The Joint Arab List set out on its “Recognition March” on Thursday from Wadi al-Na'am, an unrecognized Beduin village in the Negev, to the president’s residence in Jerusalem.
The march is planned to last four days and pass through a number of unrecognized villages.
According to the Joint List, it was estimated that just over 300 people were participating in the march as of Thursday afternoon.
Members of the Joint List, including its head Ayman Odeh, and various Arab community leaders, along with Jewish and Arab citizens, are partaking in the initiative.
“In the Negev today there are around one-hundred thousand citizens without basic living conditions. Can you imagine your life without electricity? Without running water?” said Odeh at the start of the march.
Children in the unrecognized villages must travel far on bad roads to get to school, he said.
“The reality of life in the unrecognized villages is intolerable and it is the duty of all of us to fight together to create a real difference for all those citizens,” continued Odeh.
“I invite all citizens, Arabs and Jews, to join us on this journey and demand recognition for all unrecognized villages,” said Odeh, adding that he also called for more investment in the Negev.
Joint List MK Dov Henin said that despite the willingness of residents of Wadi al-Na’am, we were not able in recent years to find a solution to this intolerable state of affairs. “We cannot continue to accept this,” he said.
Upon the arrival at the president’s residence, the marchers intend to present a plan that calls for the government to recognize all unrecognized villages.
Opponents on the right criticize such recognition efforts, saying that the state is "too generous" in giving away land for free for which the Beduin cannot prove ownership of.
President Reuven Rivlin will not attend the ceremony, because he is flying to Singapore to attend the funeral of president Lee Kuan Yew.
Rivlin and Odeh agreed in a phone call that the plan would be presented to him after he returns from Singapore.