The village has recently added a second floor to the health clinic. Because the village is situated in what Israel refers to as Area C
(complete Israeli control), the Palestinians are not allowed to have
any authority, police protection, etc. Israel is supposed to provide
this. This means that every house, outdoor toilet, and building must
have Israeli permits – or else it faces demolitions.
None of the homes or structures in the 1000 year old village of At-Tuwani has Israeli permits. For instance, the mayor of Tuwani’s home was demolished. The Israeli military has come into the village and demolished outdoor toilets installed by international NGO’s because they require Palestinians to have permits to build on their own land here. Some years back, the military demolished the village’s place of worship. The At-Tuwani elementry school has orders to be demolished.
The village of Tuwani and nearby villages need a health clinic in At-Tuwani because the military installed a concrete barrier to block the main Palestinian road to the city of Yatta, where most people go for their needs.
There is a gap in the barrier big enough for donkey, tractor, or car entry, and the military blocks it off from time to time with massive cement cubes of concrete.
When the health clinic was first being built, the military would often come and harrass the workers, and make them stop. Finally when the first floor was finished, the Israeli authorities said Okay. You can have your clinic, but you must stop building the second floor or we’ll demolish it.
So slowly, piece by piece, the villagers have quietly been adding on to the second floor over time. Our team recently documented the finishing touches to the roof and the pouring of concrete for it’s top surface. Inshallah (God willing), it will remain.
The mayor of Tuwani made connections with an Italian governmental organization that would like to help fund the building of two additional classrooms to the Tuwani school building. I helped write the proposal for it, and we hope to see this happen.
Right now the school has five classrooms, covering grade level 1-6 for children in Tuwani and five neighboring villages.
The addition of two new classrooms would be helpful in that the school can now provide 7th and 8th grade level curriculum to the students.
It means children can cut down travel to Yatta for the purpose of 7-8th grade studies. Importantly, it will affect the education of girl. Traditionally, girls in this area stop going to school after grade six. If the classrooms are built, they will have a chance to further their education.
