A/HRC/37/43 F. Access to services 56. East Jerusalem faces a lack of essential services, such as health care, welfare services, educational facilities and basic infrastructure. According to the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, only 59 per cent of residents are connected legally and properly to the water grid.44 The public education system is underfunded and neglected, with a shortage of around 2,000 classrooms. The Municipality estimates the cumulative dropout rate at 32 per cent.45 57. The lack of access to services, often compounded by restrictions on the freedom of movement, contribute directly to the coercive environment in areas under full Israeli control (A/HRC/34/39, paras. 55-57).46 According to Ir Amim, approximately 8 to 10 per cent of the budget of the Jerusalem Municipality is allocated to Palestinians in East Jerusalem, even though they account for 37 per cent of the city’s population. In recent years, while municipal officials have claimed in media reports that there was an increase in budget allocation to Palestinians neighbourhoods, no comprehensive data have been released to substantiate these claims.47 The discriminatory service provision and resource allocation that favours West Jerusalem and settlers in East Jerusalem severely affects the quality of life of the Palestinians residing in East Jerusalem (A/HRC/31/43, para. 18). According to a poverty report prepared in 2016 by the National Insurance Institute, 73 per cent of the residents of East Jerusalem lived below the poverty level. The average poverty rate in Israel is 22 per cent.48 58. The wall severely impedes freedom of movement and access to municipal services in neighbourhoods that are part of Jerusalem municipality but on the other side of the wall. Many students who attend learning facilities on the other side of the wall endure delays and difficulties in reaching these facilities.49 Similarly, access to health care is impeded by the crossing of checkpoints, causing delays that can prove fatal in cases of emergency. According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Israeli ambulances are unwilling to enter the areas of East Jerusalem lying beyond the wall, and Palestinian ambulances are not allowed to cross the wall.50 59. With regard to services, the situation is even worse in the areas of East Jerusalem situated beyond the wall, where there is a lack of schools, medical facilities and waste collection, and road infrastructure is of poor quality. A decision by the Government of Israel of 28 May 2017, allocating nearly 180,000 NIS ($50,000) for improving waste collection and sewage infrastructures in Palestinian neighbourhoods in East Jerusalem, explicitly excluded the areas beyond the wall, citing “ongoing interministerial” discussions on addressing the challenges in those areas. 51 60. Since the construction of the wall, Israeli law enforcement has almost completely withdrawn from the areas, while the Palestinian police does not have jurisdiction there, creating a severe gap in law enforcement that encourages high rates of crime and violence.52 Construction in these areas is rampant, with a lack of enforcement of building safety regulations. The consequence is that many buildings could be unsafe, especially in 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 See www.acri.org.il/en/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Facts-and-Figures-2017.pdf. Ibid. See http://m.knesset.gov.il/Activity/committees/Education/Pages/CommitteeProtocols.aspx (in Hebrew). Middle East Quartet Report, July 2016 (see http://fmep.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/QuartetReport-2016.pdf), p. 6. According to one source, the development budget of Palestinian neighbourhoods grew almost tenfold between 2004 and 2015; see Elhanan Miller, “City Hall almost done mapping East Jerusalem”, Times of Israel, 20 February 2015. See www.btl.gov.il/Publications/oni_report/Documents/oni2016.pdf (in Hebrew). See also Association for Civil Rights in Israel, East Jerusalem (see footnote 31). UNDP, Jerusalem Communities behind the Wall (see footnote 32), p. 16. Ibid. See www.pmo.gov.il/MediaCenter/SecretaryAnnouncements/Pages/govmes280517.aspx (in Hebrew). UNDP, Jerusalem Communities behind the Wall (see footnote 32), p. 8. 13