boundary. It is worth mentioning that, despite the aim to pursue this
proportion, the plan explicitly recognizes the most probable demographic
ratio of 60:40 between Jewish-Israelis and Palestinians respectively in 2020.122
According to the Authority for Developing Jerusalem Law of 1988,
non-Israeli citizens are not permitted to serve as council members
or as members of the management of the Authority for Developing
Jerusalem, immediately excluding Palestinian residents of Jerusalem
from the planning process of the city.
In October 2010, the Israeli cabinet unanimously approved a draft law to
Judaize the city of Jerusalem.123 The law is described in Master Plan 2030
which grants financial and national priority status to the development of
Jerusalem. Its main goal is to encourage young Jewish-Israelis to settle in
Jerusalem by affording housing and tax benefits as well as allocating budgets
for the construction of new colonies. While the Plan treats the Eastern part
of Jerusalem as an empty space and entirely available for use by colonizers, it
restricts land available for Palestinian development by expanding mandatory
zoning and urban planning guidelines.124
The Master Plans do not suggest a sufficient program for the development
of East Jerusalem but, instead, imply an intensification of the existing
Palestinian neighborhoods: they present the possibility of additional housing
units for Palestinians by means of densification of existing neighborhoods
and by re-zoning certain areas for expanded residential construction. Further
densification, however, only applies to homes built with a building permit
in Palestinian neighborhoods and the additional construction is limited
to two storages.125 Moreover, many of the expansion areas for Palestinian
homes are already built-up with unauthorized construction. At the moment,
an estimated 33% of all Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem lack building
permits.126
Acquiring a building permit entails proving ownership, filling an application
form and receiving approval of the application. Considering the difficulties
associated with procuring a permit, the risks to Palestinian housing rights in
122 Ibid.
123 The Civic Coalition for Defending Palestinian Rights in Jerusalem, Aggressive Urbanism, 3.
124 BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights, Israeli Land Grab and Forced
Population Transfer of Palestinians, A Handbook for Vulnerable Individuals and Communities, 108.
125 OCHA, Special Focus: East Jerusalem Key Humanitarian Concerns, 33.
126 ECCP, EU Obligations and Duty to End Israeli Policies of Forced Transfer, Colonialism and Apartheid in
Occupied East Jerusalem, 14.
41
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents