Friday 4 May 2007

Israeli Economic Policies towards the Palestinians between 1967 and Today

AUDIO

On Tuesday, the 17th April, 2007 at the offices of the Alternative Information Center in Beit Sahour, AIC Economist Shir Hever discussed these issues in a lecture titled “Israeli Economic Policies towards the Palestinians between 1967 and Today”

The economic policies that Israel enforces, control the lives of Palestinians in the territories occupied since 1967. However, the power structure and the decision-making processes within Israel have changed drastically in recent years.

The policies Israel implemented in the OPT have shifted between centralization and de-centralization of power, between unification of the economies of Israel and the OPT and separation of the two. These policies were not decided by Israeli officials autonomously–they were influenced by pressure from above (i.e., the international community and its financial institutions) and more importantly by pressure from below (i.e., the Palestinian Intifada).

What exactly are the economic policies that sustain the occupation? Who came up with them? What are the reasons underlying the recent changes in the Israeli political-economic policy? How are all of these decisions affected by the economic needs of Israel?

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