Swiss Association Friends of Tent of Nations
Mr. Volker Schwerdtel, Alpenstr. 20, 3084 Wabern
SWITZERLAND
His Excellency
President Mahmoud Abbas
Ramallah, PALESTINE
March 2021
Your Excellency
We are writing to you today to express our deep concern about the Palestinian Christian Nassar family and their Tent of Nation’s Farm located south west of Bethlehem, next to the village of Nahalin. We have known this family for more than 20 years, we planted olive and other trees on their property, and we established an association to help this family to defend their rights to this land. This family and their Tent of Nations farm became a symbol of the Palestinian nonviolent resistance that is not allowed to disappear under any circumstances. We are very much aware of their struggle to protect their land from the danger of confiscation by the Israeli occupation for the last 30 years.
The family bought the land about one hundred years ago, and they possess all ownership deeds and documents during the time of the British Mandate in the early 1920’s. Since 1991, when the Israeli Authorities declared the whole area “state land”, the family has been in a legal struggle, up to today.
Since 1991, the family has been harassed by the military authority and Israeli settlers. Hundreds of fruit, grapes and olive trees had been uprooted in the 1990’s but had been replaced by the many international volunteers who planted new trees as a sign of solidarity and hope. Again, in 2014, the Israeli military uprooted hundreds of fruit trees on the Nassar’s land claiming that those trees were planted on what is called “State Land”. Many journalists were able to publish this story in different newspapers in Europe. Many people in Switzerland sent letters of protests to the Israeli military authority, the foreign ministry and the Israeli embassies requesting clarification why those trees were uprooted. This was an important action from the international community in support of the Palestinian cause in general and the Nassar family in specific.
The Nassar family has always been in good relations and with mutual respect with the community in Nahalin to whom they belong. However, last summer, the Nassar family was confronted with a family from Nahalin, claiming ownership to part of their land. This is a very new story that never happened in the last 100 years of owning the land by the Nassar family. They appealed to the court and are waiting for an outcome there. Something very unfortunate has been happening since then: the Nassar family and their land has been attacked several times by a Palestinian family from the village, who started to cultivate some fields, built a fence, broke into their house and destroyed parts of it, vandalized the property and threatened members of the family. The Nassar family reported the attacks to both the police and the governor of Bethlehem, but the attacks continue until this day. While the family is struggling against the threat of confiscation from the Israelis Authorities, they are being attacked by their Palestinian brothers.
The road that they have taken is difficult; and it is amazing to see how they are able to transform the negatives into positives and live with their Christian principles. Their way is unique, and their nonviolent way of resistance is respected and supported by many churches and people in Switzerland. They and their Tent of Nations are a strong testimony of a peaceful resistance to achieve justice.
We are deeply concerned about the continuous attack that is taking place now from this Palestinian family from Nahalin. We worry about the safety and security of the Nassar family and their property. We therefore kindly ask you to intervene personally in this issue to stop the attacks on the family and to bring justice to them.
Yours, faithfully
Volker Schwerdtel, President of the Association “Friends of Tent of Nations”
Tent of Nations is supported by many individuals and also by representatives of other important Swiss collectives and associations.
Bänz Müller, Mayor of the Municipality of Wohlen, Bern
Judith Pörksen, President of the Synod Council of the Reformed Church of Bern
Ueli Burkhalter, Member of the Synod Council of the Reformed Church of Bern
Martin Häsler, President of the Church Council of the Reformed Parish of Wohlen, Bern (This parish stays in partnership with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Beit Jala.)