The following report was submitted by France Mkhatshwa, an SACC-trained Ecumenical Accompanier who is based in Jerusalem.

It has been almost a month now since the Hanoun and Ghwaai families were evicted from their homes. They have both refused to leave their property and instead have decided to live in the open space next to their homes. The olive tree is their home now. In Israel-Palestine, the olive tree is very important. It is a source of life. I am told it can grow older than 1000 years old as its roots grow deeper and deeper into the soil. It somehow gives life to the people of the land with its fruit that it produces every year. It is a very common tree here and is well loved. I see these families as rooted as an olive tree.

The families were evicted from their homes for not paying rent to the Ateret Cohanim Settler organisation in Sheikh Jarrah, East Jerusalem. Not only would the families not pay rent to stay in their own homes for reasons of principle, but they also believed that paying this rent would give away the right to their homes to the settlers. It seems the court has sided with the occupiers as is so often the case in this part of the world.

So, it is under this tree were the Hanoun family lives for now. They have the hope that one-day things will change for the better. I think it must be strange to live under a tree facing what used to be your own home, watching daily as other people go in and out of your home that you now no longer have access to. Their children can only look at what they thought was home from a distance. On one occasion they went to the gate and were shouting, "Open, open; let us in". They say this was one of the hardest moments in their life. The question that I often ask myself is how long the situation will remain this way. The children even prepare their school homework and study underneath the tree. In fact, everything that is done in a home, they do it under the tree.

How do they survive?

This is one of the hardest questions. Even though they live under the tree they also have needs. Fortunately, it has not been raining in the past month and it is summer so it has been possible for them to live under a tree. They depend on neighbours for food. The man of the family is not working at present. They also get water from people. Financially, I can say they are depended on others. As a Christian I believe they are under God's mercy. It pains my heart to witness this kind of situation. It makes me realise how cruel humans can be at times but still we have to give hope and show solidarity with the affected and distressed people. We cannot do much but at least be there for them in times of need.

How long is the situation going to remain like this?

Issues of human rights must be taken into consideration. How do you expect a man to live on the street with his family? This question has an unknown answer; it all depends on the authorities, and their faith is in the hands of the law. All that we can do is hope and pray for the solution to this situation to present itself. We hope that honesty will prevail. It is very important that we show solidarity with the affected families in these trying times. It is of outmost importance to visit the families.

The other issue at stake is the injustice and bias shown by the court in dealing with these issues. They have to wait long days without the ruling of the court. This somehow frustrates those affected. They feel that it is purposely done, so that they may lose interest and fight no more. It seems to be a tactic used by the Israelis to take the steam out of them.

What I find interesting is the support given by local organisations through demonstrations. Already I have attended three of the demos. The last one was very interesting, despite the suffering of the Palestinian people, dancing and singing became part of the demonstration. This is one of the ways of showing solidarity with the families. It also creates or shows the feelings of people concerning this issue. In times of joy and suffering, dancing and singing play a pivotal role. It somehow brings hope to the hopeless situation.

I am at times reminded of the South African politics. During apartheid we experienced the same problems, we never thought it was going to come to an end, but it did. This is the hope I have for the Palestinians, it may be dark now but there is light at the end of the tunnel. I was also reminded of the slogans we sang. Singing became part of our culture. It made us feel strong and united. Peaceful demonstrations played a major role in our situation; I believe they can do so even here. Demonstrations can be organised even in other countries where people are in solidarity with the Palestinians. Let us try by all means to make our different governments act on this issue.

In conclusion, the court must play its role fairly. That can be no more postponements of cases in such situations. It is very hard for the families; they need closure to this issue. Let us put these people in our prayers so that justice is done to them and for them. Let humanity be a way of life for all people in the Holy Land. Let us live as brothers and sisters and share all the blessings given to us.

France Mkhatshwa works for South African Council of Churches as an Ecumenical Accompanier serving on the World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). The views contained in this article are personal and do not necessarily reflect those of EAPPI, the South African Council of Churches or the WCC. If you would like to publish the information contained here, or place it on a website, please first contact luke@sacc.org.za or the EAPPI Communications & Advocacy Officer (eappi-co@jrol.com) for permission.

The Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI) was launched in August 2002. Ecumenical accompaniers monitor and report violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, support acts of non-violent resistance alongside local Christian and Muslim Palestinians and Israeli peace activists, offer protection through non-violent presence, engage in public policy advocacy, and stand in solidarity with the churches and all those struggling against the occupation. The programme is coordinated by the World Council of Churches.

The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of churches, now 342, in more than 120 countries in all continents from virtually all Christian traditions. The Roman Catholic Church is not a member church but works co-operatively with the WCC. The highest governing body is the assembly, which meets approximately every seven years. The WCC was formally inaugurated in 1948 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Its staff is headed by General Secretary Samuel Kobia from the Methodist Church in Kenya.

For more information contact the WCC Media Relations Office
Tel: (+41 22) 791 64 21 / 61 53
E-mail:media@wcc-coe.org