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Quarterly Newsletter
September 2002
Inside this edition:
As the closure of the Bethlehem District continues and arbitrary curfew orders, imposed by the Israeli army, hamper our rehabilitation projects, we have managed to complete our rehabilitation projects and initiate new ones. We will also be able to kick off one of our community awareness campaigns at the beginning of the school year. At the regional level, we are working on two new projects that will contribute on both a practical and conceptual level to urban heritage management and policy, and anchor Bethlehem in the Mediterranean network of cultural cities.
The issue of awareness is fundamental to our approach to conservation. We believe that people's deep understanding of the importance of their heritage as a cultural and economic asset is required if they are to respect it, to contribute effectively to its conservation, and participate in its development as a tourism resource. However, the difficulty of passing on the heritage message at a time when people are defenceless against the tribulations of occupation and their efforts at daily survival are constantly put to test could be daunting. Challenging as this approach always is, we believe that it is of critical importance to proceed with it immediately. The gratuitous destruction of our cities in the last months has proved how vulnerable our heritage is in the face of contemporary war machinery and Israel's stubborn intent to erase it. Yet we cannot be accessories to this destruction through negligent behaviour, a rising disrespect for public spaces and, in some cases, attitudes that are damaging to civil society. We should meet up to the challenge of this test and prove to ourselves that we can be steadfast, not only in the face of economic hardship, but in preserving our self-assigned role as a community.
We also have to continue with the process of heritage development and still maintain our regional and international links. Bethlehem, like the rest of Palestine, has a powerful cultural tradition and cannot afford to lose its status as a viable tourism destination for the time when tourists will start flocking back to our shores. The two projects with which we are engaged with partner cities in the Mediterranean will help us continue on the course of development and benefit from a web of interconnections across the region.
Since April 2002, three projects have been completed: the Mar Aphram Children's Library, the Entrance to Hosh Al-Syrian, and the Beit Jala Old Core - Phase II. For all three projects, successful in terms of conservation and rehabilitation, care was given to the last details, including the plantations that would ornament the locations. As a result of the Israeli incursion, the library, like many buildings in Bethlehem, sustained damages that we are in the process of restoring.
Anatra Quarter:
Located south of the Church of Nativity and in close proximity to Manger Square, the Anatra quarter, one of the last historical quarters needing rehabilitation, is a prototype of the hosh clusters, housing complexes of small-scale harmonious buildings of similar colour and texture with residential, commercial and institutional functions. These clusters of irregular masses and of varying heights convey the charm and atmosphere of vernacular topography. Due to neglect and lack of resources the neighborhood has deteriorated remarkably: the infrastructure is in a bad state of disrepair, the road surface is totally damaged, and the facades need rehabilitation. The Israeli incursion of last spring and the damages it incurred have made its rehabilitation more urgent.
In July 2002, World Bank funds were reallocated for this project and five firms were invited to submit proposals for the design and tender-works. We are presently evaluating the submitted proposals to select the appropriate consultant.
The project, which includes streets and alleyways around the rehabilitated Milk Grotto neighborhood, covers an area of approximately 3,280 square meters. The total length of the streets in the project is about 820 meters with an average width of four meters.
Beit Jala Old Core, Phase III:
The third phase of the rehabilitation of the old core of Beit Jala, which is an  extension to Phase II, began in May 2002, and because of the incursions, closures and curfews, work is progressing at a slower pace. The work on this neighbourhood includes upgrading infrastructure such as water works, electric cabling, sewage system, and phone lines. The architectural work entails the restoration of façades, tiling, painting of entrances and window-frames, as well as introducing lighting fixtures. The completion of this project, funded by the Austrian Government, is scheduled for September 2002.
Awareness Programme for schools of the Bethlehem District
In cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and with the financial support of the Government of Germany (GTZ), our Centre will plan and implement an awareness campaign in schools of the Bethlehem District targeting sixth grade children.
The campaign aims at heightening awareness of our historic and cultural heritage, developing a more tourism friendly culture and acquainting children with various aspects of the tourism industry.
Implementation of Phase I, planned for 1 September - 15 November in cooperation with the centre Children for the Protection of Nature, will take place in coordination with 16 sample schools, and will involve about fifty teachers and eight hundred pupils.
Protection of the Common Swift
In cooperation with the Palestinian Ornithology and Bio-diversity Society, we have embarked on a project for the protection of the common swift (apus apus) in urban areas. Through this project, we will protect the bird's habitat in areas under rehabilitation and work on reestablishing nesting spaces in areas that have formerly undergone rehabilitation.
The common swift, a migrant bird, is known to nest and multiply in the nooks of old buildings, and we will secure the preservation of such nooks for our future projects. We will also work on reopening some of the old nooks that have been closed in former projects without causing damage to structures and add nesting boxes. The boxes will be crafted in cooperation with the community and local school children.
The pictures above show Hosh D'eik, our pilot project in community awareness, where the residents take care of the plantations and cooperate with the Municipality to keep the Hosh clean.
Two on-going projects with the Euromed Heritage II
Programme
The main characteristics of the Euromed Heritage II is the promotion of awareness and knowledge of the Mediterranean cultural heritage, support to institutions and policies promoting cultural heritage, development of human resources linked to the cultural heritage, and development and enhancement of cultural heritage as part of sustainable economic development.
Mediterranean Voices: Oral History and Cultural Practice in Mediterranean Cities
The principal aims of the project are to promote awareness of the cultural heritage of Mediterranean urban spaces and to create and strengthen regional stakeholder networks. The central activity of the project is the creation of a data base of oral and social history of urban spaces of the thirteen partner cities, which will form the basis for further activities both locally and regionally, including seminars and exhibitions.
The importance of the project for Bethlehem is threefold: the documentation of memories of people and places, documents, photographs, songs, etc; an ethnographic investigation of this oral heritage within the cosmopolitan context of the Mediterranean; the dissemination of this material via the web and through use of interactive modes of communication.
Delta: Development of Cultural Territorial Systems
The aim of the project is to promote the development of "territorial cultural systems", that is territories in which a group of activities that are directly and indirectly connected to the enhancement of the cultural heritage are developed, promoted and carried out by public and private operators working in partnership.
This integrated approach will develop areas in which cultural resources are present, both tangible - archaeological sites, historical and religious centres, rural landscapes, museums; and intangible - popular traditions, gastronomic cultures, songs and dance.
Bethlehem 2000 Chronicle:
is the story of a high profile development project that the Palestinian National Authority implemented in the Bethlehem District at the end of the second millennium.
The book was published by Bethlehem 2000 Project.
 Walks in Palestine and the Nativity Trail:
this guidebook introduces walkers to this ancient land and its people. It also includes the newly created Nativity Trail, a Bethlehem 2000 project. Maps and descriptions cover 35 routes from one hour to ten days' duration.
Written by Di Taylor and Tony Howard, the book was published by Cicerone and will be available in local bookstores in September.
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