Beit Arabiya Demolished For the Fifth Time

During my three months in Palestine my coworker, Esther, and I planned to visit the Beit Arabiya Peace Center near Jerusalem on a piece of agricultural land in the West Bank belonging to Aribiya Shawamreh and her husband Salim and their seven children.  Their home had been demolished four times as it against Israeli Occupation policy for Palestinians to build on their land without a permit.  The international community and many peace advocate groups had come to their assistance in the past and there were plans to rebuild it again in the summer of 2011.  Much to our disappointment we were not able to arrange transportation to visit the family who were living in tents at the time.

It came to my attention today--I am currently visiting Mexico--by a Sabeel newsletter that I regularly recieve that the home built by the family with the support of volunteers was bulldozed by the Israelis at gunpoint.  I am going to post the article for you to read:

http://www.icahd.org/?p=8107

Israeli authorities demolished Beit Arabiya (“Arabiya’s House”) last night (Monday, January 23^rd) for the fifth time, along with structures in the East Anata Bedouin compound.  Beit Arabiya, Located in the West Bank town of Anata (Area C) just to the northeast of Jerusalem, is a living symbol of resistance to Occupation and the desire for justice and peace.

As its name suggests, Beit Arabiya is a home belonging to Arabiya Shawamreh, her husband Salim and their seven children, a Palestinian family whose home has been demolished four times by the Israeli authorities and rebuilt each time by ICAHD's Palestinian, Israeli and international peace activists, before being demolished again last night.

Aribiya and Salim's Home

At around 11p.m. Monday, a bulldozer accompanied by a contingent of heavily armed Israeli soldiers appeared on the Anata hills, to promptly demolish Beit Arabiya, along with residential and agricultural structures in the nearby Arab al-Jahalin Bedouin compound. 3 family homes were demolished along with numerous animal pens, and 20 people including young children were displaced, left exposed to the harsh desert environment. While standing in solidarity with Palestinians, ICAHD staff and activists were repeatedly threatened by Israeli soldieries. ICAHD Co-Director Itay Epshtain was beaten and sustained minor injuries.

Demolished House

Beit Arabiya was issued a demolition order by Israeli authorities back in 1994, following their failure to grant a building permit. It has since been demolished four times, to be rebuilt by ICAHD activists. Following a reissue of the demolition order last Thursday, came last night's fifth demolition. ICAHD Director, Dr. Jeff Halper, standing astride the ruins, vowed to support Salim and Arabiya in rebuilding their home. "We shall rebuild, we must rebuild forthwith, as an act of political defiance of the occupation and protracted oppression of Palestinians" said Halper.

Beit Arabiya has become a symbol of resistance to the Judaization of the Occupied West Bank and Israeli demolition policy. "ICAHD is as determined as always to rebuild the home, and endure in its struggle to bring about justice and peace" added Halper.

Salim and Arabiya, along with their neighbors and friends stood last night and watched as this tragedy unfold once again. Arabiya and Salim have dedicated their home as a center for peace in the memories of Rachel Corrie and Nuha Sweidan, two women (an American and a Palestinian) who died resisting home demolitions in Gaza. In the past decade ICAHD has hosted numerous visitors at Beit Arabiya, and based its annul rebuilding camp at the house, rebuilding 185 demolished Palestinian homes.

Only earlier this month, ICAHD extended an invitation to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing to visit Beit Arabiya during her country visit to the Occupied Palestinian Territory scheduled for later in the month. "It is our hope, that while we cannot extend the same hospitality to the Special Raportueor, Prof. Raquel Rolnik will visit the ruins of Beit Arabiya, and report on the utter cruelty, and illegality of Israeli policies and practices, and that members of the international community will follow in her footsteps". " said ICAHD Co-Director Itay Epshtain.

Additional Information

House demolitions and forced evictions are among Israel’s most heinous practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). In 2011, a record year of displacement, a total of 622 Palestinian structures were demolished by Israeli authorities, of which 36% (or 222) were family homes; the remainder were livelihood-related (including water storage and agricultural structures), resulting in 1,094 people displaced, almost double the number for 2010. The Jordan Valley sustained the largest number of demolitions (32% of total structures demolished, 40% of residential structures demolished, 37% of people displaced), with 199 structures demolished and 401 people displaced

Israel now controls 40% of the West Bank through 149 settlements and 102 outposts, housing more than 500,000 Jewish Israelis, as well as through closed military zones and declared nature reserves. In addition, house demolitions, forced evictions, and land expropriation, exacerbated by settler violence and the economic effects of movement restrictions, have left Palestinian communities struggling to make a living. Palestinians live in constant fear of displacement and dispersion, while Israel secures its domination and control. 

The demolition of Palestinian homes is politically motivated and strategically informed. The goal is to confine the 4 million residents of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza to small enclaves, thus effectively foreclosing any viable Palestinian state and ensuring Israeli control, and to allow for the expropriation of land, the ethnic displacement of Palestinians, and the Judaization of the Occupied West Bank.   

I am posting this in an attempt to let people know what the reality is for many Palestinians who live in constant fear.  It has been difficult to listen to the politicians in this country completely show a blind eye to the evils of the illegal occupation that has kept Palestinians in a defacto police state.  Accurate information and education is our only hope. 

Susanne

Haiti - January 2012

It is with a big sigh that I begin my reflections about my recent trip to Haiti. 

Group Arriving in Port Au Prince, Haiti

I was very fortunate to travel with a group from my home congregation of Peace Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, SD.  Our hosting organization was Helping Hands for Haiti which also is based in South Dakota.  After flying into Port au Prince, we spent the night and then assembled ourselves and supplies to head for Jumelle, Haiti.  We traveled in an old but study yellow school bus.  Our driver named Blaze

really blazed through incredible challenges to get us to Jumelle to spend the next week.

As I have done and will continue to do in telling the story of my brothers and sisters in Palestine, I will tell the story of my brothers and sisters in Haiti.

January twelfth marks the second anniversary of the devastating 7.0 earthquake of 2010.  Although the clearly noticeable ruins in Port au Prince are still evident, the ripple effect from such a horrific natural disaster can be seen throughout the entire country. 

Capitol Building Still in Ruins

The earthquake awakened the entire world to the urgent needs of the Haitian people.  Many government agencies and NGOs came flooding into the country after the quake.  I noticed on a building wall in riding through Port Au Prince this three word statement:  WE NEED HELP.   There is no doubt in my mind that this is still true today.  I’m hopeful that the rest of the world will continue to share their resources.  Yes, Haiti needs help but what kind of help?  It is truly overwhelming to witness the daily struggle of all the Haitian people.

I am reminded of a quote by Martin Luther King, Jr:    “We must sometimes accept finite disappointments, but we must never lose infinite hope.”

Jill Callison of the Sioux Falls Argus Leader wrote an article for the paper on Sunday, Jan. 8^th entitled:  “Two years after Haiti quake: Progress.”  She outlined the specific encouraging health improvements for children at a school in Jumelle who are regularly given meals prepared from the Kids Against Hunger packets of a rice-soy meal containing 22 vitamins and minerals along with dried vegetable.

Preparing a Noon Meal at Jumelle School (notice Kids Against Hunger Box)

(The Sioux Falls chapter of the organization was established by a man from our church after visiting Haiti several years ago.  They have packed over a million meals in the past two years.  His name is Darrel Johnson and we both traveled to Africa on a mission trip fours ago).  Web address:      http://www.kidsagainsthungersiouxfalls.org/

We compared recent physical assessments with those conducted a year ago.  There is noticeable health improvement, 

better growth rate and improved mental capacity for the students attending the Jumelle school established in 2006.  That’s encouraging but there also needs to be continued consistent worldwide efforts to assist the Haitian people in building a sustainable infrastructure for themselves.

I would like to share a reflection from a poem by Ann Weems from her book Kneeling in Bethlehem.

Our God is the One who comes to us in a burning bush, in an angel’s song, in a newborn child.

Our God is the One who cannot be found locked in the church, not even in the sanctuary.

Our God will be where God will be with no constraints, no predictability.

When God is ready God will come even to a godforsaken place like a stable in Bethlehem.

Watch….for you know not when God comes.

Watch, that you might be found whenever wherever God comes.

Susanne

Remembering Bethlehem

Due to the 8 hour time difference between where I live in South Dakota and Palestine, this time of day in South Dakota is already Christmas Day in Palestine.  The memories of last year are still vivid in my mind.  When asked by Paulene (director of EAPPI)  “Who would like to go to Bethlehem for Christmas?”  I immediately raised my hand and was enthusiastically joined by all of my EA teammates placed in Tulkarm.   The familiar Christian story of Christmas came flooding back as we rode the bus to Bethlehem.  Can it really be true that I would be able to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Bethlehem?

While singing “Silent Night” in each of our own languages at Christmas Lutheran Church I had a sense of unification and hope for the future.  When Bishop Munib Younan gave the sermon I was filled with admiration for the man who preached so lovingly about a future without barriers.

Now a year later the pathway to the end of the Occupation of Palestine is still fraught with countless obstacles.  Julie Rowe states it well in verses she wrote to the carol “O Little Town of Bethlehem.”

From the little town of Bethlehem we sing to you tonight;

Our streets are clear, there's no one here, who sees our daily plight;

Once here was born a savior, but now we're all enslaved;

By razor wire and walls and towers, now when will we be saved?

The little town of Bethlehem gets smaller every day;

They take our land, it's all been planned; to make us fade away;

The settlements keep growing, they're bigger every day.

We've not much left from all the theft, so soon they'll have their way.

The little town of Bethlehem is trapped by walls of stone

By razor wire and giant towers we're left here all alone;

Tonight the world sings carols of peace on earth to all

Think of all behind the wall that dwarfs the manger stall.

O Holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray,

Break down our walls and hear our calls, bring just peace here to stay;

Let angels sing together,  their great glad tidings tell:

Live in your land, there's peace at hand, from God Immanuel

Rev.  Julie Rowe   revjbr2003@yahoo.com        ©Julie Rowe

Today I have been listening to the radio most of the day.  It has been a day full of beautiful music some of which has been broadcast from England and other places. 

Last Saturday morning there was a simulcast from the Washington Cathedral in Washington, DC and Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem.  If you would like to watch a video of this service held on December 17, 2011 please click on this url.

http://www.nationalcathedral.org/exec/cathedral/mediaPlayer?MediaID=MED-5FQ0V-L80002&EventID=CAL-56N1I-LM0017

All of these wonderful experiences of music has brought me back to last Christmas Eve in Bethlehem.  I remember seeing that awful wall both before and after we worshipped at Christmas  Lutheran. 



Artwork on the barrier wall depicting the destruction
of olive trees and the surrounding of Bethlehem

Here is another website which contains a powerful cartoon depicting the effect of the wall as well as the promise of hope celebrated at Christmas by Palestinians.

http://www.europalestine.com/spip.php?article6754

We just returned from a candlelight Christmas Eve service here in Sioux Falls.  In spite of the pessimism that I often feel about the situation of my Palestinian friends, I left the service renewed in the hope that the occupation can be brought to an end.  We need to keep shining the light on what is happening to our brothers and sisters in Palestine.

Susanne

Israel imposes censored Palestinian textbooks in East Jerusalem

It has been a year since I was in Palestine as an Ecumenical Accompanier through the World Council of Churches   I have been keeping up with current news and am forturnate to be in contact with other members of our EA team.   One of the expectations of the EAPPI program was to build relationship with people in the community where we were assigned.   

I have fond memories of discussion groups while relating to teenagers in Tulkarm and the surrounding area. 



Conversation Group Kuhr al Labad Resource Center

Our team met regularly with teen-agers from the Tulkarm Refugee Camp, Khadori University and the Kufr al Labad Resource Center  How the time quickly flew by as we shared ideas and experiences.  They were open and articulate about their life under occupation and how it greatly restricts their opportunities.  This article was forwarded to me by one of my EA colleagues and I wanted share it with the readers of my blog.   The article was written by a senior in high school by the name of Jalal Abukhater.


 Israeli authorities are attempting to impose new censored textbooks in Palestinian schools in East Jerusalem. Jalal Abukhater provides a sample of the changes and argues that censorship of Palestinian heritage and history is illegal, ineffective and dangerous. Students and parents are mounting protests.

Censored E. Jerusalem textbook
By Jalal Abukhater

While the mainstream media has been dominated by big stories, others are not getting enough attention. For example, Israel’s Jerusalem Education Administration (JEA) recently decided to enforce the use of new, censored textbooks <http://imeu.net/news/printer0021489.shtml> in all private schools in East Jerusalem. The JEA is a joint body of the Jerusalem municipality and the Israeli Ministry of Education. At present, public Palestinian schools in East Jerusalem administrated by the JEA are already forced to use Israel-issued censored textbooks, and the JEA is trying to force private schools to use them too, despite the fact that it has no authority over them.The decision was an initiative of Knesset Member Alex Miller from Yisrael Beiteinu, who is also head of the Knesset’s education committee. Miller stated <http://www.nrg.co.il/online/1/ART2/231/663.html> (Hebrew) that in East Jerusalem “the whole curriculum should and must be Israeli.”

At the start of the 2011-2012 academic year, students and parents protested against the decision to impose the new censored curricula upon their schools. Students and parents have threatened to escalate their protests if the JEA keeps up its pressure and have said they will not attend the schools if theschool administrations comply with the JEA decision. This action by the Israeli Education Ministry is completely illegal under international law, which considers East Jerusalem to be occupied territory; as such the move is yet another direct violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention <http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/385ec082b509e76c41256739003e636d/6756482d86146898c125641e004aa3c5> and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights <http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/cescr.htm> , specifically Article 13 of the ICESCR. The move aims to deform Palestinian identity; the changes in the textbooks are dangerous and cannot be ignored.
I have obtained a copy of a report that highlights the modifications made by the JEA to the Palestinian textbooks that have been used since the signing of the Oslo Peace Accords in 1993. The report lists most of the changes made to textbooks used from first to tenth grade.

1. The logo of the Palestinian Authority that has been printed on all book covers has been removed and replaced with the logo of Jerusalem Municipality.
2. In the censored textbooks, every mention and picture of a Palestinian flag has been removed, even in the coloring books for six-year olds.
3. Also in the first grade textbooks, a story about a female prisoner returning home, and a poem about the dawn of freedom” were deleted from the censored versions.
4. All mention of the terms Nakba (meaning “catastrophe,” referring to Palestinian dispersion/exodus in 1948) and Palestinian right of return have been removed, including poems by exiled Palestinian poets expressing their longing for their beautiful homeland. Poems and songs about the beauty of Palestinian landscapes or poems that mention Israeli checkpoints have also been deleted.
5. Earlier history – from hundreds of years ago – is being equally censored. In the fourth-grade textbook, a story about Saladin and the Battle of Hattin was deleted from existence for no apparent reason. Similarly a storyabout the Siege of Acre during the Napoleonic invasion has been deleted.
6. In fact, all mentions of the city of Acrehave been removed including a poem which calls Acre “the bride of the sea” and a story about students visiting the city for the first time. Additionally, all mentions of Jerusalem as “Al Quds” have been removed; a story in the second-grade textbook about a field trip to the OldCity of Jerusalem has also been removed.
7. Any mention of Israel as an occupying force or East Jerusalem as anoccupied city have been removed. This aims to assert Israeli control over occupied Palestinian lands behind the 1967 armistice lines. Furthermore, Palestinians inside Israel are not referred to as Palestinians anymore, anywhere.
8. Stories, songs, and poems about of the first and second Palestinian uprisings have all been deleted. Here is a sample the report cites from a deleted song that the JEA accuses of inciting to violence, translated: “Jerusalem is waiting for the dark occupation to wither away and for the bright day of freedom to arrive.” This is the only part of the song cited in the report.
9. In the geography textbooks of eight-grade students, the issue of pollution in the Palestinian environment addresses the waste sewage water dumped by settlements in the West Bank onto Palestinian villages; this whole lesson has been deleted. Also in all geography textbooks, facts about the Palestinian water crisis – such as in the Jordan Valley where roughly 8,000 settlers receive 20 times more water than almost 2.5 million Palestinians living in the West Bank – are entirely deleted, in the newly censored textbooks.
10. In ninth and tenth grade history textbooks, almost the whole book has been deleted. Whole units that address the Palestinian issue from the time of the Balfour declaration (1917) until the Nakba (1948) have been deleted, leaving blank white pages for students to stare at.
Pages of Censored E. Jerusalem textbooks (Photo: Jalal Abukhater)

David Ben-Gurion once said<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/David_Ben-Gurion> in a conversation with Nahum Goldman: “That is natural: we havetaken their country […] Why should they accept that? They may perhapsforget in one or two generations’ time, but for the moment there is no chance.”

We have not forgotten, and we will never be forced to forget.

This issue is dangerous beyond description, and such illegal acts must not be allowed to pass unnoticed. People must act quickly and support the schools that have refused to deal with such misleading textbooks. The JEA has now threatened to cut funding<http://www.prc.org.uk/newsite/en/palestinian-refugee-news-resource/articles-palestine/1639-Fighting-for-Jerusalem,-Book-by-Book.html> to those schools, which are in need of support.
Everyone has the right to preserve his or her identity, heritage and history. All people have the right to receive proper education at schools they attend; no one deserves to receive censored, politicized propaganda that aims to control the minds of young people in any way. We will not be forced to forget nor will we be forced into ignorance about our own identity.

Jalal Abukhater is a resident of East Jerusalem, and a high school senior attending school in Ramallah.

I'd also invite you to view a daily advent message from the Church of Sweden (ELCJHL) produced in 2010 and very applicable for 2011 as well.

http://www.byggenbro.com/home.html

Susanne

Travel, Protests and Tilda Swinton

While I was an ecumenical accompanier almost a year ago, I spent fifty days in Tulkarm and spent forty days at other places in Palestine and Israel.  I was encouraged to be “on the road” as much as possible and it was a wonderful way to sit back and enjoy the countryside. Transportation available to me were buses, service vehicles (mini-buses)  and taxis.  

Bus in Ramallah

 

A Service Van (Minibus) in the West Bank

 While in the West Bank I was only permitted to be on Palestinian roads while being transported by vehicles with Palestinian license plates.  Those roads, illegally built by the Israelis to connect the settlements to Israel, were off limits to use by vehicles without an Israeli license plate.  

I am sitting on barriers  erected by the IDF to prevent
access to the Village of Shufa because the road
was "confiscated" so that Palestinians would not have
contact with the settlers on their way to a settlement below Shufa

Without much command of Arabic I was able to travel anywhere I planned for my next destination.  As an EA I always wore my vest and always had an interesting time on the journeys.  It was absolutely amazing to experience the ease at which drivers of these vehicles were able to get me on the right bus or 7 passenger mini-bus.  It was also amazing how each driver could make change while maneuvering through narrow roads and exasperating disruptions of service directly related to checkpoints and sudden random road checks by the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). 



We often were delayed by IDF soldiers who detained and searched

I rode the bus in the larger cities as well and remember a bus trip in East Jerusalem when a bus driver carefully backed up through a very crowded neighborhood and only one lane passageway.  It warmed my heart to know that he went out of his way to deliver a Palestinian woman to the front of her house when she had failed to get off the bus in time.  I never really gave it much thought as to where I sat in the buses or service vehicles.  However I did observe the cultural expectations for women sitting next to each other rather than by a man who was a stranger.  Those arrangements were worked out accordingly to everyone’s comfort and satisfaction.

As to Jerusalem, it really confuses me to think that in a city that is the birthplace of Muslim, Jewish and Christian religions there needs to be any differentiation as to who rides what buses.  The new light rail system which connects East Jerusalem settlements to the Holy Sites appears be solely for the convenience of the illegally built settlements. 

At the present time there are protests happening in and around Jerusalem which remind me of the civil rights movement which occurred in the United States during my high school and college days.  Most Americans recognize the name of Rosa Parks, the courageous woman in Alabama who refused to move to the back of the bus where African American people were required to sit.

I am including a letter I recently was made aware of from Antonia House of the Jewish Voice for Peace.    http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/301/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8728

“Six breathtakingly courageous Palestinian human rights activists just tried to take the bus from Ramallah to East Jerusalem. It's a trip I've made countless times without a hitch. But I'm a Jewish American. I can move about freely. And Fadi Quran, Nadeem Al-Sharbate, Badee Dwak, Huwaida Arraf, Basel Al-Araj and Mazin Qumsiyeh are Palestinian. They cannot move freely in their own country. Instead of being allowed entry to East Jerusalem, the Freedom Riders were violently arrested and held for hours in the Atarot Prison. I'm thrilled to report that just moments ago I got word they were released.
 
These six Freedom Riders chose to board a bus that serves Jewish-only settlements in the West Bank on it's way to Occupied East Jerusalem, wearing "kuffiyehs" (Palestinian scarfs) and t-shirts reading 'Justice', 'Freedom', and 'We Shall Overcome'. Inspired by the Freedom Rides of the American Civil Rights Movement, they took this bold action to expose the racism and policies of segregation that pervade every aspect of life in occupied Palestine. They also wanted to bring attention to the role of Israeli and international companies, such as Egged and Veolia, who operate these segregated bus lines, in perpetuating and profiting from the occupation.

In recent years the brutal reality of the occupation of Palestine has become increasingly exposed, and this morning the media room was packed with supporters- Palestinians, Jewish Israelis and people from all over the world. There was an air of excitement, but also apprehension, knowing the risk these six activists were taking. Those of us who remained in the media room were in constant contact with the Freedom Riders.

The first bus drivers, seeing that Palestinians were waiting at the bus stop, passed without pause. Once a bus finally stopped and they boarded, the driver did not know what to do with Palestinians on board. He consulted with the Israeli soldiers, who had arrived on the scene after being alerted that Palestinians were standing at a Jewish bus stop. They instructed him to continue to the Hizmeh checkpoint, where the settlers were taken off the bus and soldiers got on. The Freedom Riders refused to get off, asserting their right to go to Jerusalem. One by one these non-violent protesters were roughly dragged off the bus and arrested, along with Fajr Harb, a supporter who had not been on the bus.

All the Freedom Riders did to warrant arrest was to take a bus from one place in the Occupied Territory to another, using public transportation. While Israelis are allowed to come and go as they wish in the Occupied Territory, even to settle in it in contradiction to international law,  Palestinians' movement in their own land is severely restricted, even criminalized. This kind of racism and segregation is as abhorrent today as it was 50 years ago in the Jim Crow South. As I watched the Freedom Riders dragged from the bus today, I felt like I could have been watching the police uncoil fire hoses in Birmingham or whip out their clubs in Soweto.

Fadi Quran, one of the arrested freedom riders, is a 23 year old Palestinian from Ramallah. He was born in Jerusalem and is currently a graduate student at Birzeit University finishing his master degree in Democracy and Human Rights. Right before being dragged from the bus by Israeli soldiers, he said: ""We are not going to give up. We are struggling for justice, freedom, and dignity and we shall overcome. Stand with us in solidarity. Please divest from the Egged and Veolia bus companies and all Israeli institutions. We will achieve freedom, justice, and dignity for this generation of Palestinians." I have no doubt Fadi and his fellow Freedom Riders will keep boarding those buses until the day comes when all may do so freely.

Please support the brave activists who risked so much asserting their rights to equality and dignity, and join us in telling the United States Department of State to ensure their safe passage to Jerusalem on the next Freedom Ride.”

I would guess that this very newsworthy event will not be even mentioned in the newspapers or on television in the United States.  We are so shielded from what is actually occuring in Israel or Palestine.  Protests are very common on the West Bank.  For instance, we observed weekly non-violent vigils in Tulkarm.  But rarely do the intended recipients respond.  But it is a way for those who are under occupation to continue their expression of solidarity in face of continuing oppression.

Last month I heard that Tilda Swinton, the Scottish model, had done a picture for Vogue magazine draped in a Palestinian scarf.  So I went out and purchased the November edition here in Sioux Falls expecting to find it.  I looked through every page, twice, as did my husband. 

But it was no where to be seen.  It is another example of press censorship here in the United States because other editions of the November magazines around the world have it available.  

I continue to try to be active in letting my community know about the worsening situation of the Palestinians.  And those of you who read this blog, I hope that each of you is doing what you can do to bring light to this dark page of human history.


Susanne

Non Violent Resistance

Since my return from Palestine many people have asked me if I felt safe there.  I answer that during my three month stay in Palestine I was treated very respectfully and did not feel threatened at all.  The reason for their question is probably based on what most people in the United States read in the newspapers or see on the television.  Much of what is reported in the U.S. is about violence, particularly in or near the border between Gaza and Israel.

While living in the West Bank I had the opportunity to observe and participate in many non-violent demonstrations.  In fact, the Palestinians regularly engage in non-violent resistance.  

Non-Violent Protest at Deir-al-Ghusun Agricultural Gate

We met at the Deir-al-Ghusun demonstration

Most Palestinians experience armed settlers and fully armed Israeli soldiers on a daily basis.  There are weekly non-violent demonstrations in many towns and cities on the West Bank.  Most Americans are completely unaware that almost all resistance in the West Bank is non-violent.  The reason:  It does not get reported in our press.

I recently viewed a film clip by a Brazilian filmmaker, Julia Bacha, who makes a very interesting point about non-violent resistance.  She states that non-violent resistance and terrorist acts are both a form of political theatre.  Non-violent movements in India, led by Ghandi, and in South Africa, led by Nelson Mandela, were widely viewed by the world community through press coverage.  But this is not true of the non-violent resistance in Palestine.

 http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/julia_bacha.html

I encourage you to view this presentation.  I feel a responsibility to inform others that most Palestinians are involved in non-violent resistance, not violence.  

In the future I will write more often in my blog.  I may even add some information on Haiti as I plan to go there on a trip with "Helping Hands For Haiti" with some members of our church in late December.

May peace prevail.

Susanne

Recognition of Palestine as a State

I have not written since May as I have been in rural Alaska most of the time since then without much access to the internet.  This is a picture I took of a newborn moose calf near our Alaskan home.

While I was in Tulkarm the United States vetoed a resolution in the UN Security Council condemning Israel for continuing illegal settlements.  I felt quite awkward knowing that this action put me in a position in Palestine that was contrary to my colleagues from Europe.  Some Palestinians asked me why the United States does not support Palestinian efforts for change to their status.  I had nothing to say.

Since returning I have found that individual congressmen and women as well as the United States Senate is under tremendous pressure from Israel and its supporters in this country to maintain the status quo.  After reading a very interesting background piece in the America Magazine, I felt the need to post it here for you to read:  http://www.americamagazine.org/content/article.cfm?article_id=13030

Later this month the United Nations will vote on statehood for Palestine. It appears the vote will take place in stages. First, a draft resolution will be presented to the Security Council, where the United States is expected to veto the proposal. If the veto is cast, then a resolution will be made for the General Assembly to recognize Palestine as an observer state. With that status, though lacking full membership, Palestine will be able to participate in General Assembly debates and to belong to other U.N.-system organizations. The main rationale the administration offers for casting the veto is that Palestinian independence ought to be settled in negotiations with Israel. Tying Palestinian statehood to negotiations is bogus. The two parties may be able to negotiate lesser issues, but Palestinian sovereignty and independence should not be negotiable.

In 1948 Israel did not wait for U.N. recognition or negotiation with its Arab neighbors before declaring independence. The U.N. Partition Plan for Palestine had projected Jewish and Arab states with a separate international zone around Jerusalem. As the British Mandate was about to expire in May 1948, David Ben-Gurion, executive head of the World Zionist Organization, declared the establishment of the modern state of Israel. During the Mandate and the subsequent Israeli War of Independence against neighboring Arab states, irregular Israeli fighters using terror tactics seized the territory, driving more than 700,000 Palestinians out of more than 400 villages and urban neighborhoods. U.N. requirements for minority protections were flagrantly violated. After 63 years, Palestinians should not have to wait any longer to enjoy their natural right to self-governance and statehood. Above all, their independence should not be dependent on Israeli agreement.

Claims by the United States that statehood should wait on negotiation are especially offensive. Previous rounds of negotiation and hope of negotiation have led to further Israeli confiscation of Palestinian land and water. Settlements have pushed farther and farther into the West Bank. Israel has seized more Palestinian land for its security barrier, settler highways and military zones. Palestinian homes have been demolished as illegal, and settlers’ forceful occupation of others has been upheld by the Israeli military. In previous negotiations, Israel always retained the upper hand. The piecemeal transfer of West Bank territory under the 1993 Oslo Accords left Israel in control of most of the West Bank. When it came to implementing Oslo, Israel repeatedly demanded that the Palestinians fulfill their part of the bargain first and then set new conditions before it would implement its own responsibilities.

U.S. policy also assumes that this country can successfully mediate a final status agreement between the two sides. But the Obama administration has failed to make headway even on the smallest issue. The Netanyahu government, for example, has flagrantly rebuffed the president’s repeated efforts to prevent further settlement construction and confiscations in East Jerusalem. Though Prime Minister Netanyahu has lately said he would take the 1967 ceasefire lines as a basis for negotiation, at an earlier televised White House meeting he contemptuously rejected President Obama’s proposal along those lines as a starting-point for talks.

For those serious about finding a negotiated end to the conflict, U.N. recognition of Palestinian statehood makes very good sense as an incentive for productive talks. It will help create some leverage for Palestine in addressing issues that will have to be negotiated eventually, like final borders, Israeli security, Jerusalem, refugees and water. As a sovereign state, Palestine would be empowered under international law to demand an end to Israeli occupation and to place its claims before international courts. Its membership in international organizations would aid the further development of Palestinian state structures and help bring more pressure to bear on Israel to agree to a just and lasting settlement. The United States has failed to provide that kind of pressure. It is time to see whether, with broad international support for Palestinian statehood, the Palestinians may at least enter into negotiation on a more equal status with the Israelis.

The Palestinian Authority has gone far to make a peaceful transition to statehood possible. Most observers recognize the success of the Palestinian prime minister, Salam Fayyad, in creating effective government on the West Bank, reducing corruption and shaping an able security force that is well coordinated with Israeli forces. At the same time, private enterprise has prospered in the territory with economic growth (G.D.P.) at an annual rate of 8 percent. Palestinian leaders, including President Mahmoud Abbas, have pledged that popular demonstrations on the occasion of the U.N. vote will be nonviolent and security will be maintained. Palestinians have come of age. It is past time to welcome Palestine into the community of nations.

I hope that all of you continue, in your own way, to bring to light this important issue.  My respect for the Palestinian people has continued to grow since leaving the West Bank.  Thanks.

Susanne