After razing 20, Gaza govt to build public housing
Published yesterday (updated) 07/06/2010 09:19
www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=290013

Gaza - Ma'an - Following the demolition of 20 homes allegedly built
illegally on public land in Gaza, the de facto government announced it would
build housing units on land allocated for public use Sunday, in a bid to
curb what officials describe as the illegal trade of public land.

De facto Planning Minister Muhammad Awad called on Gaza residents to reject
all offers of land for sale put before them by illegal land traders, a
statement from the Gaza Ministry of Planning read.

The announcement follows government claims that some 20 homes demolished in
the southern Gaza Strip in May were illegally built on public lands. The
demolition of the homes caused an outcry, and resulted in the comparison of
the de facto government to Israel, in its policies of home evictions and
demolitions targeting Palestinian citizens of Israel, and Jerusalem
residents.

Awad said the de facto government was conducting a self-evaluation of its
performance to promote efficiency, productivity and professionalism, the
statement added, saying the evaluation would be carried out in two stages by
two different independent monitoring groups.

Last week, the the Gaza government's Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh gave
directives to his interior minister to detain all residents found illegally
selling public lands in Gaza.

Awad said at the time "a portion of public land in Gaza is being traded
through illegal contacts from one citizen to another in an endless circle,"
a statement read, estimating that 800 dunums of public land are being
unlawfully traded.

As a result, Awad said the price of one dunum (1,000 square meters) rose to
15,000 US dollars in areas where public land trading is prevalent, which
used to be worth 2,000 US dollars.

"Many of the perpetrators possess private lands or apartments, while some
are destitute and poor ... some even traded vital facilities near the
railroad, Gaza port, and main roads. The government's top priority is to
stop the situation from snowballing," Awad wrote.

The Gaza government official added that it allocated 3,414 dunums of land
for housing projects to be undertaken by UNRWA and other organizations.