Emigration and the Palestinian Diaspora

HCEF 
toll free at 866-871-HCEF (4233)
www.hcef.org


Only Peace Will Stem Emigration
Of Christians from the Holy Land,
Leaders Tell HCEF Conference

    Unless the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is resolved peacefully and soon, emigration of Christians from the land of Jesus will leave very few ‘living stones” in the Holy Land, several Palestinian Christian mayors and other prominent Christian leaders asserted at the Ninth Annual Conference of the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation (HCEF). 

    Over five hundred participants attended HCEF’s gathering at National Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC, and its annual Awards Banquet in Bethesda, Maryland, on October 26-27.

    Conference participants were told that there are now more people in Chile who identify themselves as Palestinian Christians than there are in the Holy Land, and that Detroit is now home to more Christians from Ramallah than live in Ramallah itself. 

    Only about two percent of the population of the Holy Land is Christian today, down from almost a quarter sixty years ago.

        The conference featured presentations by the Christian mayors of Bethlehem, Ramallah and three other Palestinian cities; Ms. Mai Kaileh, the representative of the Palestinian Liberation Organization in Chile; and Rev. Richard Van De Water, a priest of the Latin (Catholic) Patriarchate of Jerusalem. 

    The mayors stressed the dire conditions facing their citizens as a result of the continued Israeli military occupation of Palestinian territories, the Israeli separation wall, the destruction of Palestinian homes and agricultural resources, and the lack of economic opportunities.   

    Under the constitution of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, there are thirteen “traditionally Christian” cities and towns in Palestine, and they must have Christian mayors.  The five mayors who addressed the HCEF conference are four men,  Raji Zeidan, mayor of Beit Jala; Dr. Victor Batarseh, Bethlehem; Hani Naji Hayek, Beit Sahour; and Dr. Yousef Nasser, Bir Zeit; and one woman, Jannet Michael, Ramallah. 
   
    The mayors and other conference speakers stressed that harsh and often unpredictable Israeli restrictions on the movement of people and goods have caused great suffering among the Palestinians.  Palestinians who do not live in Jerusalem may not go there without a special permit, which is almost impossible to obtain; Palestinian agricultural products are commonly delayed at Israeli military checkpoints (there are over 700) until they spoil; the separation wall cuts farmers off from their fields and flocks, and families from their relatives and from their churches. 

    Several conference participants asked the Christian mayors about relations between Christian and Moslem Palestinians; the mayors were unanimous and emphatic in stating that relations between the two communities are good, and that there is no persecution of Christians by Moslems.  Mayor Nasser of Bir Zeit said that two highly publicized killings of Christians by Moslems in recent years arose out of extra-marital affairs, not inter-communal tension.

    Highlights of the presentations mentioned above:

    Ms. Mai Kaileh, the Head of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s Mission to Chile:  Chileans of Palestinian Christian origin, who comprise nearly two and a half percent of the Chilean population, have generally done well in their adopted country.  Many are found in commerce or the professions.  Five are members of the Chilean National Assembly, and sixteen are mayors of Chilean cities.

    Chilean Palestinians maintain ties to the Holy Land and are generally sympathetic to the PLO.  They are strong supporters of humanitarian efforts in the Holy Land.  Several have made investments in Palestine, but some of the projects have failed because of the military occupation there.  Nonetheless, Palestinian Chileans continue to seek investment possibilities in the Holy Land.

    Rev. Richard Van De Water, Latin Patriarchate: Emigration of Christians from Palestine is spurred by intolerable conditions there.  There are about 800,000 refugees in a camp near the traditionally Christian city of Jaffna; most of the camp lies on land owned by Christians.  The camp lacks proper sanitation and other facilities. 

    The economy of the region is being strangled by road closures and travel restrictions; camp residents may not travel to Jerusalem without special permits, which are almost impossible to obtain.  Desperate, many landowners sell their property and emigrate.

    Palestinians who live outside the Holy Land should help those still there, and should encourage them not to sell their land. 

    Americans who wish to support the Christians in the Holy Land should pray for them; should try to design or find “faith-based initiatives” that could gain American government support; and should press policy makers to be even-handed in dealing with the Israeli-Palestinian question.

    Mr. Raji Zeidan, Mayor of Beit Jala:   Beit Jala (the name means “grass and flowers”) is the last Palestinian city where Christians are in the majority.  Sixty-five percent of the city’s 20,000 people are Christian; about 100,000 Christians elsewhere trace their roots to Beit Jala.  The city has five churches and two mosques.

    Beit Jala residents share the hopelessness so common among Palestinians, and increased emigration may well be at hand.   The separation wall, which violates United Nations resolutions and a ruling of the World Court, has taken half of the land around the city and has crippled commerce and social institutions.  The wall and military occupation give rise to violence and disorder: “The occupation is the cause of violence.” 

    The removal of the separation wall would be “the most important step we could take toward peace.”

    Dr. Victor Batarseh, Mayor of Bathlehem:  At the time Israel was created in 1948, about 90% of the population of Bethlehem was Christian; now it is about 30%.  Political and economic instability have led to an unemployment rate of around 60% in Bethlehem, which in past years was a prosperous city. 

    The Israeli authorities have uprooted about 500,000 olive trees and about the same number of fruit trees on Palestinian land, leaving the agricultural sector in shambles.  The agricultural region of Bethlehem is out of production; all of the area’s olive trees have either been cut off by the separation wall or simply uprooted by bulldozers. 

    There is no oppression of Christians by Moslems in the Holy Land. “We live as good brothers and neighbors.  Ours is the best cooperation in the world between communities of these two religions.” 
    The land of Jesus may soon become a museum of Christianity; Christians throughout the world should be concerned and active in the face of that threat.  Christians everywhere should press the Israeli Government to allow freedom of access to religious sites; freedom of movement of people and goods in commerce; and, in particular, the removal of the separation wall.

    Ms. Jannet Michael, Mayor of Ramallah: Ramallah was founded in 1550 as an Orthodox Christian city; today, only about one-third of the residents are Christians. 

    The economic and social conditions which afflict Palestinians in general also prevail in Ramallah.  Our people have been hard hit by road closures and by land seizures.  Thousands of the trees in our area have been destroyed, as has happened elsewhere.  Over 80% of our water resources have been seized by Israel; our impoverished people often have to buy back water which belonged to them, or to the town, in the first place.

    Mr. Hani Naji Hayek, Mayor of Beit Sahour:  My city, close to Bethlehem, is the place of the Shepherds’ Field, where the news of Jesus’ birth was first announced.  Upon hearing that news, shepherds went to Bethlehem and visited the newborn child; sadly, the separation wall would prevent them from doing that today. 

    Indeed, the separation wall prevents our people and our products from getting to Jerusalem, which has caused much unemployment and despair.  The separation wall “is a wall of hatred.” 

    The economy of our city, like that of Bethlehem, has long depended on tourism and pilgrimages.  Today, most such visitors come with Israeli guides, who take them to Jesus birthplace, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, and then rush them out of town.  The visitors have no real contact with other sites of interest, like Beit Sahour, and have no contact with local Christians or businesses. 

    We would love to welcome Christian pilgrims and tourists.  We urge such visitors to insist on arrangements which will allow for visits with local institutions and with the “living stones of the Christian foundation,” the Palestinian Christians.