Episode 3.
- Recognize that this place contains a unique example of a tangible cultural heritage that evokes a legacy of a place which had a healthy civil equality and no ethnocentric division or segregation. 
Lifta is a place of important value, through the preservation of her memory she can reveal insight into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As a place, Lifta is a commonground to history through an historical-event, tangibly related to the Palestinian Nakba catastrophe and the origins of the modern State of Israel. She sustains the traces of a dramatic scene, a conflict that has perpetuated into the discord between the Israeli and Palestinian narratives. She has the capability of becoming a space of encounter whereby a meeting with the 'other' is possible. And she has the potential to play a role, where this common history can be contested for the purposes of recognizing the creation of difference. A place to reflect upon a conflict of values and a reproduction of identities within the region. Nonetheless, recognizing this place as a commonground to histories is still controversial.
History testifying to the Palestinian tragedy - the Nakba, is not Israel's official line on the history of the Independence of the Nation State and history since. Any plan that envisages Lifta's history as part of a vision for addressing difference will out of consequence contest attitudes that are traditionally defined within the narrative of the modern State. It will be asking Israel to reflect upon her history for the efforts of contesting and reconciling differences within the region. By contesting an historical narrative that can be traced back to a point of origin, it may question the legitimacy of constructions that influence the state of difference in the relationships between identities and space. For example, how consequences of historical phenomena have filtered through into territorial rules of engagement in public, private, local and national space. Fundamentally, it could also establish a connection between an origin in history with the current situation of Israel, the West Bank, Gaza and beyond.
Nonetheless, the creation of dissonance and difference in the space of the region can be traced back to an origin and to an event that is still tangible. This origin, born out of conflict, has influenced the nature of the rules of engagement throughout the history of the Modern Israeli State and Palestinian region. For example, attitudes formed from the narratives act further as agencies of power, affectly influencing and differentiating exclusive engagement in the practice of territory and planning throughout the region. However, this was not always the case and never was a pre-condition to the social relationship of space within this region. The legacy of this conflict as an agency of power halts at the origin where it began. If memory relating to a point of origin is capable of establishing real significance about a tangible heritage, then the same memory can also elaborate upon the society that previously existed and cultivated the landscape.
Taking to one side the significance of memory relating to a conflict and the current context, memory of Lifta also has the capacity to engage and provide a history of a different societal pattern and practice of space. If we were to take a closer examination of Lifta's culture pre-dating the conflict, we can consider that her social identity will have a different set of societal values and relationships. This pre-history reveals a lot more into the everyday life of Lifta, a lot more about her ontology; nature of being. Disclosed from the memory is a heritage of vast richness and potential for the region, excavating Lifta's history reveals a large village that sustained and reflected a society of civil equality. Lifta was a place that embraced a civil society that contained a strong sense of community amongst the ethnic diverse community of muslims as well as jewish and christian minority.
Before the events of 1948 the village had a tribal community with a population consisting of around 3000 people. There was five main tribes consisting of many smaller tribe families within each of the main groups, and most predominantly muslim by religion. However there was also a Jewish tribe from Lifta known as the Hilo who were not immigrants, but also part of the older assembly of the native people that were from this region. There was also a small christian minority as well as Mizrahi jews from Iraq and Jordan; they quite commonly rented and or shared the same houses with muslim families. Quite a large percentage of houses in Lifta were more than two storeys, so it was quite a common occurence that the local tribes to rent of their accomodation. For example, there are descriptions of the grande 4 storey houses of having 2 floors rented to Jewish families, whilst the rest of the property was accomodated by the tribe family.
There was more prosperity in the upper Lifta, known as Romema, this was mainly due to the land being extensively cultivated for olive farming. Lifta was known for the quality of her olives and an industry of olive farming thrived in Romema and was supported by a big factory. There was also other produce cultivated and made in upper Lifta, such as a drink like cola known as cassouse which was also distributed around the larger region. Lifta's community had also an extensive farming community. The shepherds would travel from east to west and back through the upper plains of Lifta's valley grazing their large herds of cows and sheep. The roads were well construct and very accessible. Stone from Lifta was also quarryed and regarded for its aesthetic quality in building houses and mosques throughout the Palestinian region. Romema, also had industrial factories next to the family plots producing calcium fabric to produce paint from the stones.
A map sketching traces of boundary lines, around the scattered buildings (yellow), of the land areas owned by the multi-ethnic villagers in the valley of lower Lifta.
Statistics:
Land ownership before 1948 uprooting -
Muslim 7,780 Jewish 756 Public Land 207 Total 8,743
Land usage in 1945 -
Area planted w/ olives - Muslim 1,044 Jewish 0
Planted W/ Cereal - Muslim 3,248 Jewish 288
Built up - Muslim 324 Jewish 102
Cultivable - Muslim 3,248 Jewish 288
Non-Cultivable - Muslim 4,415 Jewish 366
Statistics supplied by Palestineremembered.com
Lower Lifta in the valley was known as the old Lifta. The families plots were more condensed although each family still cultivated their own produce or sustained trade on their plots. People would slaughter meat at their homes instead of buying from the shops. A jew called Yusuf Isra and his daughter Shishana were sharing the lower two floors of a house with a muslim tribe family. The family above them would supply milk to Yusuf and he produce cheese as trade. Lower Lifta had an intricate web of woven streets, bustling with markets, coffee houses, a bakery, and their very own pharmacy. Lifta's community was inclusive to both muslims, jews and christians alike. They would sit together at the same coffee houses and their children would go to the same village school. Just outside the village, between Lifta and Jerusalem, were public services which gave access to all. For example, the community in Lifta had free access to the neighbouring jewish eye hospital. The village and the region was a vibrant place sustaining a healthy civil equality.
The community within the village embraced one another's religious events and celebrations. There were many festivals in Lifta for prophets. All cultural and religous festivals were celebrated with the christians and jews and all villagers would participate. Festivals were a time to show appreciation to another through customs such as giving each other presents. During Ramadan, all would fast and invite families over to open fast with cakes and sweets, and visit the graves and read Koran of anyone who had died in the village. The muslim tribes would join their fellow jewish villagers to the Dead Sea and celebrate the festival of a Jewish Prophet. Another Jewish festival that was celebrated together with a procession carrying green flags. Socially, there was a very good relationship with the Jewish. The village mosque became a social ground to discuss current issues during these festival times.
The jewish and christian minorities were treated like family by the tribes, they had been on these lands all the time. There was no inequality amongst the socio-ethnic diversity, so there was never any conceivable idea of segregation. Lifta's traceable history prior the Palestinian Nakba and the creation of Israel is of a society that practised civil equality in the region. Her identity sustained a different set of social values that is quite destitute today in the Modern State. Lifta allows us to look beyond the symbol of the 'other', she is able to show her ontology - nature of being. She sustains ethical values which can be deemed as necessary within in the current regional context of society. Recognition of her heritage can promote the idea of alternative strategies in the social relations of space, not denying the real potential of place in this region. Emphasis of her civil equality can also challenge and mediate Lifta's cultural heritage within the narrative of the Nation State of Israel.
Lifta's cultural heritage is a story of a society consisting of different ethnicities existing harmoniously under the same cultural pretext. This truth should be observed as advantageous and upheld for the efforts of creating solidarity amongst a people. Signifying qualities of justice of the peace and for this reason alone is worthy of preservation for the present and future generations to aspire to. Recognition of this truth and quality can influence the possibilty of allowing this heritage, traditionally percieved as belonging to the 'other' genealogy and existential narrative, to become admissable in the region. Emphasis of civil equality also enhances the opportunity of contesting other issues represented by this place to become more tolerable. Lifta still is a traceable genealogy that gives insight into the origins of the conflict, and these issue are fundamental to the process of understanding, tangibly engaging and reconciling conflict. Unveiling an archaeology towards civil equality eases the process of recognition whilst sustaining a greater acknowledgement of tragedy and understanding its implication on identity.
written by Anil Korotane, Architectural Activist, FAST.
