Description

Forwarded message ----------
From: Maisa
Dear

i hope this E-Mail finds you well.

I write to you on behalf of my company - MADICO, a palestinian family owned business specialized in the production of Medjoul Dates and located in the occupied Palestinian territories, in Jericho. The reason i write is to ask for your support - or that of someone who might be able to help on the following issue. The Israeli authorities have issued our company with a warning, yesterday morning, to demolish the water well from which we water all of our Palm trees. This decision means destroying 4000 Date Palm trees, 35 jobs and 35 Palestinian families.

This although the well is in area A. Also, we started all the required procedures weeks ago and on time, in order to renew the already existing liscence from both the israeli and the palestinian authorities.

The Israeli authorities have given us 3 days, starting yesterday, to submit all the necessay documents to stop the destruction of the well, but since the three days happen to be a thursday, friday (palestinian weekend) and a saturday (palestinian and israeli weekend), we find it very difficult to reach anyone or do anything about it. This means that the well might be destroyed on sunday morning.

Today, we faxed the objection letter along with the other needed documents to the responsible authorities, as demanded in their warning.

The whole story is as follows:

We have an old water well from 1961 that is legally permitted through the jordanian authority.

In 2007, we tried to renew the liscence to reactivate the well because we wanted to cultivate our land and plant it with Medjoul Date Palms but the Israeli army stopped us saying it is a C area and that we need a permission. After some research and information digging we figured out that, according to official maps, the area is A and not C (we have documents to prove that).

We stopped and applied for the permission from both the Israeli and the Palestinian Authorities .

We got the Palestinian approval while the Israelis said it is not their responsibility, according to what my lawyer at that time said.

We planted the Dates in 2007 and 2008 and irrigated them from the well, no one bothered or said anything.

On the 29th of August 2008, the Israelis gave us another warning. We sent them another letter through a new lawyer ,who informed us that everything is OK .

Again, until 05 May 2011, No one disturbed or said aything. Until on that day, we got a new warning from the Israeli authorities saying that we need a permission for the well ,the Irrigation Computer Shelter and the Housing place of the workers at the farm. Also, that we need to stop using the well, otherwise they will remove everything at our cost.

Now, we have 4000 Date palm trees and we have to buy water so as not to loose our trees, although the well is there. This costs us 7 times more than using the existing well and it is not a secured water source.

We applied several times to both the israeli civil administration and the Palestinian water authority but we are still waiting for their final answer.

All warnings and documents as well as the decision of the <> or what they called Civil organisation Authority are with us and can be sent to you upon request.

Your help is highly appreciated.

Thank you for your efforts.

Best Regards,
Maisa Almanasreh

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Maisa Almanasreh

Operations Manager I MADICO

Phone: + 972 (0) 597093030
E-Mail: maisa.almanasreh@gmail.com
www.madico.ps