No Arab town in Israel has been listed for new low-cost accommodation units by the Ministry of Housing, a move which has been condemned by Adalah, the Legal Centre for Arab Minority Rights. The NGO has called on the Minister of Housing, the director of the Israel Land Administration (ILA) and the Attorney General to reconsider the proposed “price reduction” programme. The tender process has opened which will require apartment prices to be 20 per cent cheaper than others in the same area.
The ministry published a list of towns where the programme will be implemented this year; no Arab town is on the list. Local media published another list presented by the ministry at the end of 2014, which included 30 towns and cities where the low-cost programme will be in place, including 5 illegal settlements on the occupied West Bank. Again, no Arab towns were on the list.
A paper presented by Adalah lawyer Misana Morani showed that the choice of towns was based on standards that only take into account the data and needs of the market in Jewish and mixed towns, ignoring the various needs of the Arab towns. “These standards demonstrate that the Ministry of Housing did not look at the needs of the Arab society at all during the ratification of this programme,” said Morani. “Such discrimination against Arab citizens will be clearer and more dangerous when taking into account the residential, economic and social crises in Arab towns and villages, which are worse than in the Jewish community.”