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EU Settlement Ban Casts Shadow over Palestinian Industry in West Bank

(Ha'aretz) Asher Schechter - Thousands of workers - half Israelis and half Palestinians - work in dozens of factories in Barkan Industrial Park in the West Bank. With its 120 industrial plants, Barkan is one of 14 industrial zones operating in the West Bank and employing nearly 20,000 people, half of them Palestinians. But hovering in the air are the EU's new guidelines that limit cooperation with the settlements. Yehuda Cohen, the CEO of Lipski, a maker of sanitation and plumbing products, notes: "The average monthly salary in the Palestinian Authority is between NIS 1,500 and 2,000. Here our employees begin with a minimum salary and can earn up to NIS 9,000 a month, more than three times the average salary in the PA. They work shoulder to shoulder with Israelis, so this is a chance for Israelis and Palestinians to work together, to talk to one another, to trust one another." "Do they [the EU] understand how many Palestinians will lose their jobs if we leave?" "They [the EU] want peace? So do I. But why should the livelihood of thousands of people be impaired along the way? Unfortunately, people in Europe don't understand the ramifications of their declaration: 'We won't buy products from the settlements.'"
2013-08-13 00:00:00
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