Following Adalah's Demand, ILA Agrees to Cancel Discriminatory Criteria for Lease of Agricultural Land to Arab Bedouin in the Naqab

28/11/2004

On 27 September 2004, Adalah sent a letter to the Israel Lands Administration (ILA) demanding the cancellation of a regulation, arguing that it sets forth discriminatory conditions for Arab Bedouin citizens of Israel in the short-term leasing of agricultural land in the Naqab (Negev) in the south of Israel. Adalah asked the ILA to ensure that the process by which it leases land serves both Palestinian and Jewish citizens of Israel in the Naqab equally.

Under Israeli law, the ILA is charged with managing "Israel's lands". Since the establishment of the state in 1948, large tracts of Arab-owned land have been confiscated or otherwise appropriated under law. These laws and policies have brought about state control of over 93% of the land in Israel.

Two regulations promulgated by the ILA in February 2000 govern the leasing of agricultural land in the Naqab. Regulation No. 21.01, "Short-Term Lease of Agricultural Land" details the preconditions for Jewish applicants, whilst Regulation No. 21.02, "Short-Term Lease of Agricultural Land for the Bedouin in the Naqab" stipulates the preconditions for Arab Bedouin applicants.

The regulation that applies to Arab Bedouin applicants stipulates that: (i) the applicant must permanently reside in the Negev; (ii) the applicant may not own, or use and claim ownership of over 50 dunams of land; (iii) the applicant may not apply to lease more than 150 dunams of land; (iv) the applicant must be over 50 years of age; (v) the applicant must be in the process of applying to a "preferable area of settlement"; (vi) the applicant must have received the approval of the Committee for Resolving Land Registration in the Northern Naqab; and (vii) the applicant must have received the written and detailed recommendation of a governmental ministry for his/her application. None of these preconditions is required of Jewish applicants.

In her letter to the ILA, Adalah Attorney Suhad Bishara argued that these preconditions are illogical, and that they restrict the rights of Arab Bedouin in the Naqab to lease land for agricultural use, and thus impede their ability to work in agriculture, purely on the basis of their national belonging. Adalah contended that these preconditions are irrelevant to the subject of leasing land, and cited Supreme Court decisions emphasizing the principle of equality and the duty of all governmental bodies to adhere to it. Finally, Adalah argued that the entire procedure of land allocation as implemented by the ILA violates the principle of equal distribution of land since it greatly restricts the access of Arab Bedouin inhabitants of the Naqab to agricultural land.

In its reply of 17 November 2004, the ILA announced that, having examined the issues raised by Adalah, it believes that the regulations governing the short-term lease of agricultural land should be amended, and that it is willing to implement the required changes. In the new regulations, it will be clear that all Israeli citizens are able to lease land, the ILA wrote. The ILA also stated that it will ensure that a portion of the land is reserved for use by the Arab Bedouin, and that it intends to draw up new criteria for the leasing of agricultural land.

On the following day, Adalah responded to the ILA, asking for more information on the timescale for the amendment of the current regulations. Adalah emphasized that, as a result of the discrimination faced by the Arab Bedouin in the Naqab, changes to these regulations should be made immediately.