settlements - "which are in violation of international law, steal our land and natural resources and damage our industry and produce."
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Its mostly one-way traffic anyhow so ban Israeli goods in Jordan, Egypt, Palestine and all Arab countries.There is no peace on the way so we should impleent cold war tactics if Israel is continuing to implement violent acts of war. I'm glad to see that dairy products made by J'neidi now far outnumber Tnuva products in the West Bank. Not a bad start!
The worst thing is that the settlements are built with Palestinian labour. Time to ban Palestinian from working in Settleents.
...or universally. They are useless. Both in Iran and West Bank.
the palestinians and israelis must be aware that the only peace they will ever achieve is among themselves, and not some 'mediator' from the usa or the eu or other arab nations or whomever. every peaceful relation between the peoples is a step towards a peaceful middle east.
Any Arab product made by Arabs or in a Arab nation should be confiscated and destroyed in retaliation. Arab nations have done this to Israeli products for decades it's time Israel returns the favor and that would be the fair thing to do.
do the same.
In Israel it is more of who owns the business, if Jewish owned then goods ok. The PA focuses on where it comes from but since settlements Jewish then business Jewish owned. This is more about who owns the companies and makes most the profits than really where they are made.
It's great when you are concerned about Palestinians's jobs - would be even greater if you were concerned about Palestinians' freedom ...
Abu Libdeh should have taken that step a long time ago. His lax policies have allowed the settlers to prosper. He should be demanding that Palestinian farm and other goods move freely within the occupied territories. Glad he finally started the process, though, better late than never.
PA should start with blocking the Pals from going and working inside the settlements, especially those who are working in construction to build those settlements.
The settlements are an illegal intrusion. The Palestians should not be their captive market. Boycott is nonviolent resistance to injustice.
A hungry free man is better than a full man in shackels. Even if the Pals are losing out in the short term, their eventual freedom is better. Just like us in SA, even if we are plauged by curruption and crime , at least we are free. I would rather the situation im am in now then go back to living in bantustans. Same with the oppressed Pals. The people of SA wish you luck in your fight for freedom.
In the end this will only hurt Arabs for they will be laid off if sales go down as they depend on Jews for work.
Please supply a list of these goods! I will not buy, I will tell others not to buy. These thieving "settlers" have stolen enough not only from Palestinians, but from the Israelis also!
IDIOTIC!
Who do the self-labeled Palestinians think is manufacturing those "West Bank" goods? Who do they think is out of work when there is a building moratorium? Indeed, which side, do you think, has been the biggest looser in the entire conflict since the very first Arab unrest (so called "intifada")? Abba Even's words ring true every day!
If they want to boycott us on that level then we should boycott them back.
territory will get no work or business. very stupid action by arabs who have decided thta part odf israel belongs to them without atreaty to say so !
Ban Palestinian made goods..
.... Why not boycott any and all products made in "Israel" altogether... and all you have to do is import and replace from China, South America and other ME nations except Egypt and Jordan....
For the most part, anyway. Then we proud Israelis ridicule them and gloat about how they incapable of providing for themselves, or of generating commerce, much less run a government.
Is that true that Israel doesn't allow Palestinian goods to be merchandised? I don't like the idea of people making goods in so-called settlements and them being thrown away especially in light of the poverty that exists all over the planet including in Gaza and the West Bank (Judea & Samaria). How about a solution where Palestinians can be hired to work on settlements and sell goods?
palestinians are irrelevant. Israel should stop all current and near future negotiations and just leave it at status quo. When weak, terror sponsoring side is demanding and purposefully sabotaging normal business practices of Israeli businesses then that must be reciprocated 10 folds.. palestinians are not in position to threaten and demand as far as I am concerned the do not belong to those areas anyhow..