Beware of mayors with 'new policies'

For six years, the skyline of the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan has been marred by a high-rise adorned with an Israeli flag running the length of its entire seven stories. It was built without a permit in 2004 by the Ateret Cohanim association, and an evacuation-and-seal order against it has been awaiting implementation for the past three years.

Called Beit Yehonatan (Jonathan's House), after Jonathan Pollard, who's now serving a life sentence in the United States for spying for Israel, the building stands out like a sore thumb against the neighborhood's Palestinian-owned houses, which, by planning regulations, cannot be more than two stories high. This structure stands out in blunt defiance not only of the Palestinian area whose heart it occupies, but also of the rule of law, which is apparently unable to impose itself on the building's backers who, it turns out, include restless politicians who employ dubious methods to prevent the court order from being executed.

Attorney Yossi Havilio, legal advisor to the Jerusalem Municipality, has testified in writing more than once about having come under serious pressure from past and present Knesset members and senior city hall officials, who demanded that he "kasher" Beit Yehonatan. The attorney general has also severely criticized the fact that political elements have intervened in favor of legalizing the building. Presently, however, it continues to stand tall and is occupied by settlers belonging to a much larger group of about 80 Jewish families, who have moved to Silwan in an attempt to "Judaize" the area of the so-called holy basin encompassing the Old City.

For Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, this is a very embarrassing state of affairs. The mayor, who has vowed to uphold the rule of law, in the name of which he has demolished dozens of "illegal" Palestinian buildings in the city, was seeking an honorable way out of this situation - trying to avoid the evacuation of Beit Yehonatan, on the one hand, while maintaining a pretense of legality and equality, on the other.

Eventually, a creative solution was found: The municipality came up with "a new planning policy" regarding East Jerusalem, which is supposed to provide, according to Barkat, "a very significant increase in the number of floors and construction percentages allowed." It is no accident that the city chose the region of Beit Yehonatan as a "pilot" for this new policy.

Nevertheless, a meticulous examination of the East Jerusalem construction planning situation reveals that while the "new policy" will probably save the existing Beit Yehonatan, it is almost totally inapplicable when it comes to proposals for new construction submitted by Palestinian residents there. This is due to the unattainable conditions they will need to meet before receiving approval from the authorities. For example, applicants must prove ownership of the plot they wish to build on, something that's nearly impossible due to the absence of an orderly land registration system in this part of the city. They also have to meet impossible parking standards.

Furthermore, construction permits are conditional on the existence of a proper sewerage system in East Jerusalem, which to date lacks 70 kilometers of main sewage pipes. Applicants need to show that standard access roads to the site exist, although the State of Israel has not paved a single new road within the city's Arab neighborhoods since 1967. These types of infrastructure are basic services provided elsewhere in Israel, including in Jewish Jerusalem, by the authorities as a matter of course - but not in East Jerusalem, where the responsibility for providing them has devolved onto the shoulders of the residents.

In light of this reality, Barkat's statements are mere lip service that is meant to legalize Beit Yehonatan retroactively, without offering a real planning solution to the chaotic situation that has prevailed in East Jerusalem for more than four decades.

Yakir Segev, who holds the portfolio for East Jerusalem in the municipality, admitted, in a recent moment of candor, that the State of Israel has effectively waived its sovereignty over Jerusalem neighborhoods that fall on the eastern side of the security wall. In truth, the city might as well admit that it is renouncing its responsibilities for ALL of its Palestinian residents, although they account for more than one-third of its population.

It is important to stress that these are not merely bureaucratic technicalities. In Silwan, just like in Sheikh Jarrah, legal and municipal regulations are used to promote an extreme political agenda, which aims to dictate a new geopolitical reality in the area. This bluntly exceeds Barkat's mandate as a mayor, even of the "eternally united capital of Israel."

Orly Noy is the spokeswoman of the Jerusalem-based advocacy group Ir Amim.