Palestinian Farmers: A Last Stronghold of Resistance

The paper analysis the construction of two industrial zones in Jericho and Jenin as a national policy put forward by the PA in the light of the overall system of the Palestinian agriculture, the effects that the zones will have on the farmers and their position within global trends. Industrial zones are presented by the PA as a means to support farmers and their production. Nevertheless, the construction of the zones entails agricultural land confiscation and according to the authors it is part of global trend which serves the interests of banks, multinational corporations and agribusiness giants. These trends prioritize quantity over quality and increase dependency over food production on banks and multinational corporations, weakening the community autonomy. The authors’ perspective is set in the strands of literature that sees Palestinian small-scale agriculture as the last form of resistance against a world-wide capital driven political system that dilutes people’s identity and strips them of food sovereignty to ensure political and economic dominance over economic dominance of human and natural resources. The construction of the industrial zones is also seen as a means to foster Palestine’s dependency on Israel and the PA’s dependency on the private sector.