We arrived at the
Agricultural Gate about 6:50 AM there were several farms waiting with
their donkeys. The gate is supposed to open at 8:00AM, but it can be
opened any time after 6:30AM. When it is opened the occupying
soldiers process the farmers that are there then close gate and
leave. One woman had arrived at 6 AM and got frustrated and left
before they opened the gate.
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| A lonely farmer heads from the old gate to the new gate in the early morning |
This gate, which is
only for tractors and donkeys, is connected to the Ephraim check
point. The Farun Ag Gate was closed 1 Dec 2015. With that gate it
was 15 meters to one farmer's fields, now it is 3 kilometers. The
apartheid wall cut Farun farmers off from 4000 dunnum of their
farms.
 |
| Farmers gather in the early morning waiting for the gate to be opened |
About 7:15AM four
soldiers arrived to unlock the gate. At 7:28, after 2 people and one
donkey had been processed the soldiers stopped the next person and
donkey. They spent ½ hour on the radio and consulting among
themselves before letting the second donkey through. They rejected
one donkey and driver and about 6 workers were rejected (they may
have been sent through the Ephraim gate). Five donkeys and 6 people
were allowed to go to work. Some days the soldiers don't even come.
7:36 the occupying
soldiers locked the gate, checked it for security and walked back to
the base.
The workers return
to the gate in the afternoon. The gates is supposed to be opened to
let them back through the wall at 4PM
 |
| A donkey waiting at the gate |
Curiously closing the Ag Gate and making the farmers go much farther to get to their fields also takes more time for the soldiers. The gate is now much farther from the base suggesting that the only reason for doing it is ti harass the farmers.
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