Abu Basma Regional Council
Encyclopedia
Abu Basma Regional Council is a regional council
covering several Bedouin
villages in the northwestern Negev
desert of Israel
.
The council was formed as a result of Government
Resolution 881 of 29 September 2003, known as the "Abu Basma Plan", which stated the need to establish seven new Bedouin settlements in the Negev. The council was established by the Interior Ministry
on 28 January 2004. At the time, the regional council had a population of approximately 30,000 Bedouins and a total land area of 34,000 dunam
s, making it the most populous regional council in the South District
but the smallest in jurisdiction. The council also has the highest rate of unemployment in Israel.
The head of the council is Amram Qalaji.
s (of which 21 are based in temporary accommodation) and three high school
s. Due to the lack of provision of sufficient high school education facilities, students are sent to schools in surrounding towns such as Kuseife
and Shaqib al-Salam
, and 16% of children drop out of the schooling system at the end of elementary school.
into urban ghettos by limiting their boundaries to the area of inhabitation and zoning most Bedouin grazing grounds; this type of de jure recognition has not entailed the introduction of business districts or de facto recognition through equitable provision of education, health, transportation and municipal waste services services long denied to, and demanded, by the Bedouin community. The RCUV also worries that, as the council covers the region with the largest population but the least jurisdiction, the Abu Basma council's current delimitations will strangle future village development necessary to accommodate population growth. The RCUV instead recommends the recognition of all unrecognized villages and their land claims, since "the entire land under dispute is no more than 2% of the Negev lands. The Bedouins are more than 25% of the Negev population."
Bedouins were denied the right to hold their first local council election after the Israeli parliament passed a law at the last minute to cancel the scheduled December 2009 ballot. The new law gave the government the power to postpone elections to the Abu Basma regional council until the interior ministry deems the local Bedouin ready to run their own affairs. Taleb a-Sana, a Bedouin member of Israel’s Knesset, wrote to the speaker warning that “it is not possible to have democracy without elections”.
Regional council (Israel)
Regional councils are one of the three types of local government entities found in Israel, with the other two being cities and local councils. As of 2003, there were 53 regional councils in Israel, usually responsible for governing a number of settlements spread across rural areas...
covering several Bedouin
Negev Bedouins
The Negev Bedouin are traditionally pastoral semi-nomadic Arab tribes indigenous to the Negev region in Israel, who hold close ties to the Bedouin of the Sinai Peninsula. The move away from their traditional lifestyle in modern times has led to sedentarization.Estimated to number some 160,000,...
villages in the northwestern Negev
Negev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
desert of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
.
The council was formed as a result of Government
Cabinet of Israel
The Cabinet of Israel is a formal body composed of government officials called ministers, chosen and led by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister must appoint members based on the distribution of votes to political parties during legislative elections, and its composition must be approved by a...
Resolution 881 of 29 September 2003, known as the "Abu Basma Plan", which stated the need to establish seven new Bedouin settlements in the Negev. The council was established by the Interior Ministry
Israeli Ministry of Interior
The Ministry of Interior in the State of Israel is one of Government offices that is responsible for local rule, citizenship and residency, identity cards , and student and entry visas.- Responsibility fields :...
on 28 January 2004. At the time, the regional council had a population of approximately 30,000 Bedouins and a total land area of 34,000 dunam
Dunam
A dunam or dönüm, dunum, donum, dynym, dulum was a non-SI unit of land area used in the Ottoman Empire and representing the amount of land that can be plowed in a day; its value varied from 900–2500 m²...
s, making it the most populous regional council in the South District
South District (Israel)
The Southern District is one of Israel's six administrative districts, and is the largest in terms of land area as well as the most sparsely populated. It covers most of the Negev desert, as well as the Arabah valley. The population of the Southern District is 1,002,400. It is 86% Jewish and 14%...
but the smallest in jurisdiction. The council also has the highest rate of unemployment in Israel.
The head of the council is Amram Qalaji.
Education
The regional council runs 24 elementary schoolElementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s (of which 21 are based in temporary accommodation) and three high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
s. Due to the lack of provision of sufficient high school education facilities, students are sent to schools in surrounding towns such as Kuseife
Kuseife
Kuseife is a Bedouin town in the Southern District of Israel.According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , the population of Kuseife was 10,300 in December 2006...
and Shaqib al-Salam
Shaqib al-Salam
Shaqib al-Salam or Segev Shalom is a Bedouin town and a local council in the South District of Israel, southeast of Beersheba.According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , the population of Shaqib was 6,500 in December 2006...
, and 16% of children drop out of the schooling system at the end of elementary school.
Criticism
There is considerable controversy within the Bedouin community regarding the establishment of this council. The Regional Council of Unrecognized Villages (RCUV) argues that while the creation of the Abu Basma Regional Council involves the recognition of villages that were previously under threat of demolition, it has involved the renunciation of considerable swathes of village land claims in exchange. The RCUV is concerned that the creation of Abu Basma sets a precedent for the transformation of unrecognized villagesUnrecognized villages
The term Unrecognized Bedouin villages in Israel refers to Arab villages in the Negev and the Galilee which the Israeli government does not recognize as legal settlements. Approximately half of Bedouin citizens of Israel live in 39-45 such villages...
into urban ghettos by limiting their boundaries to the area of inhabitation and zoning most Bedouin grazing grounds; this type of de jure recognition has not entailed the introduction of business districts or de facto recognition through equitable provision of education, health, transportation and municipal waste services services long denied to, and demanded, by the Bedouin community. The RCUV also worries that, as the council covers the region with the largest population but the least jurisdiction, the Abu Basma council's current delimitations will strangle future village development necessary to accommodate population growth. The RCUV instead recommends the recognition of all unrecognized villages and their land claims, since "the entire land under dispute is no more than 2% of the Negev lands. The Bedouins are more than 25% of the Negev population."
Bedouins were denied the right to hold their first local council election after the Israeli parliament passed a law at the last minute to cancel the scheduled December 2009 ballot. The new law gave the government the power to postpone elections to the Abu Basma regional council until the interior ministry deems the local Bedouin ready to run their own affairs. Taleb a-Sana, a Bedouin member of Israel’s Knesset, wrote to the speaker warning that “it is not possible to have democracy without elections”.
List of communities
Recognised
|
Unrecognised
|