CPTnet
July 7, 1998
Hebron: TRAVELLING TENT WORKS AGAINST HOME DEMOLITIONS
by KR Kamphoefner

With the critical message "Thou shall not destroy homes, lives, and peace,"
the Coalition Against House Demolitions, comprised of Palestinian, Israeli and
international organizations, will travel with a tent to six different towns in
the West Bank and East Jerusalem this week. The tent will contain a photo
exhibit and video presentations of house demolitions.

Families whose homes have been destroyed or who have home demolition orders
are invited to come and tell their stories. The public is welcome to meet
with these Palestinian families. Christian Peacemaker Team- Hebron is
providing
photographs and video footage of home demolitions and helping staff the tent.

The tent opens at 5 pm Thursday, July 9, with a "Gathering
for Peace," a program of Palestinian, Israeli and international
speakers and music. The tent will be set up near the Israeli Civil
Administration in Beit El. This event launches a special two-week campaign to
gather and disseminate information on planned home demolitions in the West
Bank and East Jerusalem.

The tent will travel to sites in the West Bank that have been
especially hard hit by home demolitions. The tent's goal is to
serve as a symbol of solidarity and support for the local population. In the
course of the tent's two weeks of travel, materials will be collected --
pictures, films, stories, children's art work and other symbolic responses to
home demolitions.

The Coalition plans to organize an art exhibit and film documentary from
materials gathered. The resulting exhibit will travel throughout Israel, the
US and other nations to build an international effort against home
demolitions. US supporters of CPT's Campaign for Secure Dwellings will be
able to host the exhibit and use its materials in their programs later in the
year.

The towns and cities when on the tent's
tour are as follows:
July 9-10 Beit El/ Ramallah
July 11-12 Bethlehem
July 13-14 Hebron
July 15-16 Faroush Betinjan
July 17-18 Sulfeet
On July 20, the tent's itinerary will conclude with a demonstration in
Jerusalem.

In the past ten years the "illegal" houses of some 1800
Palestinian families in Jerusalem and the West Bank have been
destroyed, leaving as many as 15,000 Palestinians homeless. An identical
number of demolition orders exist today, and in the past few weeks demolitions
have escalated. About 30 homes were bulldozed during the week of June 21
alone. At the same time, Israel has constructed 159 settlements on the West
Bank with an estimated capacity of 150,000, and has extended plans to build
tens of thousands of new Jewish housing units on confiscated Palestinian
lands.

According to the Israeli Committee Against Home Demolitions, "the cumulative
effect of these measures is to reduce the Palestinian presence in the West
Bank to that of besieged Bantustans and in Jerusalem, to that of densely-
packed ghettos."

Christian Peacemaker Teams-Hebron participates with Palestinian and Israeli
organizations in the international Coalition Against House Demolitions.