Voice From Gaza

Why do I Support the Welcome to Palestine FLYTILLA.

2012-01-27T17:41:00.000-08:00

In 1947-48, the Palestinian people were subjected to an ethnic cleansing campaign at the hands of the Zionist forces. The number of Palestinians that experienced expulsion anduprooting during this period of time is estimated to be approximately 775,000. Over the past 64 years, while the Zionist policy of population transfer has continued at a slower and retracted pace, it still remains an extension of the pogroms that began in 1947. Currently, the Palestinians diaspora totals approximately five million. While many Palestinians live in cities across the world, including in North America, South America and Europe, there still remains millions of Palestinians living in abject poverty and horrible conditions in refugee camps across bordering ...

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Palestine is the Anvil of our Souls: My New Blog

2012-01-27T17:17:00.000-08:00

Palestine is the Anvil of our Souls

Ayman Qwaider

My name is Ayman Qwaider, a Palestinian from the Gaza Strip. I am 25 year old raised up and received my primary education in one of the Refugee camp where I live in El Nuserate refugee camp, middle of Gaza Strip. I finished my university degree from Islamic University of Gaza in 2008, then I worked for almost two years in International Humanitarian Aid organization based on the Gaza City. In Feb 2010, I was granted a scholarship in peace, conflict and development studies to complete my post graduate studies in Spain.

I started my blogging experience directly after the one-sided war on the Gaza Strip Winter 2008-2009. I launched my blog in order to contribute the mainstream media, which is often influenced by one narrative usually the Israeli narrative. I report so as I can reach a worldwide audience who seek the true facts on the group about the life under a military occupation.

I blog because I believe that audience worldwide has the right to receive information, stories, and news about what is happening in Palestine using alternative media sources. I believe that alternative media sources play a vital and effective role in countering the Israeli propaganda. This is not to declare that we are the winners, but we have to be alert that Israel spends over a $1 billion per year on public relations efforts compared with almost nothing that we spend. Though we do not have the money to influence the mainstream media and the politicians, we are able to reach the free voice of the people and we will continue to inform and mobilize the masses.

Fellow me:

http://aymanqwaider.wordpress.com/

Vers une culture de Paix et Reconnaissance

2011-11-04T08:33:00.001-07:00

Vers une culture de Paix et Reconnaissance
La Palestine est un membre de l’UNESCO
par Ayman Qwaider

La Palestine est devenue le 195ème Etat à joindre l’Organisation des Nations Unies pour l’éducation, la science et la culture, ci-après, l’UNESCO . Son admission au sein de la famille de l’UNESCO a offert une bouffée d’optimisme et d’espoir aux Palestiniens qui croient, profondément, dans la mission de l’UNESCO, à savoir « construire la paix dans l’esprit des hommes et des femmes. » L’admission de la Palestine est une victoire symbolique non seulement pour les Palestiniens, mais aussi pour les nombreuses nations du monde ayant voté pour la reconnaissance de la Palestine au sein des Nations Unies et soutenu la demande légitime du peuple palestinien à être représenté en tant qu'Etat aux Nations unies. Si ce vote n’est pas en soi une reconnaissance de la souveraineté palestinienne dans le concert des Nations unies, cette large majorité de nations ayant soutenu l’admission de la Palestine à l’UNESCO est symbolique du soutien remarquable dont jouit globalement la cause de la souveraineté et des droits nationaux palestiniens.
Les Palestiniens ont été soumis de manière prolongée à un système d’injustices et se battent depuis des décennies non seulement pour être reconnus en tant que peuple à part entière, mais pour se voir accorder des droits humains fondamentaux. Aujourd’hui avec cet pas unilatéral en direction de l’obtention de droits humains élémentaires, ce pas vers la dignité et vers la reconnaissance d’un Etat, les droits et la dignité des générations futures de Palestiniens semblent plus accessibles.
Quand il est question de conflit et de paix entre deux parties, et lorsque l’on tente d’atteindre plus de justice, l’acceptation et la reconnaissance de l’autre, est essentielle. Si les droits et la dignité de l’autre ne sont pas pris en compte, comment est-il possible d’imaginer une quelconque justice ? Cela a été impossible depuis plus de 63 ans, et cela ne saura l’être sans la reconnaissance des Palestiniens en tant que peuple. Peuple ayant toute légitimité et ayant droit aussi bien aux droits fondamentaux, que celui d’un Etat et de leur propre souveraineté établie clairement au sein des Nations unies, et à travers son Assemblée Générale. La reconnaissance et l’acceptation par l’UNESCO est un pas positif dans cette direction.

De nos jours, la diplomatie est dominée par des intérêts politiques et économiques, et contribue à maintenir des inégalités. C’est le phénomène que d’aucuns ont qualifié de « realpolitik ». Pourtant, malgré de très puissants intérêts en jeu dans la donne géopolitique actuelle, et malgré l’existence d’une opposition à l’initiative palestinienne et sa demande d’une reconnaissance au sein de l’ONU, cette acceptation de la Palestine à l’UNESCO prouve l’existence sous-jacente d’un large consensus sur la question d’un état palestinien. Ce consensus est plus évident que jamais.

La Reconnaissance est une étape vitale vers la Justice. La Paix est à la Justice ce que le fruit est à l’arbre ayant pu fleurir. Aucune paix de longue durée n’a pu être atteinte sans une base fondamentalement de justice et d’équité pour toutes les parties concernées. En tant que Palestinien, témoin de décennies de chagrin et injustices, comme tous les Palestiniens, je peux affirmer que nous sommes terriblement reconnaissants à la famille qu’est l’UNESCO pour la générosité de ce geste, cette reconnaissance et son soutien, et de ne pas avoir failli en ce qui concerne cette question de la Palestine. Nous, le peuple de la Palestine, nous vous saluons pour votre droiture, votre équité et votre intégrité dans votre soutien de la cause qu’est la justice.

Ayman Qwaider

ayman.qauder@gmail.com

Towards a Culture of Peace and Recognition

2011-11-04T08:05:00.000-07:00

Towards a Culture of Peace and Recognition

Palestine is a UNESCO Member State

By: Ayman Qwaider

London (Pal telegraph) Palestine is the 195th state to join the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO. The admission of Palestine to the UNESCO family has given optimism and hope to Palestinians who believe in the mission of UNESCO “Building peace in the Mind of Men and Women”. The admission of Palestine is a symbolic victory not only for Palestinians, but also for the many nations around the world that voted for the recognition of accepting Palestine as the legitimate sovereign state of the Palestinian People. While this vote did not result in the legal recognition of Palestinian sovereignty in the league of the United Nations, the large majority of nations that supported Palestine’s admission to UNESCO is symbolic of the overwhelming global support of Palestinian national rights and sovereignty.

Palestinians have been subjected to a prolonged system of injustice, and for decades we have been struggling not simply to be recognized as a sovereign people, but simply to have our basic human rights protected. Today, with this unilateral step towards attaining our human rights, dignity and statehood, we are that much closer to ensuring the rights and dignity of the future generations of Palestinians.

In attempting to address issues of justice, conflict and peace between two parties, firstly the recognition and the acceptance of the other is paramount. Without acknowledging the rights and dignity of the other, how can justice ever prevail? It hasn’t for over 63 years, and it won’t until our recognition as a legitimate people; a legitimate people with full human rights and the right to statehood and self-governance is fully achieved in the United Nations General Assembly. Our recognition and acceptance into UNESCO is a positive step in this direction.

Diplomacy in the world today is dominated by political and economic inequalities and interests, or what many great geopolitical analysts have coined “Realpolitik. Yet still, despite the very powerful interests at work in the geopolitical fold today, many of which have staunchly opposed the Palestinian initiative and demands for legal recognition of statehood within the UN; this acceptance of Palestine into UNESCO proves that there is a broad consensus on the question of Palestinian statehood. That consensus is now clearer than ever.

Recognition is a vital process towards justice. Peace is to justice as a fig is to the tree that flowers it. No long-lasting peace has ever endured without a strong foundation of justice and equity for all parties involved. We wholeheartedly appreciate the UNESCO family for their generous recognition, support and stand on the question of Palestine. We, the people of Palestine, commend you for your integrity, fairness and righteousness in supporting the cause for justice.

Published: Paltegraph

Ayman Qwaider

ayman.qauder@gmail.com

Who Is Killing People in the Middle East?

2011-09-15T08:18:00.000-07:00

Thu, Sep 15, 2011

Africa, Anti-Human Rights, Chaosistan, Editorial, Middle East, War In Libya

By ORIENTAL REVIEW

Russian and Chinese refusal to support UN sanctions against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad at the end of August has caused a dramatic outburst of criticism in Western media and from the local human rights activists. On Tuesday the Facebook group ‘Syrian Revolution 2011’ posted a banner in Russian condemning Moscow for allegedly ‘killing the Syrians’. Let’s have a brief outlook on who is actually killing in Syria and other Arab countries.

Despite a common prejudice the rioters opposing the Syrian authorities are by no means ‘peaceful protestors’. The Syrian army and police fight against well-trained and properly armed professional raiders supported by the West and the fifth column inside Syria.

A police station in Hama, raided by ‘peaceful demonstrators’. 12 policemen were assassinated inside the building.

Since April the total record of Syrian soldiers, policemen and security officers assassinated by the ‘demonstrators’ has reached 600, while the number of injured is even higher. Many of them are killed by knifes with utmost cruelty. Every second shot by the long range sniper fire from upper locations (tops of the multistoried buildings) precisely above or under the vest. That’s a notably professional pattern of action. Although typical for Syria Soviet and Russian-made arms are being widely used in the clashes, many victims were hit by the weapons of Western origin having higher killing power, including pump rifles. There are many mutilated by improvised explosive devices.

An assassinated Syrian soldier having his throat cut by the assaulters.

A number of other photos of injured and killed Syrian soldiers were published on the RT web-site.

The tactics of provocations is another distinctive feature of opposition’s modus operandi set to keep the situation destabilized and create havoc and bloodshed. Having the most significant gangs already dispersed by the governmental forces, the opposition renews this tactics. Here is the message from Elena, who has relatives in Syria:

‘The gangsters were planning a series of debacles on 27th day of Ramadan (August 26). This is a special day for Muslims, Laylat al-Qadr (the Night of Destiny), when the sky is believed to be open and Allah is fulfilling all dreams. They wanted to organize a series of explosions and assassinations to cause people’s outrage. Syrian security agencies were timely informed about these plans and managed to detain around 200 plotters. There were several foreign specialists in subversive actions among the detained as well as Arab mercenaries from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and other countries. According to the evidence obtained, they were about to capture al Abbasein and al-Amaween squares in Damascus by pretending to organize pro-Assad march. When on the site, they schemed to change the slogans generating chaos, scuffles and eventually victims among the civilians.’ (Source in Russian)

NATO’s ‘humanitarian intervention’ in Libya has already led to unprecedented sufferings of the Libyan people. The so-called ‘new government of Libya’ has shown to their former patrons in the UK, France and Italy that they do not care much about the sentiments of international community. The mass lynching of black-skinned foreigners are now typical on the Libyan territories controlled by anti-Qaddafi forces. Mustafa Abdul Jalil, one of the leaders of Libyan Transitional National Council(TNC), has even admitted that ‘there are no bloodless revolutions… We should not be surprised if some casual victims of skirmishes are the case. Our soldiers cannot afford wasting time for identifying detained personalities. Their loyalty to the new authorities will be determined subjectively.’

A necropolis of blacks on a street of Tripoli

As a result the number of victims of the new regime among Libyan residents from Chad, Niger and Sudan is counted in thousands. Khamis al-Bass, a Saudi journalist reports from Libya: ‘On my eyes several uniformed men dragged an entire black family off their asylum, accused them in espionage for Qaddafi and hanged them all.’

The chairman of the African Union commission, Jean Ping, said many members of the Union had not yet recognized the TNC as the legitimate government of Libya because of reports of anti-black violence. He warned that the rebellion had left Libya unstable and its huge arms caches prey to looting by extremists and smugglers.

The perspective of turning Libya into a new lawless territory resembling Somalia or Liberia is thrillingly tangible. The civil war is gaining momentum as the NATO Special Forces get seemingly restrained from further involvement into conflict. Their loss toll is already too high. According to several insider reports, e.g. British SAS has lost 21 to 35 soldiers, most of them during the storm of Tripoli and helicopter crash on the Algerian border in August. So NATO apparently decided to pump the ‘new Libyan government’ with more weapons in the endeavor to turn the scale of the on-going faceoff in Libya in favor of TNC and wash the hands. For example, this week the Russian news agencies reported a massive arms shipment to the TNC from Moldova. An air-craft IL-76 arrived in Kishinev from Benghazi on Tuesday to be loaded by a ‘cargo of Moldavian army’s stores with expired date of usage’. Defense Ministry of the Republic of Moldova officially commented that ‘the shipment is being carried out according to the contract between the Ministry and a Latvian company’. Most likely the delivery of the second-hand Soviet weapons (there are no other sources actually available at Moldavian stores) to Benghazi was arranged by K.S.Avia Ltd, a Latvian Riga-based transportation firm and used Soviet arms supplier. (This company is notorious for multiple exports of the second-hand and unconditional military equipment from Ukraine, Belorussia and Poland to the Yemeni weapons market, which is a known hub for the cheap arms spreading throughout Arabian peninsular and beyond. Ironically, until recently this market has been totally controlled by the family of Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh. The current uprising in this country against acting president is a reflection of Yemeni and Saudi inter-elitist rivalry for the control over this super-lucrative business.)

Factually we can see that a small mediator from Latvia, a NATO country, starts playing a key role in channeling old Soviet-made weapons to the Afro-Asian conflict zones. The outcome of such arming would be extremely dangerous. That will lead to the escalation of civil war in Libya and other hotspots meaning more victims and more sufferings for the civilians. We have already written about this strategy in previous posts here and here.

The last but not least, it would be surprising if NATO pumping up Islamic Orient with old Soviet arms had not played the propagandistic card of ‘Russian weapons killing Arabs’. Indeed, since late August they have launched a ridiculous press campaign in Yemen, accusing Russia (!) of ‘supplying equipment to Saleh regime to be used against peaceful pro-democracy protesters’. In a propaganda stupor they are even claiming that the presidential palace in Sana’a is being defended by the Russian tanks T-92, a model that does not exist in nature! Here we will not get into details of US$ 4 billion deal for military modernization program of Yemeni army and police that United Statesprovided to President Saleh in the framework of counter-terrorism cooperation in 2010. We just take a note that the ‘military convoys’ coming to Yemeni port of Hodeida are contracted by the same dubious Latvian company K.S. Avia transporting arms to the Libyan Transitional National Council.

So who is killing people in the Middle East?

Resource:

ORIENTAL REVIEW

Is Gaza Occupied?

2011-08-18T23:40:00.000-07:00

So a journalist sends me a few questions for an article she is writing, those are the questions and my quickanswers.

1. In your opinion, is Gaza “occupied”by Israel?

2. What do you want Americans to know about the situation in Palestine?

3. What do you want Americans to know about the Arab or Muslim world?

4. Any additional comments

1) One must understand the definition of the word ‘occupation’ and then compare it with the facts on the ground in order to judge whether Gaza is indeed occupied by Israel or not. According to my dictionary, occupation means ‘Invasion, conquest, and control of a nation or territory by foreign armed forces’. Another definition is ‘The military government exercising control over an occupied nation or territory.’ Now let us act blind and try to find out whether this is the case in Gaza or not.

As a Palestinian living in Gaza, I am subject to random Israeli air strikes every now and then. Case in point would be the day previous to yesterday where the Israeli jets pounded my area with their missiles, using apaches, F16s, and helicopters. In the past couple of days, around 7 people were reported injured, two of whom are children. That is for armed forces. Then we move to our basic human right of movement. As a Palestinian from Gaza, I am destined to strive for at the very least three or four months to plan on leaving the strip for whatever purpose; be it educational, medical, vocational, or even for a holiday. I am destined to work 40 times harder to get the needed documents months in advance, and even then, the likely possibility is for me to be rejected and not allowed to leave the strip. Hundreds of people are rejected everyday at the Rafah crossing, due to the Israeli siege. It is noteworthy that also an engineer in Gaza is assigned the Gaza International Airport project, but Israel would not allow us to rebuild it. Other than movement would be trade. It is incredibly dangerous for any trader to engage in trade, noting that trade in Gaza means only imports as we are not allowed to export. What is allowed to pass through Israel is peanuts compared to the needs of 1.5 million locked up in this 360km2 of land. If it weren’t for the tunnel industry, as dangerous as it is, Gaza would be starving by now. Add to this the regular power cuts we face every single day. Every 8 hours, the power goes out and our only resort would be power generators. This is resulting from not allowing enough fuel to get into Gaza, of course by Israel. Not to mention also the restraints on sent and received mail; never mind the fact that it takes months to reach its destination, whether coming in or going out, but what you are allowed to ship is what matters (only papers and documents are allowed to be shipped in or out, nothing else). These are but few examples of the ‘control of a nation or territory by foreign armed forces’ mentioned in the definition of occupation, and the list goes on for whoever is living in Gaza or interested to know the facts. In the end, what does blockade and siege fall under if it weren’t ‘occupation’?

2) I want Americans to know that their tax dollars are contributing to one of the biggest injustices of modern history, resulting in a massive disproportionate use of power against a civilian population. I want Americans to try to understand what it is like to be under occupation, and to try to feel the anger jammed up inside every Palestinian for seeing their family suffer endlessly when there is very little that they can do about it. I also want Americans to know that violence is never an inherent part of the culture, and if it were them facing 63 years of pain, agony, oppression, displacement, humiliation, and massacres, they would do far more than homemade rockets. While Israel is supplied with the most destructive weapons of all time, on a constant basis, we are being locked up and forced to live a miserable life under a tight, inhumane blockade. We are dying in the hundreds, but the world is not paying attention. I want them to see the injustice in how a Palestinian life is nothing compared to a scratch an Israeli person might get. I want them also to notice the countless non-violent resistance approaches by the Palestinian people from years and years ago and continuing until this day, yet the response is always violence, murder, and oppression from the Israeli internationally-back armed forces; case in point would be the continuous Nabi Saleh peaceful protests that are always dispersed violently by the Israeli army. I want Americans to know that the Palestinians are paying for what Hitler did, and that we were never part of any victimization of the Jewish people. They came to this land, massacred my people and displaced them to settle there and build their country. I want them to know that my mother is a refugee and her family was thrown out of their home during the Nakba of 1948 (formation of Israel) to have an Israeli family live there instead. I also want Americans to know that Jews and Arabs in Palestine used to coexist peacefully, and it wasn’t until the Jewish immigrants (later called “Israelis”) who were supported by the British started to displace Palestinians from their livelihoods on farms owned by absentee landlords and then the creation of the state of Israel which puts the Jewish people (that are born to a Jewish mother) first, and any other citizen would be a second-class citizen with less rights, that the conflict started. I want them to open their eyes to apartheid in this part of the world, and if not act against it and against the discrimination and injustice it entails, then at least not to contribute to it.

3) I want Americans to think outside the box and open their eyes to the protests that are taking place across the Arab world in order to see that we all love democracy, love freedom, and love justice (contrary to what the media usually portrays). I want them to think of how such dictators as Mubarak, for instance, were supported by the American government for years, which shows the complicity of that government that advocates ‘democracy’. And I also ask them to not be too stupid to accuse Muslims in general of being terrorists, because terrorism knows no religion. This can be seen in the latest bombings in Norway that left over 90 innocent people killed, and how it was instantly claimed to be Islamic terrorists until the truth came out. Open your minds and hearts, stop contributing to the injustice and violence against innocent Arabs and Muslims and creating more enemies while you are at it, merely for domination and imperialistic purposes. Muslims respect and love all religions, and perhaps the most important verse in the Quran would be “There shall be no compulsion in [acceptance of] the religion” (2:256). My friends who were killed during Israel’s assault were named Musa (Moses) and Eesa (Jesus). In fact, we learn about Moses and Jesus in school as our prophets too, and we respect them that we name some of our children after them. Let us see each other as equal human beings and respect each other, and there shall be peace.

4) I want to shed light on Israel’s reaction to the PA appeal of UN recognition of a Palestinian state. Although this ‘state’ would mean giving up almost 80% of the land, Israel is rejecting it and is threatening us not to go on with it. I do not support this UN recognition anyway, but it just goes to show that no matter what we do, Israel will find a way to say no, and then they say it is us who do not want peace. We, as Palestinians, have tried everything in our pockets. What else are we supposed to do? What does Israel suggest?

I also blame the decent Jews for not rising up against Zionists, just as they blamed the decent Germans for not rising up against the Nazis. On the other hand, my love & respect goes to the decent and brave Jews who are opposing the crimes of Israel, most recent of those is Lucas, the American Jew who spoke about Palestine inside Israel and got beaten and arrested for it. And also the Jewish activists who come to Palestine, including Gaza, to show their solidarity. Our problem is not with Jews as many seem to believe, it is with the apartheid regime that puts people born to a Jewish mother as the standard, and everybody else is second-class. It is with those who claim that the Palestinian people never existed and those who see us as ‘cockroaches’ and not worthy of living. I don’t see them attacking Peter Griffin, from Family Guy, for saying Jew is the only religion with the word ‘ew’ in it! I mean I never heard a Palestinian say it, as funny as it is! Finally, I love Chuck Norris and I think if he were here, he would stand with the Palestinians in their struggle for justice, peace, and freedom!

Resource

Waging Non-Violent Action in Violent World

2011-07-22T17:22:00.000-07:00

by Imran Khan

“Non-violent refusal to co-operate with injustice is the way to defeat it.” R.M Gandhi

We live in an extremely violent world. States and transnational non-state actors use violence to achieve their political and strategic objectives, believing that use of violence is the most effective way to do so, notwithstanding that it does not work most of the time. Only the last decade (2001-2011) saw 9/11 terrorist attacks, a protracted and bloody war in Afghanistan, the American invasionof Iraq, Israeli aggression against Lebanon and Palestine, 7/7 bombing in London, terrorist attacks in Mumbai in 2008 and so on. Literally hundreds of thousands of people died in these violent conflicts and terrorist attacks. For that matter, the 20th century was perhaps one of the most violent centuries in human history, witnessing two world wars responsible for the deaths of millions of people.

Talking about Pakistan, we are used to violence in thiscountry. In the weeks and months leading up to the creation of Pakistan, the sub-continent witnessed mass killings of both Muslims and Hindus in communal riots. In 64 years of Pakistan’s history, we fought four wars against India. We launched at least four military operations against our Baloch brothers because they offended the state elite by asking for their legitimate rights. Although we haven’t fought any war against a foreign enemy during the last ten years, more than 35,000 Pakistanis were killed during this period in hundreds of terrorist attacks carried out by fellow Pakistanis ledby terrorist organizations.

(Fletcher Summer Institute participants with researchers and academics from Tufts University and ICNC)

Even now as I write this blog piece, Karachi – the biggest city of Pakistan – is burning due to ethnic-cum-political violence perpetrated by the armed gangs of mainstream political parties. They use violence in Karachi for their political ends. More than 100 people have died in target killings during the last two weeks. Not long ago, we witnessed the assassination of Salman Taseer, the then-governor of Punjab, at the hands of his own bodyguard for criticizing draconian blasphemy laws. Later, the Federal Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti – the only Christian member of the cabinet – was brutally assassinated under the same pretext. And yes, how can I forget the mysterious abduction and gruesome murder of the journalist, Saleem Shahzad.

While I work for Khudi Pakistan, a non-violent counter-extremism social movement working to promote democratic culture and pluralism, being a student of history and a Pakistani, I was carrying a baggage of violence when I went to the Fletcher International School to attend a course on Strategic Non-Violent Action (June 21-24). The people I met, the stories I heard and the ideas I was exposed to showed me the other side of the picture.

While I thought that 20th century was a century of war, bloodshed, suffering and genocide, it was also a century of strategic non-violent action, I was told. A century that witnessed many successful non-violent movements waged in different parts of the world.

(A session at the FSI 2011)

I did not know about the role Gandhi’s philosophy of Satyagraha and the civil resistance movement played in the Independence Movement of sub-continent. I was not aware of the strategies anti-apartheid activists used in South Africa to bring down the brutal and repressive Apartheid regime. With my class-mates at Fletcher, I studied the strategies the pro-democracy activists used in Chile and Serbia to bring down the ruthless dictatorships of Augusto Pinochet and Slobodan Milosovic respectively. I heard about the non-violent Solidarity Movement against the repressive communist regime in Poland. These stories convinced me that non-violent action as a political strategy has always had better chances of victory than violent action.

Erica Chenoweth, the author of Why Civil Resistance Works and an assistant professor of government at Wesleyan University, previously a fellow at Harvard University, told us in her talk that empirical evidence from history proved that non-violent movements had twice as much chances of success as violent movements. More than anything else, I was inspired by the great people I met at the Fletcher Summer Institute. People like Reverend James Lawson, a veteran of American Civil Rights Movement and a close associate of Dr Martin Luther King. Dr King once said: “Revered Lawson is the leading theorist and strategist of nonviolence in the world”. The volunteers Rev. Lawson trained in waging non-violent action launched a desegregation movement in 1960s in Nashville, a city in the US state of Tennessee, which eventually led to the desegregation in other parts of the US. The humble and soft-spoken reverend shared with us his experiences as a leader of civil rights movement.

It was a very enlightening experience listening to Jack DuVall and Dr Peter Ackerman – the founders of the International Centre on Non-Violent Conflict that hosted the course for us. Both Jack and Dr Ackerman have devoted their lives to the study and propagation of knowledge about strategic non-violent action. Identifying the elements required for the success of a movement, Dr Ackerman told us: “A civil resistance movement must unify the wider spectrum of society – young and old, all ethnic groups, religious groups, all economic strata – around a limited set of achievable goals. The second thing that is required is planning. There has to be the capacity for the leadership to look objectively at what its capabilities are, who it can mobilize, what tactics it can use, how to sequence those tactics that it has biggest negative impact on the opponent. The third element is non-violent discipline.” According to Dr Ackerman, these three elements are pre-requisite for the success of any civil resistance movement irrespective of the cultural and political context.

(Khudi activist Imran Khan with Palestinian activist Ayman Qwaider and Indian participant Ayushman Jamwal)

While Dr Ackerman taught us the strategies of non-violent civil resistance, I was thinking about Pakistan. I was relating what he was saying to Pakistan. Our lawyers’ movement for the restoration of the deposed Chief Justice of Pakistan had all three elements. Different segments of society were united under the leadership of lawyers, who immaculately planned their every move, organizing long marches and using the traditional and digital media very effectively. Non-violent discipline was also there. No matter how much force Musharraf regime used against peaceful lawyers, civil society and activists, the latter did not respond with violence.

Dr Ackerman told us during his talk that the conditions under which activists work are always difficult and dangerous. However, he said, we witnessed during the Arab Spring that the conditions can be changed by the skills of the activists. Since the activists were successful in mobilizing hundreds of thousands of people because of their superior skills and planning, it was no longer as dangerous to protest against the tyrants as it was before. The dictatorial regimes had become weaker, whereas the people had become stronger.

I made many amazing friends at the Fletcher Summer Institute. They are the people whose lives are an epitome of non-violent resistance in the face of oppression and tyranny. My friend Ayman Qwaider is a Palestinian activist, who has witnessed the brutality of the occupiers while working for various humanitarian organizations in Gaza. However, he still strongly believes in non-violent civil resistance. He thinks that brutality against brutality is not the solution. Born, raised and educated in Gaza, Ayman got a scholarship a few years ago to study in Europe. However, the Israeli Army refused to allow him to leave the strip because of their blockade. An undeterred Ayman launched a personal advocacy campaign on the social media, eventually forcing Israel to issue him a permit to leave Gaza. Mashallah Ayman has now completed his M.A in International Peace, Conflict and Development from a university in Spain and he is planning to continue his peaceful struggle for the liberation of Occupied Territories.

While India and Pakistan are archrivals, the people of two countries do not have innate hatred for each other. Far from that, we have so much in common. This is what I realized when I met Ayushman Jamwal, an Indian student from Cardiff University, at the Fletcher. We immediately became friends and spent most of our time together during the course. We discussed the history and politics of Indo-Pak relations. Ayushman criticized the atrocities Indian state has committed against Kashmiris and I castigated Pakistan for supporting non-state actors against India. Thank God neither of us was jingoistic, which made a constructive discussion and friendship possible. We discussed the curriculum taught in Indian and Pakistani schools and realized that both the states were teaching a pack of lies, a perverted and distorted interpretation of history to its future leaders. We concluded that whilst both states might continue their past policies, the people will have to come forward to make South Asia peaceful and prosperous.

Resource

The humanitarian situation in Gaza Strip - July 2011

2011-07-21T00:46:00.000-07:00

59 people were killed in accidents in tunnels, including 5 children, and 115 people were injured.

Since the beginning of 2010,The main crossing point for the movement of Palestinians to and from Gaza Strip (Rafah border with Egypt) remains limited to the passage of 500 people per day.

Please, spread this information as you can, and these dramatic and incontrovertible truth, write to friends, to newspapers, national and European parliamentarians, to anyone you want.

Gaza has 1.6 million inhabitants, more than 50% under the age of 18 years.

38% of Gazans live in poverty.

31% of the workforce in Gaza has no use and 47% of young people are unemployed.

54% of Gazans live in conditions of food insecurity and over 75% dependent on aid.

The economic output in 2010 was 20% lower than in 2005.

35% of agricultural land in Gaza and 85% of the fishable waters are totally or partially inaccessible due to Israeli military measures.

50 to 80 million gallons of partially treated sewage are discharged into the sea every day.

Over 90% of the water coming from the Gaza aquifer is not potable.

85% of Gaza's schools operate double or triple shifts.

United nations- office for coordination of humanitarian Affairs/occupied Palestinian territory

Resource

Reflection on Nonviolent Conflict Training Course, Boston 2011

2011-07-03T10:05:00.000-07:00

FSI is a setting for radical transformative empowerment. It’s likely that one might say I am exaggerating to start off my article with such a strong sentence. I have these feelings because I experienced them being a member amongst real united nations, full of inspiration and dedication to bring about change needed to be seen in their realities. Human rights, justice, freedom, aggression, intimidation, equality are part of the discourses I recognized and learned about from very experienced activists for freedom, justice, self-determination and equality. I often think that there are several forms of injustice taking place cross our globe, but all these forms of injustice result pain and suffering are at the same level for any nation regardless of its identity. Through an intense one week training program on nonviolent conﬂict at Fletcher School, I realized that the result of injustices and oppression are the same regardless of where conﬂict exists, in Palestine, Tibet, Colombia, Burma, and these are just a small number of conﬂict affected countries. When there is armed conﬂict, serious violations of human rights occur, and civilians are signiﬁcantly the most to suffer its consequences. Probably, what helped the most to keep me faithful and hopeful after being subjected to an enormous number of human rights violations, is the good people I met in the training course and seeing their dedication and commitment to being at hand and of assistance for deprived voiceless people. Attending the training course on nonviolent conﬂict at the Fletcher Summer Institute in Boston was a spark of inspiration which gives me energy to stay hopeful that justice will prevail. Ordinary people have absolute power is an overwhelming statement which always fascinates and empowers me. Having the chance to share real stories from different parts of world on issues of freedom, equality and justice and being introduced to various kinds of struggle, has assured me that people still have power to challenge state power, and people still have the ability to transform realities through nonviolent resistance. Attending the FSI training program has widened my perspective and allowed me to see issues from different angles. Further, it equipped me with the essential tool of self-empowerment. Nonviolent and civil resistance will prevail against radical injustices. Knowledge is power and self-empowerment. Being a part of the FSI has placed a great responsibility on my shoulders. International Civil society. Throughout listening to people’s testimonies ﬁrsthand, I felt the suffering they were subjected to in their countries. I was moved by certain stories and highly motivated to end these injustices.

Challenging Israeli apartheid, starting at Ben Gurion Airport

2011-06-21T20:40:00.000-07:00

by LAURA DURKAY on JUNE 20, 2011

From July 8-16, I will join hundreds of internationals for a week of solidarity actions in coordination with 15 Palestinian civil resistance organizations in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. To my knowledge, this will be the first attempt to bring such a large number of internationals—already over 500, according to organizers—to the West Bank and East Jerusalem in a coordinated manner. While Freedom Flotilla 2, sailing in the coming days, rightly puts the spotlight on Israel’s cruel blockade of Gaza, we intend to show that Israeli repression in the rest of historic Palestine—the West Bank, Jerusalem, and what is now Israel—is no less important and is part of the same project of ethnic cleansing and colonization.

The opening act of our week of nonviolent resistance is, in my opinion, its most creative and daring component. On a single day, July 8, hundreds of internationals and Palestinians living abroad will fly in to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport and perform one simple but radical action: refuse to lie about the fact that we are there to travel to the Occupied Territories and visit Palestinians.

Anyone who has traveled to Palestine knows the potential risks associated with this action. Israel controls all entry points into Palestine, except for the Rafah crossing into Gaza, which is controlled by Egypt and has its own Kafkaesque challenges. The Israeli government routinely denies entry to people it knows or simply suspects of being Palestine solidarity activists; journalists, academics and cultural workers sympathetic to the Palestinians; even people coming to do volunteer or charity work in the Occupied Territories.

This means that for years, the most common strategy among solidarity activists entering Palestine has been to keep your head down and lie about why you are there.

Plenty of us know the routine. You say that you’re a tourist. You play dumb about history and politics, and you never say you are going to visit Palestinians. You don’t point out the fact that every person of color in your group just got picked out for questioning. You submit calmly to interrogation and construct non-offensive half-truths, conveniently leaving out certain parts of your itinerary. When they search your stuff, you nod and say you understand it’s for “security reasons.” You swallow every rebellious instinct that brought you to Palestine in the first place and temporarily submit to a racist, invasive, intimidating security apparatus in the hope that they will deign to let you in to Palestine, and accept that this is the price to be paid for being able to do the work you want to do.

For the record, I don’t think there is anything inherently wrong with this strategy. In any given situation, the most useful way to interact with agents of the Israeli state is a tactical decision. I understand there are many groups of people who do not have the luxury of pissing off Israeli security: people who depend on free movement in and out of Palestine for work, study, or to see family; those engaged in long-term projects in the region for whom maintaining access to the Occupied Territories is crucial; those engaged in critical media work that gets Palestine’s story out to the world; those who may be in a more vulnerable position for any number of reasons.

But at the same time, we should be clear that Israel’s border controls and repressive entry policies are part of the apartheid system—a big part. Entry restrictions on solidarity activists, journalists, and NGO workers are a natural outgrowth of the restrictions that prevent a large percentage of the worldwide Palestinian population from returning to their own country and/or moving about freely within it. They are a component of the elaborate matrix of borders, walls, checkpoints, permits, soldiers and secret police by which the Israeli government exerts a choke-hold on free movement and political activity throughout occupied Palestine. They are part and parcel of the occupation machinery that seeks to isolate the Occupied Territories and make life there unbearable so that Palestinians will leave, and that frequently forces them out whether they want to go or not. And like all other parts of the apartheid system, they deserve to be challenged.

This year’s Nakba and Naksa Day protests saw Israel besieged on every one of its garrisoned borders by unarmed Palestinians simply wanting to return home. At the end of this month, Freedom Flotilla 2 will defy Israel’s punitive and illegal naval blockade of the Gaza Strip. We see the July 8 fly-in as our contribution to the new movement that is chipping away at Fortress Israel.

Some fellow activists have raised the possibility that this action will result in nothing more than hundreds of us being summarily deported, and possibly banned from entering Palestine in the future. It is entirely possible that this will happen, and anyone participating in this action should be aware of the risk. It seems to me a very small risk to take in comparison to the crushing violence Palestinians have stood up to for over 60 years. While this action is not for everyone, I believe the time is right for those in a position to expose and nonviolently resist Israel’s repressive entry policies to do so on a mass scale.

Just as no one thinks one flotilla (or two or three) is going to bring the siege of Gaza to an end, no one believes this one day of action will immediately alter the state of affairs at Ben Gurion Airport and the rest of Israel’s borders. In the short term, it is possible that it may even make airport personnel more suspicious and aggressive. That is how oppressors respond to acts of resistance. They often become more aggressive before they are defeated, because they rightly sense that the momentum is on the side of justice.

July 8, and the week of solidarity it opens, is one step in the long process of taking down the apartheid system. The Arab revolutions, the growing BDS movement, and Israel’s own increasingly hysterical reactions to nonviolent protest have radically accelerated the timeline of that process from what many of us believed possible only a few years ago. Israeli apartheid’s days are numbered, and now is the moment to challenge it on every front.

Laura Durkay is a member of Siegebusters Working Group and the International Socialist Organization in New York City. You can follow updates from the week of solidarity on her personal blog, Laura on the Left, and on Twitter at @lauradurkay.

Individuals interested in participating in the July 8-16 week of solidarity should email info@palestinejn.org or visit http://www.palestinejn.org/ for more details.

Resource

GISHA: The top 10 reasons why the opening of Rafah Crossing just doesn't cut it

2011-06-20T17:21:00.000-07:00

In no particular order of importance, we thought we'd list some of the reasons why the opening of Rafah, while significant and helpful, doesn't meet all of Gaza's needs for access and why, as some voices in Israel have recently suggested, it can't serve as Gaza's only access point. Despite four unanticipated days of closure last week, the crossing has been operating for the passage of travelers on a more regular but still semi-limited basis.

1.Passage through the crossing remains limited: Egypt has indicated that it will operate the crossing six days per week during regular working hours, but it seems this won't be enough: between 400 - 450 individuals have been able to travel through the crossing per day from Gaza to Egypt. From November 2005 to June 2006, approximately 660 passengers per day exited the Gaza Strip through Rafah and according to the Palestinian Crossings Authority, 10,000 people are currently waiting to travel.

2.The situation is unstable: As last week's closure of the crossing indicates, the situation on both sides of Rafah remains unstable, such that it's not clear whether the crossing will remain open, nor exactly to what degree.

3. Rafah doesn't lead to the West Bank: Travel and movement of goods between Gaza and the West Bank remains severely limited, a problem which Rafah cannot address, as goods and Gaza ID holders are not allowed into the West Bank even via the Egypt-Jordan route. The West Bank and the Gaza Strip are part of the same customs envelope, and are recognized, including by Israel, as a single territorial unit, which, despite four years of tight closure, still shares one economy, one education system, one healthcare system and countless familial and social ties.

4. Export is not moving and not through Rafah either: Export remains severely limited (about 2 truckloads per day, the last of which left Gaza on May 1, 2011, compared with a target of 400 per day in the Agreement on Movement and Access) and is currently not taking place through Rafah at all. This is impacting industries across Gaza which used to sell or export their wares in Israel, the West Bank and abroad. Before the closure, the vast majority of Gaza’s "exports" were sold in Israel and the West Bank.

5.Construction materials do not enter through Rafah: Construction materials are being let into Gaza via Kerem Shalom only (between Israel and Gaza) for approved projects undertaken by international organizations and following exceedingly lengthy bureaucratic procedures. Each month since January 2011, about 10% of what entered monthly in the years prior to June 2007 has entered for these specific projects. At present, Egyptian authorities have not indicated if or when they will allow construction materials to pass at Rafah.

6. Import of goods does not take place at Rafah: Imports to the Strip purchased by the private sector enter Gaza from Israel via Kerem Shalom Crossing. Even if Egypt were to allow goods to enter at Rafah (and there is no indication that they intend to do so nor when) the crossing and surrounding roadways are not currently equipped to handle the transfer of large quantities of goods, on the scale of the access needs of the Strip.

7. Humanitarian aid does not regularly enter through Rafah: Aid enters Gaza via Kerem Shalom Crossing, between Gaza and Israel. At present, Egyptian authorities have not indicated if or when they will allow convoys of humanitarian aid to pass at Rafah.

8.Medical patients in need of treatment not available in Gaza cannot always make the long journey to Egyptian hospitals. In any case, Palestinian hospitals in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, part of a common Palestinian health care system, are there to serve all residents of the Palestinian territory, including Gaza residents.

9. Reports prove it: Restrictions on access at the crossings between Israel and Gaza (at Kerem Shalom for goods and Erez for people) continue to impact the well-being of residents of the Strip. Yesterday UNRWA published a study showing high rates of unemployment and the Association for International Development Agencies also reported recently on how limits on the entrance of construction materials primarily impacts the work of aid agencies and residents of Gaza.

10. Rafah doesn't lead to the West Bank: Oh wait, did we say that already? Well, we're saying it again, because it's very, very important.

معا لنغير واقع فلسطين هذا الصيف

2011-06-13T01:29:00.000-07:00

معا لنغير واقع فلسطين هذا الصيف

لجان المقاومة الشعبية ومؤسسات المجتمع المدني الفلسطيني ومناصري ونشطاء السلام وحقوق الإنسان و أصحاب الضمائر الحية في كل العالم يدعون الجميع لنشاطات في فلسطين في الفترة بين 8-16 /7. مئات ألأجانب استجابوا للدعوة وبانضمام أعداد كبيرة من الفلسطينيين نستطيع عمل الكثير للتغيير. لندركْ أنّ الدخول بالمئات لفلسطين عبر مطار بن جوريون في فترة 24 ساعة سيرسل رسالةً واضحةً لإسرائيل لاحترام الحقوق الإنسانيّة الأساسيّة للذين يريدون زيارة فلسطين. يمكنكم زيارة موقع حملة الحق في الدخول على http://www.righttoenter.ps. سيكون هناك برنامج فعاليات ومقاومة شعبية في القدس ومحافظة بيت لحم والخليل ورام لله والأغوار والنقب الخ.

إنّ الفلسطينين في فلسطين التاريخية و المنفى لا زالوا يؤمنون بالعمل من أجل السلام المبني على العدل وبمساعدة المجتمع المدني نستطيع أنْ نحقّقَ سلامنا و حريتنا. نحن نؤمن بالمقاومة الشعبيّة كوسيلة لاستعادة حقوقنا كما اعترفت بها القوانين الدوليّة. نحن نؤمن -بناء على تجاربنا الناجحة السابقة- أنّ كلَّ فردٍ منّا تقع عليه مسؤوليّةٌ ويستطيع أن يصنع التغيير اللازم. ندعوكم للإنضمام إلينا لكي نكون التغيير الذي تريدون أن تروه في هذا العالم. إنّ تجربتنا السابقة في هذه الفعاليات كانت ناجحة مثلا أنظر فعاليات شهر 12 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rif2ZSSeRok وفعاليات يوم النكبة 15/5 والنكسة 5/6 وأسطول الحرية. هناك عددٌ كبير ملتزم بالحضور والمشاركة في هذه النشاطات وأكثر من 100 متطوع محلي.

مجموعات النشطاء المحليّين في أوروبا وامريكا الشمالية واللاتينية ومناطق أخرى من العالم تقوم بترتيب قدوم الوفود إلى فلسطين. وقد قامت المجموعات المحلية المدرجة أدناه بتكوين لجانٍ مختصّة للعمل في نواحٍ(قانونية, وإعلامبة, ولوجستية,وتواصل, وبرنامج) ولقد شرعت في العمل. راسلونا على info@palestinejn.org اذا كنتم تودون التواصل أو المساعدة مع المجموعات المنسقة في بلدكم أو محليا في فلسطين. معا لمرحلة جديدة للتغيير والحرية.

مسرح الرواد alrowwad-acts.ps شبكة العدالة لفلسطين palestinejn.org

مركز بديل badil.org المركز الفلسطيني للتقارب بين الشعوب PCR.PS

أصدقاء الحرية و العدالة في بلعين bilin-ffj.org الحملة الشعبية- اوقفوا الجدار stopthewall.org

مؤسسة هولي لاند ترست holylandtrust.org مشروع المناصرة palestinesolidarityproject.org

اللجان التنسيقية للمقاومة الشعبية popularstruggle.org مركز سراج للسياحة البديلة sirajcenter.org

شباب ضد الاستيطان youthagainstsettlements.org حركة التضامن العالمية palsolidarity.org

مركز المعلومات البديلة alternativenews.org مركز العمل المجتمعي- القدس cac-alquds.org

حملة شدو الرحال من أجل القدس pncj.org الإغاثه الطبية الفلسطينية PMRS.ps

مبادرة الدفاع عن الأراضي المحتلة OPGAI.net مركز العودة-بيت ساحور

مركز شباب مخيم عايده key1948.org اللجان الشعبية في عدة قرى ومواقع

Mind the Strip Documentary

2011-06-12T08:39:00.000-07:00

Mind the Strip is a documentary to highlight a story of Ayman Qwaider, Gazan student who had difficulties to access the closing borders of Gaza to pursue his studies in Spain. It does not often happen that students can easily get out from the blockade in Gaza Strip pursuing their further studies abroad. Ayman had numerous obstacles to reach his goal in Spain and pursue his masters’ studies. After working tirelessly and contacting anyone who would listen to his story, comprehensive media campaign, he received his longed-for transit permit from Israel in order to exit the Gaza Strip and travel to University of Jaume I in Spain, to pursue a graduate degree in Peace, Conflict & Development Studies (how appropriate!).

Facebook Event in Girona, Spain June16

Mind the Strip Facebook page

Website: Mind the Strip Website

Let´s take part of ending injustices happening in Palestine

2011-06-12T08:22:00.000-07:00

Dear friends,Palestinian civil society organizations applaud the Freedom Flotilla that will again, in May, challenge the brutal and illegal siege of the people of Gaza. Decent people around the world will be working in support of this international intiative.

While we rightly focus on Gaza we must not forget that Israeli colonial authorities are implementing their racist apartheid policies throughout historic Palestine. In the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and in the Negev and the Galilee, ethnic cleansing and killing/injuring civilians are just some of the many violations of basic human rights. The aim is always to keep us isolated as well as divided, the better to achieve the goal of dispossessing us.

For this reason, we call on civil society organizations and people of conscience around the world to support and join the other important international challenge this summer to the Israeli siege of the whole of Palestine. The daily indignities heaped on the Palestinian people are reflected in the attitude of officials at Tel Aviv airport to prevent any humanitarian/solidarity trips. Israel’s attempts to prevent entry by peace activists even though the occuupied Palestinian Territories are recognized internationally as illegally occupied by Israel. We must oppose Israel’s arbitrary, unlawful, and abusive behavior (See the Right to Enter Campaign at http://www.righttoenter.ps/)
A week of solidarity: 8 – 16 July

Hundreds of men, women and children fly into Tel Aviv airport to visit us in the occupied Palestinian territories The international community must recognize our basic human right to receive visitors from abroad and support the right of their own citizens to travel to Palestine without harassement. We call upon citizens of many countries to visit us on July 8th. Where Israel works to isolate us, we invite you to join with us openly and proudly as the decent human beings you are. We do not accept the attempts to keep us apart or to force you to speak less than with the honesty you are used to.

You will be accommodated locally. You will enjoy Palestinian hospitality and a program of networking, fellowship, and volunteer peace work in Palestinian towns and villages (e.g. land reclamation).

For futher details please check:
http://bienvenuepalestine.com/?page_id=232

Palestinian Activist Says Obama Speech "Irrelevant"

2011-05-21T08:05:00.000-07:00

Palestinian Activist Says Obama Speech "Irrelevant"

“Social networking helped me realize my right to education.”

2011-04-06T05:21:00.000-07:00

©Ayman Qwaider

Ayman Qwaider, a 24-year-old Palestinian student from Gaza, has led several parallel lives: student, teacher, humanitarian worker and blogger.

Ayman is currently an intern in UNESCO’s Education Sector, working with and learning about post-conflict post-disaster education as part of a Master’s degree in peace studies. “I believe in the importance of education for transforming societies and resolving conflicts,” he says. “I know this from experience.”

After completing his primary and secondary education in UNRWA schools, and graduating in 2008 from the English programme of the Islamic University of Gaza (Palestinian Authority), Ayman became first a teacher, then a humanitarian worker. “I was Child Welfare Programme Officer with a number of international NGOs,” he explains. “During this time Ayman started blogging about daily life in Gaza. His main ambition, however, was to travel abroad and pursue peace studies. The blog and his social network ultimately made that possible.

Ayman was interested in the International Master’s degree in Peace, Conflict and Development Studies (or “Peace Master”) which is one of the activities of the UNESCO Chair of Philosophy for Peace at the Jaume I University in Castellón, Spain. He applied for a scholarship financed by the Bancaja-Caja Castellón Foundation and was accepted for the session from February 2010 to May 2012.

With the help of a go-between – an Israeli friend he had met online, who benefited from greater mobility than he – Ayman obtained a Spanish student visa. Once his papers were in order, he booked a flight for 1 February 2010. However, like several hundred other scholarship students, he was prevented from leaving Gaza. The Master’s degree programme began without him.

Having tried and failed to get support from official channels (embassies, NGOs such as Amnesty International, even the European Parliament), he turned to social networking. The week before he was due to start his studies, Ayman posted an article on his blog called “I have a dream” recounting his difficulties with the Israeli authorities in trying to leave Gaza. “It was non-accusatory,” he explains”. I was just asking for the basic right to pursue an education.” He ended the article with the sentence: “I am appealing and calling lawyers, politicians, journalists and all activists for human rights to join the fight for me and my right to the education that I have always dreamed of.”

The response was overwhelming: Ayman’s online friends translated his appeal into English, Spanish, French, Catalan and Hebrew. It was picked up by bloggers everywhere. A Facebook campaign was launched and acquired 1000 followers while an online petition gathered almost 2000 signatures in the first week, many from Israel. Ayman had become a cause célèbre.

“Social networking helped me realize my right to education,” Ayman claims. Following the international mobilization Ayman finally received his permission to travel. He arrived in Spain one week late for class. At the Jaume I University, he is taking several courses on aspects of human rights education, peace education and conflict transformation. “It is a very healthy environment where I am also being educated in mulitculturality,” he says. “Thanks to these courses I have became more aware about different conflicts taking place around the world.” Ayman also shared first-hand experience with people who have lived in conflict situations. “It assured me that conflicts are the same everywhere, and that humanity is humanity wherever we are.”

Ayman recently visited Austria to study UN Peacekeeping. This was part of his Master’s degree, as is his current internship in UNESCO. He is frequently invited to give conferences and is now writing a project proposal targeting youth in Arab countries. The title? “How to use social networking to promote human rights education in the Arab world.”

04.04.2011

Source:

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/single-view/news/social_networking_helped_me_realize_my_right_to_education/

Skype with Gaza: A Story of Ahmed Qwaider

2011-04-03T15:44:00.000-07:00

Ayman Qwaider

April 4th.

After recent bombings in my home the Gaza Strip, I finally had an opportunity to speak with my brother Ahmed, 23 years old on skype. The focus of our conversation was my brother's job search after "recent" graduation from his university in Gaza—The Islamic University.

Below are excerpts from our chat.

Ayman: Brother, what are you doing now?

Ahmed: I am waiting the exam from Government in order to get a job and I am fed up from situation in Gaza.

Ayman: Which government are you applying for and what is the nature of the job you might get?
Ahmed: I have applied for the government in Gaza because you are aware of our unfortunate situation: we are two governments under occupation. (I applied just) in case I will get accepted, though I am not hopeful. Because I will end up in front of office and not practice any of the skills I learned at University because Israel’s government still prevent all construction material to get to Gaza which makes it quite complicated to find a job in the field and to practice what I have leaned at University.

I was proud that my brother was striving to be employed, and wondered how he passes his time.

Ayman Qwaider: What are you doing nowadays?

Ahmed: I spend most of my time taking training and receiving courses; this how the Gaza graduated engineers end up in Gaza.

After a while, the conversation turned to the issues of violence that Gaza experiences daily. Having left Gaza 1 year ago myself, I rely heavily on information from family members such as my brother, to give me details of my home. Media sources are often inaccurate.

Ahmed relayed his experience during a receiving bombing and how it affected him personally.

Ayman Qwaider: How is the current situation in Gaza?

Ahmed: Insecure, deprived and no glace of hope at all. One day we feel hope and 10 days we are lost. I am not even able to think of the upcoming future. Dreams you are not allowed to have in Gaza. Almost every day, people of Gaza are exposed to the Gaza common theme, bombardment, cut off electricity, and blockade.

Ayman Qwaider: Has the Israeli army waged attacks recently?

Ahmed: Ayman, I want to tell you a joke; it sounds funny but it is ridicules.

Ayman Qwaider: Yes please share it; I miss jokes from Gaza.

Ahmed: Three days ago I was up at out home sleeping at my room. It was around 3 am and the power was off. I heard a sort of an Israeli F16 fighter jet but it was a bit far from us. Then I said to myself, let me back to my bed. AS soon as I got back to bed, a big voice of explosion took place somewhere close to us, but I had no idea where exactly. As you know, in my room there is a sort of big decorated star which is made of plaster hanged at the ceil. It felt down in the ground and I had the feeling that the rocket ended up in my room. It was super crazy and I was really terrified. I left my rood down to my family floor creaming when I felt that the attack is just close.

Ayman: How do you feel now?

Ahmed: Ayman, look, I have been passing though such hard week now. I was send to doctor to check my health situation after the attack. I am really suffering bad psychological situation now due to this attack. It was really massive and it walked up all people around. I do not know when this will come to an end?!

As a peacebuilder myself, I felt moved to say something encouraging. I tried to provide moral and emotional support to Ahmed in his times of trial. My own thoughts and feelings regarding the situation came out as well.

Ayman: Ahmed, I am extremely sorry but I really feel bad and I am powerless to change this. But you should keep in mind that any system of injustice will come to an end. I am sure of it exactly as I am talking to you right now. I am assuring you that justice and peace will prevail soon inshallah. And what people of Gaza expose to is really system of injustice. I really would like you to show more strength and patience, please. I am aware that the situation I tough but am sure that tomorrow will be better. Just take good care of yourself now and be strong. I do really not understand it at all, how human being is able to dehumanize human being like this. It is totally desperate situation and I really feel sorry of this Israeli solider how he is not forgetting all principals of humanity and just bomb. Ahmed, I do not know what to say, but keep dreaming of good future and tomorrow will be shine inshallah.

Ahmed explained that while he was hopeful, the violence affected his will to stay in Gaza, his job-seeking resolve, and his motivation to work for the government.

Ahmed: Shukran (thank you) for the support and every day I pray that this will come to an end and people of Gaza would have a normal secured life like you now in Paris. I am really worried about our young siblings and the kinds in Gaza as well. Imagine, if this happened to be and I was supper terrified, what about young kids? I am really hoping of good future and this system of dehumanizing human being will end up soon.

Ahmed: I am thinking seriously to pursue my post-graduate studies, please in case you come cross any opportunity, let keep me posed.

Ayman: I could imagine how children feel in Gaza. I worked with them in Gaza and I experienced really profound problems which children suffer from such harsh situation. Children should never be part of any conflict and they should entitle for their childhood rights with health and secured environment. This is how I have been tough in my master about human rights. I will let you know in case I come cross any opportunity for post-graduate studies.

Ayman: Now, are you that motivated to join the government and to start working in case you get accepted?

Ahmed: Ayman look, I am not that motivated as you expect, but we have no choice in Gaza expect join the government and working at office. I just explained to you. And you know the situation in Gaza, so many times, employers got killed in a governmental building, people killed with no reason whatsoever. I really do not want to end up my life quite recent. The story is quite easy: they come up with the F16th fighter jet and then bomb the building and then you become breaking news just in Gaza. This is how many governmental workers life ended up.

Ayman: You are totally right Ahmed and I could imagine how you could feel whilst working in unsecured office hearing bombardment from time to another. Sometimes, they just call for evacuation for these governmental building as soon as they hear F16 jet flying in the skies. It is really despite and I am really sorry brother.

We ended the 30-minute conversation discussing our own family. I learned of my siblings and what they were doing, and my parents. I do not know when I will get a chance to speak with or see Ahmed again; I only hope that he, and the rest of my family, is safe, and that the atrocities come to an end with peace in the Middle East.

Come peace train and pick me up

2011-03-18T13:45:00.000-07:00

Come peace train and pick me up

Ayman Qwaider & Abeer Abaid

March 18.

Give me my freedom and childhood back: a statement stressed on through an action day taking place on March 18th in Al Maghzi Refugee camp stationed in the Gaza Strip. Remarkably some 10,000 refugee camp kids gathered and participated in the action day entitled We Need Freedom….We Need Childhood.

Despite the fact that the Gaza Strip residents have been enduring a profound and extraordinary living conditions as a result of the on-going unlawful Israeli’s government blockade, regular military activities and internal Palestinian political conflict, children still dream of happiness and going back their normal lives.

"I am still dreaming of a better world dominated by peace and tranquility. It is more than enough what we; children in Gaza have to cope with in the 21st country. We believe that war is incredibly costly and devastating in the meanwhile, peace is much cheaper and adorable" says Asmhan Shaaban a fifteen year-old child from Al Maghzi refugee camp who participated in the event.

For several decades, exposure to tension and violence in the local community has resulted in tremendous negative repercussions for the children. This lingering situation has had negative consequences on all aspects of life, including education, health, economic situation and financial status, and social interactions and interpersonal relationships.

"When I take part in this event, I feel cheerful and relaxed. I like playing and getting my face painted. I love peace, I love the world. I dream of a better tomorrow for us, the children in Gaza where we can have a peaceful and secured environment. I need to walk around my neighborhood peacefully and pick pretty flowers. I do not like to hear Israeli fighter jets or bombardments," another participant told the organizers.

The action day was organized by the Gaza Art Gallery committee team that is organized by Unlimited Association Friends, a local non-governmental organization based in AL Maghzi Refugee camp, and sponsored by a Dutch association, Rotterdam for Gaza. The action day organizers pointed out that this event shows how the world is interconnected and human beings should share with others’ human rights grievances and happiness. Abeer Abaid, an event organizer, graciously gave her time for an interview. She extended her gratitude to Rotterman for Gaza, stating that the organization based in the Netherlands had provided outstanding support and helping make the children’s dreams come true and bringing them a little bit of happiness.

The event started directly with children at the end of the children’s school day. They were escorted by funny clowns walking around the refugee camp alleys while music and live performances were being performed. It was a public invitation for children from the refugee camp to join the biggest children’s caravan organized in Al Maghzi Refugee camp. The caravan ended up at the main refugee UNRWA (United Nation Relief and Work Agency) sports club. It was an amazing popular festival taking place in one of the most densely populated camps in Gaza and everyone was invited to share it with the children.

With smiling and painted faces, children happily joined the activities suggested, along with the youth volunteer participants. Among the activities carried out were music performances, puppet shows, and a traditional Palestinian dance, the Dabka. The event succeeded in drawing smiles for over 10,000 thousand faces, restoring the sense of hope and belief in peace for its young participants. The event stressed on the fact that the children in Gaza are not left alone and there are millions of people outside Gaza who believe in humanity, peace and justice with constant support for freedom and love.

We Need Childhood…We need Freedom

2011-03-14T03:52:00.000-07:00

Setting:

Day & Date: Thursday March 17th, 2011

Venue: Maghazi Refugee Camp

Special Invitation

The Unlimited Friends Association cordially invites you to our action day for children entitled:

We Need Childhood…We need Freedom

The event aims at creating space for children from the Al-Maghazi Refugee camp and rebuilding the peace and love inside them. Several activities will be carried out, including Puppets' shows and popular Dabka.

The Unlimited Friends Association welcomes the participants, branding the event as a quest for freedom, and an endeavor to allow children to spend some time out of the stress and frustration.

The Unlimited Friends Association declares that this event voices a message that calls for defying the siege and emphasizing children's rights to live like any other children all over the world. Children voice slogans saying:"No to Siege, No to Destruction" & “Yes to peace, yes to love”.

The event sponsored by: Rotterdam for Gaza
http://rotterdam4gaza.wordpress.com/

Yours truly
Ayman Qwaider

US vetoes UNSC resolution on Israeli settlements

2011-02-19T02:39:00.000-08:00

Dear friends,

President Obama has just missed out on an opportunity to bring a major change in direction to the Peace Process between Palestine and Israel by vetoing a resoltion which had been backed by over 130 members including all 14 other members of the security Council (even the UK): http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12512732

Please write to President Obamam telling him how you feel about his decision:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact

Thanks for your support,

Suggested email to President Obama:

Dear President Obama,

After promsing a better relationship with the Arab World, I am astonished and bewildered by your cowardly response to the Resolution condemning Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories as an obstacle to peace.

All fourteen other members of the security council (including the UK) backed the resolution while you ceded to Israeli pressure groups. Israel has had problems with its neighbours since its formation and it is now time for a tougher stance from the US if a peaceful solution is to be found.

I urge you to lead the way to two-State solution. I urge you to change your position and back the resolution.

Your sincerely,

Invitation of Humanity

2011-02-14T16:50:00.000-08:00

Peace students from over 40 countries around the world gathered in the name of humanity and justice. Leaving behind other identities, students came together today February 14 to send a message of love and humanity to children of Gaza that you are not alone. The message is this: "Our hearts and minds are with you. Humanity cannot be divided whether in Gaza or any part of the world”. Students and others present pledged their support to the children of Gaza during the hard times you are enduring under the Israeli system of injustices and inequalities, represented through on-going Israeli blockade imposed on you, depriving you from adequate drinkable water.

Peace students gathered at University of Jaume 1 to send out a message of solidarity and humanity to children in Gaza in through an outstanding event called Comidas del mundo, “Food of the World”. The event aimed at raising awareness about the current water crisis in the Gaza Strip that has profound negative impact on the heath of Gaza children. The event proved that humanity has no borders when it comes to children; the participants stressed that their assistance must reach children of Gaza despite the fact that Gaza is currently is under blockade and borders are shut down.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dvx6WdTFSfo&feature=player_embedded

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH AYMAN QWAIDER

2011-02-10T16:23:00.000-08:00

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH AYMAN QWAIDER

10. Feb, 2011 Print This Article! 0 Comments

Ayman Qwaider, is a 24 years old humanitarian activist who has a bachelor’s degree in the English language and General Education. He was born in Nuserate Refugee camp which is located in the middle of the Gaza strip . He has worked in different fields for 4 years prior and after terminating his universtiy studies.

During his university studies, he has volunteered in different local humanitarian organizations, where he developed social activism skills. He organized a series of projects for refugee camp children who have endured devastating conditions due to the Israeli military activities and its Assault on Gaza , and the on-going blockade. Part of that work included active participating in practical community initiatives carried out by young people.

Two years prior to leaving Gaza to complete is master’s in Spain , he has also participated in the Palestinian International Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza. Throughout his time working for this campaign, he took part in organizing many non-violent activities that enjoyed the support of many international civil societies, Israeli human rights organizations and other solidarity groups from across the world. The main objective of this campaign has been peaceful and non-violent struggle, coupled with international media campaigns to unmask the Israeli siege over the Gaza Strip.

___________________________

Exclusive Interview with Ayman Qwaider

Please describe what life is like for Palestinian from Nuseirat, a refugee camp situated in the middle of the Gaza Strip?

Ayman Qwaider: The living conditions in a Palestinian refugee camp have been the same ugly picture since 1948, when the indigenous peoples of that area were forced out of their homes by well-armed and funded non-indigenous Jewish immigrants just arriving from Europe intending to create an exclusively-Jewish state known as Israel. It would be pretty hard to describe what life for such a refugee is like in only a few sentences, and even with that, it truly is something that unless you experience it you will more than likely not understand.

Part of the painful history endured by these refugees is that their situation is very harsh. Without assistance agencies such as UNRWA–the United Nations Relief and Work Agency–and other humanitarian agencies to keep their life sustainable they would simply cease to exist. The overall awareness amongst the 1.5 million people living in Gaza is the feeling of insecurity and uncertainty. It is difficult for a human being to live in an unstable and insecure environment such as the Gaza Strip where people are constantly exposed to all colors of human rights violations. Every day the mother sends her children to school to receive an education, but she is not assured of having lunch for them or not…The farmer takes care and cultivates his land, but he is not sure that he will eat what his hands have created. The Gazan fisherman goes every day to fish but is not certain he will make it back alive to feed his family. Students spend 12 years in their studies but are not sure they will be able to pursue higher education. In the rare case students are allowed to exit Gaza to study they are unable to visit their families on holidays. The only EU-funded Gaza international airport that is supposed to connect 1.5 million Gazans with the outside world has been totally destroyed by our Israeli occupiers. This a brief overview about the current unstable and insecure existence in the Gaza Strip due to the four-decade Zionist occupation of our lands.
What was your education in Gaza like?

Ayman Qwaider: I received my overall education in UNRWS School (United Nation Relief and Working Agency) in Nuserate Refugee Camp. Despite the unstable drastic conditions that dominate in the Gaza Strip, I had a regular education. I finished my degree at the Islamic University of Gaza in January 2008 where I studied English and Education. As “normal” as all this may sound, the truth is that the situation for students in Gaza is completely different from those studying outside of Palestine. Most students here never get the chance to prove their true potential. I am 100 percent certain that they have the desire and energy to do so, but they are simply not given the space to demonstrate their abilities. Of course, the students are seriously affected by the on-going siege of the Gaza Strip; we cannot get the materials we need, such as books, stationary and even paper. In the most recent one-sided war, several of my university buildings were partially (or in some cases COMPLETELY) destroyed. With the borders closed by Israel, no raw materials are being allowed into Gaza, so those buildings that were destroyed a year ago are still lying in piles of rubble.

I can still remember the time I was still in secondary school before the withdrawal of Israeli settlers from Gaza in 2005, when the Israeli army would block the road that ran from where I lived to where my school was. So, from an early age I learned the education of occupation.

You were 14 years old when the 2nd intifada started. Did you take part in it? What did you do at this time?

Ayman Qwaider: Great question. I was 14 years old when the second Intifada erupted in 2000. Needless to say that second Intifada was dominated by the sense of violence and destruction carried out by the Israeli aggressive occupation. It was pretty hard for me to get engaged in the Intifada in the sense of using violence as I do not believe in it. Therefore I (alongside my friends) helped in organizing regular demonstrations to challenge the occupation and raise up our voice to the entire world concerning the system of injustices Palestinian are forced to endure. Though the occupation has been brutal, I have built my capacity in learning how to challenge occupation with peaceful means. I joined a set of programs to educate people on how to endure life under occupation during the Intifada.

During the winter of 2008-2009 Operation Cast Lead was waged by Israel against the Palestinians of Gaza. What did you and your family experience during such hard times?

Ayman Qwaider: It would be hard to express our feelings during the time of this one-sided war. I do not prefer to refer to the war as a Cast lead, because it’s hard for a rational human being to give such name for a military operation that dehumanizes human beings the way it did. In short, it was 3 weeks of uninterrupted terror. 23 sleepless nights hearing the continuous noise of gunfire…All sectors of life had been paralyzed, from education to health care. Each and every minute during this brutal massacre you are sure you are the next victim. Part of ongoing occupation, Palestinians in Gaza felt totally insecure at that time. Many times my family thought of leaving our home to look for refuge where we might be safer. But glumly we found ourselves fleeing from death to death even at the UN office which is responsible for supplying Palestinian refugees with food and the other basic needs for survival. Even this, the UN compound was targeted, leaving the people in absolute insecurity. I still remember how my mother was afraid during the war due to the constant shootings and regular Israeli F16 fighter jets flying overhead. I was devastating to me to see how my mother was not able to even offer tranquility and security for my younger brothers and sisters because of the fact she herself was not safe. Each minute we hear tragic news of dozens of people being killed, others injured, of homes being destroyed and other public institutions. Directly when the war ended, all that was left was tragedy–not by an act of God, such as an earthquake or tsunami, but rather by the hands of evil men and through their war, violence, and ongoing siege.

Personally it has been hard to me to understand how human beings can do this to others, this systematic dehumanization. According to the mainstream media and Israeli and international human rights organizations, we lost 1450 people, most of them innocent men, women and children. More disappointing to me however was to see that the great part of victims were children under the age of 18. It has been so hard for me when I think about how those children were systematically targeted in this inhuman way. We often hear that man is a rational creature, but I have a very hard time understanding how such rational creatures could do something like this to their fellow human beings and especially innocent children.

When and why did you decided to come to Spain to study a Peace Master?

Ayman Qwaider: I was accepted to pursue my post-graduate studies by November 2009 as a scholarship granted student. I chose to study masters of peace because I totally believe in peace. As a Palestinian living in an impoverished environment deprived of peace in all its aspects, I therefore value peace and believe in its significant role in transforming society. I believe in peace that is based on justice, equality and human respect. I chose this study so as to be able to offer alternatives in viewing the Palestinian conflict on one hand while on the other contributing to the restructuring of peace for those who have lost their sense of it. I am studying peace to transform people’s negative mind-set that for a long time has been associated with losing land and compromising with the opponent. My master program is actually examining three main fields of studies, Peace, Conflict and Development. It draws the great interlink between these three fields of studies, in terms that you do not initiate healthy peace framework without deep understanding of the conflict and that there can be no progress or development without first accomplishing peace. I chose peace studies to widen my knowledge and to be prepared to address the issues of injustices and inequalities in proper ways. I chose peace because my people back home in Palestine have been deprived of that very thing for decades.

What happened when you wanted to come for the first time to Castellón? How did you manage to get out of Gaza?

Ayman Qwaider: It was almost impossible for any students to leave the Gaza Strip by February 2010, the time I left Gaza with little to no change today. In my own case, even though I had obtained the visa to Spain and all needed documents to leave the country, the greatest obstacle for me was something called the Rafah border with Egypt. Like some country behind the Iron Curtain where citizens were not allowed to leave under penalty of death, so too are we Palestinians prevented even from leaving.

After working tirelessly in contacting anyone who would listen to my story and I launched a comprehensive media campaign in the local and Spanish press, including the Facebook group and an online petition. Without going into the painful details, I received my longed-for transit permit from Israel in order to exit the Gaza Strip to University of Jaume in Spain to pursue a graduate degree in Peace, Conflict and Development Studies. My efforts ultimately bore fruit and ended happily but at that time there were about 600 young people waiting with permits to exit Gaza.

Did you receive international help and support at this time?

Ayman Qwaider: I would not have done it–meaning getting out from the Gaza Strip–without the international support which supported my right to education. When I was stuck in Gaza and within almost one month, I was receiving supporting e-emails and international calls supporting me in my cause. I also admit that some Israeli human rights organization supported me very much when I was denied access to start my education.

What is your experience as a Peace Master Student here in Spain?

Ayman Qwaider: It has been a deeply-enriching experience to have been doing my peace masters in Spain. Meetings students from different part of the world and sharing experiences have been a wonderful opportunity for me personally. I learn that there is not only one way to understand peace but rather many ways, as there are different people, cultures and ideas. Throughout this masters program I have gained proper knowledge of issues of conflict transformation, human rights discourses, theories of humanitarian aid, action and other courses. Through my studies I have developed intimate relationships with many people from diverse backgrounds. More importantly, this program has assisted me in academically framing my experience that I acquired first hand living in a conflicting zone like Gaza and it has given me the opportunity to share this experience with my peers. Given the chance to do this master has actually given me the sense of strength and security to pursue my studies as the educational environment here is much better that in the Gaza Strip.

Do you have any grant from any international organization to help you pay for this master?

Ayman Qwaider: I am currently a scholarship student pursuing my Masters, depending mainly on my scholarship payment assistance.

Which kind of social and economic actions are being taken to help the Palestinian people?

Ayman Qwaider: As a Palestinian from the Gaza Strip, I have found alarming and disturbing the level of pessimism about the state of economy and future of the peace process. The mainstream of the Palestinians have been not satisfied with the peace process result carried out with Israel. The estimated number of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip is 1.5 million inhabitants and of those, almost 1.2 million are totally dependent on humanitarian aid and assistance delivered from UNRWA and other international humanitarian organizations. In light of the ongoing Israeli blockade followed by the devastating war, the entire economic and social system has severely deteriorated, with the level of unemployment at 80% and over 90% of people living below the line of poverty.

The absolute control of Israel over the Gaza Strip and restrictions on movement have devastated the economic system in the Strip and in just letting the basic necessities enter the Strip. This has had profound negative consequences for Palestinian society in all sectors. My concern is that the rapid population growth will only add to these already-terrible problems and make finding a solution all the more difficult.

As a peace master student, do you hold out hope for a viable solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?

Ayman Qwaider: Before being a peace student but rather as human, I do believe that there is still great opportunity for true peace. Peace is always possible but it absolutory requires strength and commitment, and particularly during difficult times. Peace must be based on justice and in cultivating understanding in the face of misconception and conflict. Indeed, it has been 63 years now since the eruption of conflict, and if we have learned anything, it is that recent history has proved that peace can never be accomplished through direct negotiations between Palestinian-Israeli leadership since Israel has always and will always put great obstacles in front of any peace process. This is the orchestrated scenario since the agreement of the Oslo Accords of 1993, as Israel never shows deals in good faith. Humanity has been dehumanized for so long in Palestine, with the ongoing system of injustices represented through an apartheid system, a blockade over the Gaza Strip, the killing of the innocent and the outright theft of land. The only solution to bring about peace and justice in the entire region and to create a fair solution for the conflict is the power of the people. By cultivating a civil, non violent society between Palestinians and Israelis is the only solution to break down the Israeli apartheid system that separates people from people.

We all know how the world would welcome such a development. The power of civil society that helped bring about the end of the apartheid system in South Africa in 1980s can perfectly work in the context of Palestine. South Africans would not have done it without the assistance of the international civil society.

Please sketch for me the future you are working to achieve.

Ayman Qwaider: Since my childhood, I have dedicated my life to assisting my fellow man through education and to help as much as my ability permits me. The life in Palestine always puts a person in daily resistance due to the hardship of life. Therefore I would like to contribute to the process of bringing about peace and justice, a human right for all people.

You fight every day for the rights of your people. For them, you could be described as a hero. What do you think about this?

Ayman Qwaider: What is a hero? From my perspective several thoughts emerge in my mind when I think of a hero, specifically in a very broad sense. The word hero applies dynamically to individuals in different contexts of culture, history, gender, etc. The term hero might generally be associated with that man who is brave, generous and courageous. Considering yourself a hero, you would intimately reflect your own identity, culture, conflict and history.

For me, it had been actually wonderful when I discovered that my personality is motivated toward many interests. I finished my studies from the Islamic University of Gaza and was well-prepared to be a teacher of English language. Through my early life, people around me never stopped telling me that I have got a smiley face. I always enjoyed being close with children. There is one prime characteristic I really admire about the life of the refugee camp, in that its small roads are always crowded with young children where they have fun and enjoy their time, even in such a dire environment. Accordingly, my attitudes had changed from being a teacher of the English language for children to being very close to them through another dimension of work, which is the humanitarian aid and relief work.

Personally, it would be simple to identify the concept of hero according to my perception and my experience in Palestine. For me, the hero is the Palestinian child who grows up and builds his life despite living in such terrible conflict. This perspective is due to the fact that I lived in this situation of conflict my entire life as well as being close to children though my previous work. In this regard, I shift my thoughts dramatically to recognize the smiling child as the truly heroic figure.

Mind the Strip a Documentary to highlight the story of Ayman Qwaider

2011-02-03T14:53:00.000-08:00

Mind The Strip….. First Show

Spanish

Mind the strip … Estreno en la Casa de Cultura de Castelló (C. Antoni Maura, 4), el sábado 12 de febrero a las 12h..

Mind the strip es un documental realizado para dar a conocer la historia de Ayman Qwaider −estudiante palestino de Gaza− y las dificultades que encontró para traspasar el bloqueo de las fronteras de Gaza con el fin de cursar sus estudios en España. No es nada habitual que el estudiantado pueda salir de la sitiada Franja de Gaza para realizar estudios superiores en el extranjero. Ayman se encontró con múltiples obstáculos para alcanzar su objetivo y estudiar un máster en España. Después de un incansable trabajo, de haber contactado a toda aquella persona que escuchara su historia y de una exhaustiva campaña mediática, obtuvo el anhelado permiso de tránsito de Israel para poder salir de la Franja y viajar hasta Castelló, donde en la Universitat Jaume I ha realizado el Máster Internacional en Estudios de Paz, Conflictos y Desarrollo (¡elección muy apropiada!).

CATALAN VERSION!!

Mind the Strip... Estrena a la Casa de la Cultura de Castelló (C. Antoni Maura, 5), el dissabte 12 de febrer a les 12h.

Mind the Strip és un documental realitzat per tal de donar a conèixer la història d’Ayman Qwaider –estudiant palestí de Gaza− i les dificultats que es va trobar superar el bloqueig de les fronteres de Gaza a fi de cursar els seus estudis a Espanya. No és gens comú que l’estudiantat aconsegueixi sortir de l’assetjada Franja de Gaza per realitzar estudis superiors a l’estranger. Ayman es va trobar amb nombrosos obstacles per aconseguir el seu objectiu i estudiar un màster a Espanya. Després d’un esgotador treball, d’haver contactat amb tota aquella persona que escoltés la seva història i d’una exhaustiva campanya mediàtica, obtingué l’anhelat permís de trànsit d’Israel per poder eixir de la Franja i viatjar fins Castelló, on ha realitzat a la Universitat Jaume I el Màster Internacional en Estudis de Pau, Conflictes i Desenvolupament (¡una elecció molt apropiada!)

FRENCH VERSION!!

Mind the strip … Première dans la Casa de la Cultura de Castelló (C. Antoni Maura), samedi 12 de février à 12h.

Mind the strip est un documentaire réalisé pour montrer l’histoire d’Ayman Qwaider, un étudiant de Gaza qui a subi des difficultés pour franchir les bloquées frontières de Gaza pour faire des études en Espagne. Ce n’est pas usuel que des étudiants peuvent dépasser le blocus de la Bande de Gaza pour faire des études à l’étranger. Ayman a connu des nombreux obstacles pour atteindre son but et étudier un master en Espagne. Après d’un infatigable travail, de contacter tout personne qui a voulu écouter son histoire et d’une exhaustif campagne dans les médias, il a obtenu le permis du transit d’Israël afin de quitter la Bande de Gaza et voyager à Castelló, où il a réalisé dans l’Université Jaume I les études du Master International en Paix, Conflits et Développement (très approprié !)

2011-02-02T14:50:00.001-08:00

The Ugly Truth Podcast Feb 2, 2011

We are joined by Ayman Quader, a young Palestinian from Gaza giving his personal testimony concerning Israel's Operation Cast Lead and what it is like to live under Zionist occupation.

nomorewarsforisrael@gmail.com
http://theuglytruth.wordpress.com

http://theuglytruth.podbean.com/2011/02/02/the-ugly-truth-podcast-feb-2-2011/

Heroism in Palestinian Culture

2011-01-31T14:57:00.000-08:00

Heroism in Palestinian Culture

By: Ayman Qwaider

Among the Arab world, the Palestinian people have become icons and heroes in a particular way. Listening to some Palestinian national songs generates intense reminiscence of Gaza and the ongoing Israeli's government violence in that territory. It also paints a portrait of the Palestinian struggle and how this contributes to the culture of resistance.

The Palestinian people brought up in an unstable environment dominated by all manner of violence for decades. Regularly different areas in the Gaza Strip are exposed to Israeli invasion resulting in the killing of people and demolishing of homes. Palestinian people always show struggle and patience against invasions. After invasion, people keep speaking about the consequences of the invasion for a long time and how resistance and non-violent resistance highly highlight the violence of these military operations. Obviously, this has ensured that resistance has become a culture within the Palestinian society.

In the Islamic world, there are two special occasions "Eid" where people celebrate and enjoy. From the very early part of my life, I noticed that gun game is unfortunately the main and favorite game for little children even during these moments of celebrations. I still remember how little kids named this game "let's play Yahood & Arab" that means "let's play Arab against Jewish". This abnormal environment has a crucial role to play in drawing attention to the culture of resistance inside the Palestinian community.

A Culture Sprung from Occupation and Resistance

Palestine was placed under the British control after the First World War by the League of the United Nations. The Balfour Declaration[1] (1917) proclaimed Palestine as a national home for Jewish settlers (Allain, 2004: 80-84). The British mandate facilitated the Jewish occupation and settlement in Palestine. As a result of repeated colonisations, Palestine has a long history of being occupied. Accordingly, this has often compelled Palestinians to revolt against these despotic occupations. Palestinians, since the occupation of their land in 1948, have never stopped resisting.

Resistance under the British Mandate

The Palestinian resistance did not start with the establishment of the State of Israel but dates back to the British mandate period, starting in 1917. The British mandate and the establishment of Israel are both strongly integrated in the Palestinian history where the British mandate is considered the root of the conflict in Palestine.

The 1936-1939 Arab revolt in Palestine came up as an example of uprising in protest against the British mandate and their role in bringing more Jewish immigrants to Palestine. In 1936, a general strike marked the start of the great Palestinian revolt.

The 1936 Palestinian general strike and the armed revolt that followed were momentous events for the Palestinians, the Region, and the British Empire. The six-month general strike, which ran from April until October and involved work stoppages and boycotts of the British- and Zionist–controlled parts of the economy was the longest anticolonial strike of its kind until that point in history, and perhaps the longest ever (Khalidi, 2006:106).

From Nakba (Catastrophe) to Naksa (Tragedy)

The history of Palestine became a long chain of losses, feelings of being outdone, dispossessed. From the partition plan (1947) to the numerous massacres and mass expulsions, Palestinians suffer to the chore the lack of a real Hero able to transcend an overwhelming situation. To survive the Creation of Israel’s State in 1948 to the “Tragedy” of 1967, survival in itself becomes heroic, and this explains too, the importance of the Hero, the love of heroic acts in Palestinian culture.

The First Intifada: Mass Mobilization

The first Intifada began in December 1987 when a military Israeli truck killed Palestinian workers awaiting permission to cross into Israel to work. It is important to realize that the intifada was a strong example of a mass mobilization uprising but not a politically-based discussion (Holt, 1996:28).

Due to the aggression of the Israeli military over the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, Palestinians revolted against this subjugation. Evidently, it had become a crucial part of the Palestinian daily life as it mobilized all population, including women, children and the elderly to participate. The first Intifada took the form of civil resistance where all population was participating to protest against the Israeli occupation (Ben-Ami, 2006:188). It also took the form of boycotts of the occupation's institutions and goods. Further, the Palestinian people at that time disobeyed the occupation and regularly organized general strikes around all villages. At the same time, there were the stone demonstrations where young people threw stones against the aggressive Israeli armed occupation troops (Beinin and Hajjar). In contrast, the Israeli army always responded with violence against unarmed vulnerable Palestinians. It was obvious that the Palestinian youths battled the Israeli tanks and soldiers with their bodies without any means of violence (Rosen, 2005:116). Palestinian youth considered that the days of fighting with the Israeli soldiers were regarded as the glorious days of the Palestinian resistance.

Manal who was thirteen years old when the Intifada broke out and she was shot at her chest at the age of fifteen. I miss those days a lot. They were the most beautiful days of my life. True, everyone was scared of the soldiers and their guns but we had dignity and it was our dignity that made us so defiant (Rosen, 2005:118).

It is interestingly attractive when I read a story that happened in refugee camp "Al Bureij Camp", where I received my primary education, which shows how the Palestinian women importantly participated during the first Intifada. For example, a woman spoke of routine raids by the Israeli soldiers. “The soldiers come,” she says:

Enter some houses without knocking and take the men and the boys away. We try to be quicker than the army and as soon as we hear the warning whistles from the guarding shabab (young men) at the edge of the camp, we women go out into the roofs and give signs to the shabab in our area that they have to run away. We signal to them from which direction the soldiers are coming. This is one of the roles of women during the uprising (Augustine, 1993:124).

The culture of resistance in the first intifada happened to be relatively non-violent. Further, it was dominated by the population through their disobedience of the Israeli occupation regarding their everyday life affairs. It’s an interesting case of “mass-heroism”.

The Second Intifada

The second Intifada is remarkably considered to be a religious uprising. It erupted as a reaction to the accumulation of the daily Israel oppression and violence. The visit of Ariel Sharon[2] to the Dome of the Rock[3] "Al Aqsa Mosque" in Jerusalem in late September 2000 was the start of the Intifada. Therefore, Palestinians give this Intifada the name of "Intifada AL Aqsa" so as to keep it linked with most religious places in Palestine. This visit was provocative for the Palestinian Muslim people as Sharon violated their holiest mosque. Israelis consequently fired upon the Palestinian worshipers and demonstrators sparking the second Intifada.

The resistance during the Intifada as it is characterized with the increase of Israeli violence toward Palestinians was more brutal than the first Intifada. According B'Tselem organization, in the first intifada around 100 Israelis were killed, about two-fifths of those security forces, and 1000 Palestinians were killed, the majority were civilians. The second Intifada was much more aggressive and bloody as around 5050 were killed, tens of thousands injured, and approximately 5113 houses were demolished (Palestinian Center for Human Rights: 2010).

It is believed that occupied people have to right to resist and International Law guarantees this right. In this respect, the Palestinian people have all possible right to resist either violently or non-violently. The violent resistance in Palestine always emerged as a reaction of the daily Israeli oppression on the Palestinians which is characterized by brutality.

Obviously, the second Intifada also took the form of non-violent resistance. This kind of resistance has powerfully sustained and empowered the second Intifada through exploring non-violence to control the Israeli power. For instance, there is a one weekly demonstration taking place in two of the Palestinian villages in the occupied West Bank (Ba'leen and Ni'lin). In these demonstrations, there is a popular participation including Palestinians, Israeli peace activists and foreigners who struggle none violently. This includes the desire to halt Israeli's illegal confiscation of land for its notorious separation wall which Palestinians refer to as "Apartheid wall". This wall paralyzes the Palestinian daily life as it cuts them off from their villages and their neighbors (Dowty, 2005:172). The International Court of Justice describes the construction of the Separation Wall as illegal and gravely infringes on Palestinian rights. Additionally, the court considered the wall constitutes violation of the International Law (International Court of Justice, 2004).

Such non-violent conquests as demonstrated by the two intifadas produce different forms of heroism: At individual level and at the collective level. At the collective level, it is remarkable to observe that the Palestinian people, who in the face of comparative weakness and disadvantage, have demonstrated courage and the will power to fight non-violently for what legitimately belongs to them: their land. Such-non violent resistance also indicates the sacrifices of Palestinians which aims at producing a better good for its people. Such collective heroism is also demonstrated by the international awareness which the Palestinian people are able to create regarding the occupation of their land and their self determination.

At the individual level, Palestinians as a people have learnt to live non-violently. Suffice it to mention that as recently as February, 2010 one student, Ayman Qwaider, gallantly demonstrated heroism by exploring exhaustive non violent campaigns to achieve his right and noble objective of studying outside his country (McIntyre:2010).

Throughout the quick overview of the two Palestinian Intifadas, we would easily realize these Intifadas have created a real Palestinian heroism. Regarding the culture of resistance, the Palestinian heroism would be defined as the ability of Palestinians to dedicate their lives to struggling and resisting the occupation their land. Moving to discuss the hero in the Palestinian constitution would actually illustrate the Palestinian perspective about the occupation as both heroes have been influenced by the occupation.

[1]On 2 November 1917, British Foreign Secretary Author Balfour, in a letter to a leading British Zionist Lord Rothschild wrote: "His Majesty's Government views with the favour the establishment in Palestine of a national Home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object. It is being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of the existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jewish any other country.

[2] Sharon is an Israeli general and politician, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He is currently in a permanent vegetative state after suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006.

[3]Al-Aqsa Mosque is the second oldest mosque in Islam after the Ka'ba in Mecca, and is third in holiness and importance after the mosques in Mecca and Medina. It is great stature in Muslim and Palestinians' heart.

Propositions to reconstruct Gaza Strip

2011-01-16T08:25:00.000-08:00

By Omar Shaban

1. Introduction:

Despite its evident humanitarian dimension, the Gaza rebuilding question is difficult and interrelated among economics, humanitarian, local, regional and international elements. This is how the issue seemed since the war ended and the extent of destruction on Gaza infrastructure, premises, facilities and people became evident.

We should not look into this issue from a humanitarian perspective only, despite its importance, as the destruction afflicted in Gaza occurred when the economic, political and social conditions have reached their peak worse levels since the end of 2000. These conditions are moving to more deteriorating levels where the volume of losses, based on international estimations have reached beyond 15 billion dollars by 2005. Politically, rebuilding Gaza is taking place in the midst of a Palestinian sharp division that has left its glooming shades over all issues including the Palestinian/Arab relations.

On the social domain, Gaza Strip has witnessed highest percentages of poverty, unemployment and price rise with the lack of goods and humanitarian assistance as well as wide spread of diseases and anaemia.

Therefore, this paper is to deal with the Rebuilding of Gaza as a Development project that includes the building of what the war destructed, but in a new context and a new philosophy look for economic and social level better that the current ones, benefiting from previous rebuilding experiences and missions that should have executed, in addition to treating the malformation and losses of the Palestinian economy during the past years.

What is required for the coming phase in an abbreviated phrase is a political, human, residential and social restoration that will push forward the needed goal.

2. Obstacles facing the reconstruction as envisioned in this paper:

Technical obstacles:

· The enormity of mission: Gaza Strip witnessed a big destruction. All ministries, civil, military, security and police institutions were destructed in addition to private houses, farms, factories, streets, cars, public properties and infrastructure. All in a relatively limited geographic spot of extremely high population density (highest in the world), poor and suffering from several problems.

· Coordinating Tracks: The mission enormity and amplitude impose the need to identify priorities (disagreed upon issue) and its interlaced dimensions. Humanitarianly, citizens whose houses where destructed must be housed immediately. Technically there are several required procedures and steps.

There are also difference in estimations of volume of losses due to differences in methodologies pursued where some estimations focus on the value of the destruction neglecting the furniture, equipment, computer systems and other things of human value

· Insufficient funds and its permanence: There is a great concern over the availability of the needed and sufficient funds and at the right needed period as previous experiences for donor countries have indicated perpetually big gaps between commitment and execution of financing not forgetting the ambiguity in volume of financing required to be adopted by the donors and the international community

· Property clinch: There are problems pertaining the availability of verification documents among the demolished house owners connected to multiple reasons. This is a legal issue and should be dealt with as suitable for each case to appear in this area

· Estimating non traditional properties: It was pointed before that one of the major weaknesses in the estimation of losses was that it focused on buildings without considering other belongings such as cars, jewelry, clothes, valuable acquisitions in addition to computer devices, systems, archives, technical equipment related to governmental, civil and non governmental institutions

· Level of accuracy in estimating losses: According to previous points, such estimation will suffer from relatively low accuracy. There will be problems in estimating damages in luxurious buildings like villas as a partial damage might be bigger than a complete damage in an ordinary house.

· Required Time period: It will be difficult to identify a time interval for the reconstruction as all needed resources are not available and at the right time. Additionally, there might be prerequisites for international institutions that are contradictory with the local and governmental perceptions. The big volume of the mission needs a time range that might be prolonged despite the importance for fast accomplishment due to the Humanitarian dimension of the issue.

2.2 Political obstacles:

· Reconciliation and political situation: It became clear that the international community will find difficulty to seriously deal with the Gaza reconstruction in the presence of Palestinian sharp internal division. Therefore, reconciliation is a necessary condition, even the most important thing Palestinians can obtain as an award for their steadfastness facing the aggression.

· Crossings: The reopening of all crossings is another necessary condition for the success of the reconstruction that is in need for building materials and all other relevant construction materials from the outside.

3. Administering the reconstruction:

The reconstruction philosophy: Reconstruction could be implemented based on previous situation. However, reconstruction based on a new philosophy that considers other economic, environment, social and health dimensions is preferred.

Transparency and Integrity: By following standard means, legal and financial tools and coordinating with donors

Activation of local economy participation: The private sector can efficaciously participate in the reconstruction mission. There are about 200 companies connected with housing and contracting spheres and have the required experiences. This will bring the companies to its previous activity after two years stretched of recession. This will create jobs intensely needed by the Palestinian economy

Inclusive planning: To guarantee that reconstruction will treat past errors, abandon fortuitous planning and have adequate land use in line with housing, agriculture, industrial and recreational plans. This planning should be within the framework of good land use and considering community priorities.

4. Accelerating accomplishment

· Establish a drifting harbour with a movable dock and this does need no time or effort

· Open the crossings completely and continuously

· Harmonize between the need and the speeding up of accomplishments with commitment to transparency and good planning

· International funding:

- Providing new mechanism for funding as current mechanism (PEGASE) or the previous one (TIM) was for paying of salaries and running costs. The reconstruction process needs suitable new mechanisms

- Present new products and variety of programs

- Grant loans on favourable terms

- Direct payment to those affected

- Human and social rehabilitations

5. Establish the national commission for reconstruction and development:

There is a clear argument over the party to implement the reconstruction and this debate is affected by the prevailing political attraction. Evidently, the role of international donors will be important in the reconstruction. But on the local field domain, this paper suggests to establish the national commission for development and reconstruction to embrace a variety of key social figures, university experts and the civil society to contribute in the process. Its mission will include:

- A medium between the community and the donors

- Receiving applications, coordinating and examining them

- Coordinating among different parties involved

- Raising recommendations to donors

This commission has a specific development societal role in the reconstruction process as it will guarantee the social contribution in this important operation

Resource: http://palthink.org/en/?p=201

AYMAN QUADER: THE HERO FROM MY PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE

2010-11-21T04:49:00.000-08:00

AYMAN QUADER: THE HERO FROM MY PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE

by: Ayman T. Quader

What is a hero? From my perspective several thoughts emerge in my mind when I think of a hero, specifically in a very broad sense. The word hero applies dynamically to individuals in different contexts of culture, history, gender, etc. The term hero might generally be associated with that man who is brave, generous and courageous. Considering yourself a hero, you would intimately reflect your own identity, culture, conflict and history.

For me, it had been actually wonderful when I discovered that my personality is motivated toward many interests particularly in my career. I finished my studies from the Islamic University of Gaza and I was well-prepared to be a teacher of English language. Through my early life, people around me never stop telling me that I have got a smile face and always you enjoy being close with children. There is one prime characteristic I really admire about the life of the refugee camp that its small roads always crowed with young children where they have fun and enjoy their time in such dire environment. Accordingly, my attitudes had been changed from being teacher of English language for children into being very close to them through another dimension of work which the humanitarian aid and relief work.

Personally, it would be simple to identify the concept of hero according to my perception and my experience in Palestine. Having this course of childhood inside me, the hero is the Palestinian child who grows up and builds his life in the light of such dire conflict. This perspective is due to the fact that I lived in this situation of conflict my entire life as well as being close to children though my previous work. In this regard, I shift my thoughts dramatically to recognize the child’s Smile as heroic figure. This smile would cry lots of qualities and values specifically in the context of the Gaza Strip. My hero is a young Palestinian child who keeps a smile on his face and keeps aspiring of a better future despite living a life in struggle and conflict.

During the fifth model period, we took an exercise called Butoh Dance. In this exercise, my imagination and memory had been perfectly working and I went behind the dancing world. It enhances my bodily awareness not only for individuals but rather for social groups this happened through greatly activating my inner imagination. This took place when we were asked to play the role of being a tree then later on to consider myself, old woman, old man, and child. My flash memory easily helped me in order to recall those people where I lived part of my life with. The only image that recalled in my mind was a young child who is of 12 years. It was very much expressive for me as I spent fifteen minutes with in his world before I imagine myself a child. In this moment I had the feeling that I wanted to stay as long as I can with this child since this child is close to my heart. Subsequently, I realized that dancing and getting my body part moving negatively impacted the recalled image, and then I decided to still recalling the image while lying in the ground.

It’s hard to count the characteristics that constitute the child’s smile. Ambitious, amusing, patient, bearable, conscious, knowledgeable, would ensure the strength of this young child as a hero in the time of conflict and insecurity.

The Rights of Children in Gaza

The Palestinian child is directly affected by the scenes of incursion, blood and war. The child is not given the basic childhood rights. It is even hard for her/him to find a space for fun, and also to get her/him physiological needs satisfied. The child retains memories of all means of death that his/her family passed through during the time of instability and warfare caused by the Israeli regular militant activities in his/her area.

Children around the world all share something in common in terms of love needed, compassion and smile. The Palestinian Gazan child has experienced an ongoing siege of unprecedented severity, including various blockages of fuel and electricity provisions, as well as all other energy resources. Israel has also imposed a strict closure on all the Gaza Strip border crossings, preventing movement of civilians, including patients seeking medical care.

Young heroes

In my following examples I would like to illustrate my definition of hero in clearer manner. There are many examples of children that inspired me while I was in my home. In this example, I will prove how the smile and the joy of children in Gaza are really heroic figures.

To start with, I remember my seven-year old sister’s smile Raghed enjoying her romantic candle light while studying her science lesson. The candle lighting at her table was not due to a special occasion. In fact, candles have become a necessity for Raghed and all children in Gaza due to the regular cut of electricity. Her smile still waves within my imaginary how she created sort of fund out of this exceptional hard situation she passed.

To move from Raghed to another aspiring childhood example named Loa’I Suboh. After the recent 23-day of war (Dec 2008 – Jan 2009) on the Gaza Strip, I started reporting some of the tragic stories directly from the mouths of children. One month after the attack, I met Loa’i Suboh, a ten-year old child who has lost his eyes in the attacks. He was injured by an Israeli air raid targeting his family in north of the Gaza Strip. Loa’i was wounded when he left the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) School with his family, as they were taking shelter on the premises. They wanted to get back to their home to fetch some personal belonging things like food and blankets. Loa’i was left bleeding for an hour and half and no one was able to have access to him and save him because of the heavy of the Israeli shelling at that time. One year after these sad events, Loa’i assured me that his blindness will never obstruct his future to be a good business man. Loa’i is an active and intelligent boy. His steadfastness and determination to complete his studies and accomplish his goals are in my opinion truly heroic, even if, sadly, his case is far from being unique.

According to data from the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR), 313 children under the age of 18 were killed in 23 days of war on the Strip (Palestinian Center for Human Rights, 2009:13). A great number of children has been killed or injured as a result of the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip. The majority were killed as a result of Israeli violations of International Humanitarian Law[1] (IHL), such as willful killing, violations of the principle of distinction, indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks. After years of occupation and conflict children already stressed were profoundly traumatized. The significant number of killing of children or leaving them with a more or less severe handicap, has increased the cases of children suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) while there is no child who didn’t suffer a major trauma: from destruction of his home to loss of a parent, a sibling, from destruction of his school, playground, to the loss of a friend, a neighbor. They still dream and hope for peace and having space for entertaining.

I remember a Day of Action for children organized in one of the Refugee camps in the centre of the Gaza strip named (Al-Maghazi refugee camp). The event was called “Quest for Smile”. Through this after-school event, I saw the steadfastness of the children’s smiles, their smiles full of innocence. They eagerly assembled during this event and shared moments of joy and friendship. The event was organized in a local park fifty meters away from a demolished building. During the recent Israeli assault over the Gaza Strip, three children living in Al-Maghazi refugees camp were killed, and over 30 were critically wounded. Those children had been suffering from the ongoing insecurity of war and blockade over them. They were extremely cheerful during this event. “No words can express the joy experienced by these children during the event”, said one audience member, noting how the children couldn’t stop clapping and dancing with the costumed performers. The young children enjoyed several activities and performances, including dancing, group games, a trivia contest, and others, as well as spending some leisurely time outside with friends. It is really inspiring to see the bad psychological state of these children, and see how they bear such difficult circumstances and still have fun.

Through my experience as a humanitarian aid worker in Gaza, I realized how the children are affected by the consequences of the conflict and the conditions on the ground. I witnessed their struggle and how they fight to keep a smile on their faces. They play on the rubble of their homes and keep smiling. This is my hero personal perspective that embodied with children smile. Now I will explore etymological meaning of hero in Arabic since the Arabic language is a bit difficult in exploring the etymological words.

The Palestinian-Israeli conflict: A new perspective

2010-10-06T23:58:00.000-07:00

The Palestinian-Israeli conflict: A new perspective

by Omar Shaban

19 March 2009

GAZA CITY – Israelis and Palestinians have been prevented from looking deeper into hidden and untapped opportunities, stuck in the limiting perspective afforded by the prolonged conflict, continued Israeli occupation, and failed peace talks. Both sides burn their energy managing and sometimes escalating the conflict rather than solving it. Very few Palestinians and even fewer Israelis know or can imagine that this small place called “the Gaza Strip” can provide endless opportunities.

The Gaza Strip is seen by many people as a poor place, full of violence. However, there are many good examples of productive relationships between Israelis and Palestinians, which indicate, without any doubt, the high potential of this area. Unfortunately, the media covers mostly the news of conflict and hatred rather than the good news. Following is but one example of what a just and fair peace could bring to both sides.

For 20 years, the Gaza Strip has become famous for planting and exporting flowers, strawberries and vegetables, like cherry tomatoes. Some years ago, there were more than 1,000 dunams (250 acres) of planted flowers, and 3,000 dunams (750 acres) of strawberries. These cash crops were generating thousands of sustainable, high-quality jobs for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, and revenues of more than 12 million Euros per year. In 2006, when Israel imposed total closure on the Gaza Strip and restricted the movement of goods and people from entering or leaving Gaza, these two crops and many others were negatively affected; while Gaza exported 60 million carnations and 2,000 tons of strawberries in 2005, only 12 million carnations and 103 tons of strawberries were allowed through the border in 2007. Even worse, in 2007-2008, only 55,000 carnations were exported. This caused huge loses to these sectors and pushed farmers to leave their land and look for other jobs.

Surprisingly, in November 2007 Palestinian farmers and their Israeli counterparts appealed together to the Israeli Supreme Court against the Israeli government, urging it to open the crossings. The Supreme Court ordered the Israeli government to do so, which allowed for the export of flowers and strawberries from Gaza into Israel during that month. This was the only export that occurred since the closure imposed on Gaza in June 2007 after Hamas took over the Strip.

Many Israelis would have had great difficulty imagining or even believing that these lovely flowers and sweet strawberries they gave to friends were products of Gaza. Palestinian and Israeli farmers were clever enough to find common ground where both made profits while creating real partnerships.

While the Israeli and Palestinian political leaderships often invest their energy in sustaining the conflict, there are other people who search for opportunities and attempt to pave the road to a better life. There are fewer profits to be made from the occupation and the conflict than could be created from peace and cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians. There are many Palestinian doctors, engineers, singers, artists, educators and skilled workers who have been given the chance to work in Israeli institutions and therefore have been in direct contact with Israeli society. Those Palestinians have learned much, and have become great assets to the Palestinian community.

Those Palestinians were trusted by their Israeli customers or clients. Is it that unrealistic to imagine hundreds or even thousands of professional Palestinians working or being trained in Israeli institutions in the future? It's time for both sides to see and be seen from a new perspective. Israel would do well to understand that having a fair and just peace with a Palestinian state is much safer and more profitable than sustaining the occupation. Conversely, the Palestinians would do well to see that living in peace with Israel is the only and very best path to prosperity.

###

* Omar Shaban is a senior economic advisor, with over 15 years’ experience in management consultancy and private sector development. He established Pal Think for Strategic Studies and serves as board member in various community organisations and initiatives. This article was written for the Common Ground News Service (CGNews).

Source: Common Ground News Service, 19 March 2009, www.commongroundnews.org.

23 August 2010: Water supplied in Gaza unfit for drinking; Israel prevents entry of materials needed to repair system

2010-08-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

23 August 2010: Water supplied in Gaza unfit for drinking; Israel prevents entry of materials needed to repair system

Almost 95 percent of the water pumped in the Gaza Strip is polluted and unfit for drinking. This warning was recently issued by the UN Environment Programme, the Palestinian Water Authority, the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, and international aid organizations. They estimate it will take at least 20 years to rehabilitate Gaza’s underground water system, and any delay in dealing with the problem will lead to additional deterioration in the situation and thus might extend the rehabilitation process for hundreds of years. Since it began its siege on the Gaza Strip, in June 2007, Israel has forbidden the entry of equipment and materials needed to rehabilitate the water and wastewater-treatment systems there. The prohibition has remained despite the recent easing of the siege.

Child filling water from a container provided by OXFAM, at Jabalya refugee camp. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B’Tselem, 18 Aug. ’10.

Reasons for the water pollution in Gaza

The water crisis in the Gaza Strip arose following over-pumping of the underground water of the Coast Aquifer. It is estimated that the amount of water annually pumped from the aquifer is roughly twice the amount of water that replenishes it. As a result of the over-pumping, which has been going on for several decades, salt water has penetrated the aquifer. In addition, the poor maintenance of the wastewater-treatment facilities in Gaza, which increased following the siege, and the damage done to the wastewater-treatment facility in Gaza City during Operation Cast Lead, led to further pollution of the underground water by wastewater, and to greater salinity. Another factor for the pollution is the waste-disposal sites in Gaza, which are not properly handled. Following Operation Cast Lead, these sites received enormous amounts of waste – more than 600,000 tons – including asbestos, medial waste, oils, and fuels.

Wastewater flowing through the Rafah regional waste dump. Photo: Courtesy of EWASH.

Water consumption in Gaza

The daily per capita water consumption in the Gaza Strip is 91 liters, slightly higher than in the West Bank, where the figure is 73 liters, yet lower than the minimum of 100 liters recommended by the World Heath Organization. By comparison, daily per capita consumption in Israel is 242 liters in urban areas and 211 liters in rural areas.

Resident of ‘Izbet ‘Abd Rabo in Jabalya refugee camp carrying home water from a container provided by OXFAM. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B’Tselem, 18 Aug. ’10

Magnitude of the pollution

The director of quality control in the Gazan Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, Eng. Majed Ghanem, told B'Tselem that an examination conducted in late 2009 in 180 wells revealed that, in 93 percent of them, the chloride level (which indicates the water’s salinity) was 1,000 to 2,000 mg/liter, four to eight times higher than the 250 mg/liter amount recommended by the WHO. Water with a chloride level this high is unfit for drinking. According to Ghanem, the pollution also affects the water’s color and causes its repellent odor.

In addition, an examination carried out by the UN Environment Programme on a number of wells in Gaza found that the concentration of nitrates was six times higher than the 50 mg level recommended by the WHO. This high level of nitrates is liable to cause anemia among children and methemoglobinemia (“blue infants” syndrome) among infants, which is liable to lead to choking and death. A study published in 2007, in which a sample of 340 infants from Gaza were examined, found that almost half of them suffered from troubling symptoms of the syndrome.

The Palestinian Water Authority estimates that almost 40 percent of the incidence of disease in Gaza is related to polluted drinking water. According to international aid organizations, 20 percent of Gazan families have at least one child under age five who suffers from diarrhea as a result of polluted water. A UN study published in 2009 estimates that diarrhea is the cause of 12 percent of children’s deaths in Gaza. The lack of potable drinking water is liable to cause malnutrition in children and affect their physical and cognitive development.

In the absence of other materials due to the siege, parts of the old barrier wall at Rafah are used to line a wastewater treatment pond there. Photo: Courtesy of EWASH.

The water pollution also harms the area’s agricultural produce. According to Ghanem, the milk given by cows in Gaza is polluted, and farm crops that once characterized the area, such as oranges, have declined in quantity and quality.

Effects of the siege and Operation Cast Lead

Since the beginning of the siege, Israel has prohibited the entry of equipment and materials that can be used to improve water quality and taste, and to develop and rehabilitate the water infrastructure and the wastewater-treatment facilities in Gaza. The prohibition has remained in force even after the recent easing of restrictions, and despite the Cabinet’s decision to allow the entry of building materials for projects that have been approved by the Palestinian Authority and are supervised by international organizations. The equipment needed includes water pumps, pipes, generators, computers, building cement, and chloride. Israel classifies these materials as dual-use items that are liable to be used for military purposes, and therefore prohibits their entry.

The Gazan Coastal Municipalities Water Utility currently requires 1,250 tons of cement just to rebuild water reservoirs. The Sufa Crossing between Gaza and Israel, which is intended, among other things, for the transfer of building materials, has been closed since March 2009. The by-laws of the international organizations prohibit them from purchasing cement smuggled into Gaza through tunnels, for the rehabilitation projects.

The lack of construction materials and replacement parts has also led to greater loss of water from the supply network in Gaza. Prior to the siege, the loss had been 30 percent of the amount of water supplied to consumers, generally resulting from leaks in the pipes. In 2009, the loss reached 47 percent, according to figures of the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility.

The Gaza Strip’s power station has been working at partial output since Israel bombed it in June 2006. There is also a shortage of industrial fuel needed to operate the station, following the disputes that arose between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas regarding its funding, which has led to frequent power outages. The outages prevent the wastewater-treatment facilities from completing the 14-day treatment cycle and also impair the frequency of water supply to houses. According to UN figures, water is supplied to houses in Gaza City for four to six hours once every five days, and in the rest of the Gaza Strip for four to six hours once every three days. Due to the low pressure, the water does not reach the top floors in tall buildings.

In Operation Cast Lead, Israel damaged Gaza City’s wastewater-treatment facility, leading to untreated wastewater flooding extensive farm areas. According to the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, 30 kilometers of water networks, 11 wells, and 6,000 home water tanks were damaged during the operation, and the overall damage to the water and wastewater-treatment facilities amounted to six million dollars.

Untreated wastewater flowing daily into the sea in a-Nuseirat Camp in central Gaza Strip. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B’Tselem, 18 Aug. ’10.

Most of Gaza’s wastewater now flows to the Mediterranean Sea, some as raw wastewater, and some following partial treatment. International organizations have found that the shoreline near which the wastewater flows is polluted and unfit for bathing. Proper wastewater treatment would have enabled use of the treated wastewater for agricultural purposes and reduced pumping of the underground water.

Effect of the economic situation on water consumption

Due to the poor water quality, many Gazans are forced to buy water treated in facilities operated by local entrepreneurs or to use home desalination devices. The quality of the water provided in this way is unsupervised, and the lack of replacement parts and regular power supply has harmed them, too.

Since treatment of water from pollutants such as nitrates and chlorides is very expensive, the cost of a cubic meter of treated water is a high as 50 shekels (some 13 US dollars in August 2010), 10 times higher than the price paid by households in Israel. Many Gazans cannot afford this luxury: the unemployment rate in Gaza reached 39 percent in 2009, and poverty in 2007 was 43 percent. In 2007, average family expenditures in Gaza stood at slightly more than 2,000 shekels a month.

Recommendations of the UN Environment Programme

To prevent the collapse of the Gazan water economy, the UN Environment Programme recommended, a year ago, that pumping of water from the Coast Aquifer in Gaza cease. The Programme also suggested that Israel and Egypt, countries which share the water of the aquifer, formulate a joint action plan – including alternative water-supply sources, among them desalination facilities – to deal with the water crisis in Gaza. The Programme also recommended that an epidemiological survey be made to study the effects of polluted-water consumption on the Gazan population, especially on the children.

To cope with the grave water crisis in Gaza, Israel must immediately allow the entry of materials and equipment needed to rehabilitate and develop the water and wastewater-treatment systems there. Also, all the sides – Israel, the Palestinian Authority, the Hamas government, and Egypt – must take action to stop the rapid deterioration in the condition of the underground water system of the Coast Aquifer, which serves residents of the Gaza Strip, and find additional sources of drinking water for the residents.

Resource:

http://www.btselem.org/English/Gaza_Strip/20100823_Gaza_water_crisis.asp

Voice From Gaza: Israel has turned Gaza into the largest concentrat...

2010-08-06T15:32:00.000-07:00

Voice From Gaza: Israel has turned Gaza into the largest concentrat...: "Written by Editors Sunday, 25 July 2010 01:52Interview with Haidar EidFounding member of the PCACBI (Palestinian Campaign for the Academic..."

Israel has turned Gaza into the largest concentration camp in history

2010-08-06T13:57:00.000-07:00

Written by Editors

Sunday, 25 July 2010 01:52

Interview with Haidar Eid

Founding member of the PCACBI (Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel).

____________________________

The world was appalled by the Israeli massacre at the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009. But then Gaza disappeared from Western news media. What is the situation today in Gaza, a year and a half after that genocidal attack?

To best describe the situation in Gaza today would be to refer to what Richard Falk, the UN rapporteur to the Occupied Territories, called "prelude to genocide" and what the Israeli anti-Zionist activist Ilan Pappe called a "slow-motion genocide." Despite the fact that bombs are not falling over us every few minutes as they did during the 22 day genocidal war, when the Israelis bomb or attack, they do so to kill as many Palestinians as possible.

After the occupation redeployed its troops around Gaza in 2006, what was a Bantustan turned into the largest concentration camp since Auschwitz and Warsaw during WW II as a direct result of the brutal blockade. We have over 90 medicines unavailable. Prenatal births, kidney dialysis and cancer patients are doomed to fatality as soon as they are diagnosed. Unavailable medical equipments and appropriate medical care are extinct and the slightest flue could have serious repercussions. A four year old child would not know what spaghetti or chocolate taste like because Israel has a list of 40 basic items that it allows in. We are treated as prisoners, rather much worse. Jimmy Carter said "Palestinians of Gaza are treated worse than animals!"

We wish we were prisoners in a so-called First World country for at least they have visitation rights which we don’t. Some of us have not seen their families and relatives for years now, and they could be only 40 minutes away in Jerusalem or in the other Bantustans of the West Bank. As a university professor, I have no resources to undergo research in my domain. The material I assign to my students is what I could find available on the internet—and only when electricity allows. Basic material like stationary and paper are unavailable. Books are also unavailable. Fuel is unavailable and I have lost my best students as a result of the deterioration of their conditions.

Many of their parents were factory workers but after Israel bombed factories and due to its hermetic siege, over forty thousand workers have lost their income. The occupation shoots, injures and often kills farmers as they harvest or water their crops. The fishermen are not allowed to exceed three miles at sea and are attacked, imprisoned and often killed at a distance of one mile depending on the soldiers’ whims. You can’t sleep, you can’t write, you can’t love, you can’t express yourself, or your pain under these conditions and the trauma is only growing as injustice continues.

How was the Zionist attack on May 31st against the humanitarian flotilla seen in Gaza?

It was a surprise and not a surprise. Yes, Israel is a terrorist state. One built on the blood and dead bodies of the Palestinians it has been ethnically cleansing since 1948. So, it’s killing of peace activists was not a surprise. What was a surprise was that it did it as the whole world was watching. We did not expect Israel to be stupid, but then again, isn’t that what fascist states mean to do? Ploy their own destruction? Zionism is a colonial movement and hence it is self-defeating.

Can we say it was a political victory for the Palestinian people, since the true nature of Zionism was revealed and Israel is isolated? Did that have a role in the temporary suspension of the blockade by Egypt? What is the situation on the Egypt/Gaza border?

How many more people should be killed for Israel to be held accountable in front of the international community and punished for its crimes? Weren’t the 413 children killed during the 22 day attacks enough? Weren’t the thousands of Palestinian killed since 1967 enough for the international community to put Israel in its place? The international community is complicit in the siege and in the killing as it stands silent and in denial. Richard Goldstone very clearly called Israel's attacks "war crimes and possible crimes against humanity!"

You are wrong to believe that the Rafah Crossing is open as the movement of people freely through is not allowed. Out of thousands a few hundreds are allowed, and their conditions are usually severe, and they have tried numerous times before that. If all the crossing surrounding Gaza were opened and Rafeh remained closed, then the siege remains. Rafeh is the only crossing that guarantees the freedom of movement of Gazans; it is our only exit to the external world.

The Israeli attack against the activists of the flotilla of the Free Gaza movement shocked everyone who feels respect for human beings. Why does Israel still blockade Gaza?

With the support of the international community and in particular the support of the US, Israel will not back down, it will continue the blockade, the settlement expansion, and the home demolitions in the West Bank. Its arrogance and power are to no limits and it won’t stop at anything until it is put in its place. As I mentioned earlier, the blockade is a continuation of Israel’s policy of ethnic cleansing and genocide that it has been practicing since 1948. We are a "surplus population", like Native Americans, that should not have existed in the first place!

But the direct reason as to why it still blockades Gaza is that Palestinians, "naively" taking George Bush for his words about "spreading democracy in the Middle East", went to the polling stations in January 2006 and voted a party that neither Israel nor the Us and Official Arab regimes want, a party that is against the Oslo Accords. That was a huge blow to the Bush doctrine and the peace industry. Hence the collective punishment by Israel, with the direct support and participation of the West.

Do you see any possibilities of gains for Palestinians through the so called peace process led by the Quartet (USA, ONU, EU, and Russia)?

Haven’t we learnt from Oslo and Camp David that Israel translates its military power onto the negotiation table? There will be and should be no peace without justice. That means for Israel to be punished for its war crimes and crimes against humanity and for the UN resolution 194 to be implemented and the return of all refugees who were expelled in the Nakba of 1948. No negotiation is possible between the executioner and the victim. After Gaza 2009, we no longer have faith in the international community, but in civil society. Due to the huge imbalance of power, Israel being the largest nuclear power in the region and owning the fourth largest army in the world on one hand, and Palestinians with stones and sometimes firecrackers called "rockets" on the other, the only way this imbalance could be overcome is to build on an international solidarity movement. There have been turning points in the Palestinian issue, with the First and Second Intifada, with Gaza 2009, and now the massacre against peace activists.

Similar to the growing international solidarity movement that lead to, amongst other pillars of struggle, the liberation of South Africa and the collapse of the racist apartheid regime, the liberation of Palestine is through this path. And what could be more powerful than the global BDS movement against Israel that has resulted in the South African dock workers boycotting apartheid Israel, the British UCU union of colleges and universities boycott, the Scottish and Irish trade unions, and also the achievements of brave student bodies in the US-- such as the Hampshire college, UC, Berkeley, and the University of Michigan at Dearborne-- that resulted in divestment from some companies that support Israel.

How is the Obama administration seen in Gaza?

The Obama administration is not different from Bush's. When Obama gave his much talked about speech at Cairo University, very few people took him seriously. They were proven right only last week when he held the white flag before Netanyahu upon the latter's visit to the White House. Israel is still expanding its settlements, ethnically cleansing Jerusalem, besieging Gaza, killing Palestinians and Internationals with the full support of the Obama administration. Obama never had a single word of sympathy with the murdered children and starving women of Gaza. The only difference between Obama and Bush, when it comes to Palestine, is only in style, not substance.

Do you believe the Arab and Muslim governments supported the Palestinian people against Israel all they should?

A defeatist attitude governs the official Arab regimes. The idea of an invincible Israel and the constant fear and need to satisfy the US are prevalent. The organization of Islamic conferences along with the Arab league have failed the Palestinian people and failed to put an end to this deadly siege. The mainstream and dominant political discourse in the Arab world is to make peace with Israel, no matter what this entails.

What is the importance of the BDS campaign (Boycott, De-invest, and Sanctions) to isolate Israel? Why is it important to establish a link between Israel and South African apartheid?

Our BDS campaign is modeled on the South African boycott campaign. Its importance emanates from the fact that there is a huge power imbalance between Israel and the Palestinians, similar to the imbalance between the apartheid regime and anti-apartheids campaign. The international community was called on to intervene and live up to its responsibilityagainst the racist regime. We expect the same. In the mid-70's an UN resolution considered apartheid a crime against humanity. Israel is an apartheid state that discriminates against the 1.2 million Israelis of Palestinian descent. But the 2005 Palestinian call for BDS called also for the end of the military occupation and colonization of the 1967 areas and the return of refugees in accordance with UN resolution 194. In other words, the importance of the BDS emanates from the fact that it is a rights-based campaign and the fact that it addresses ordinary people all over the world, represented by civil society, to live up to their moral responsibility. The campaign is democratic, secular, inclusive and universal. It worked against the apartheid regime, and it is working now against apartheid Israel.

What is your view of the PNA? And of the political forces on the left such as PFLP and DFLP?

The PNA is the product of the Oslo Accords, which were signed in 1993 in betrayal of the aspirations of the Palestinian people. The PLO recognized Israel, whereas the latter refused to recognize the Palestinian people's right to an independent state. Oslo gave the wrong impression that there are two equal parties fighting for border adjustments. Israel managed to get rid of the responsibility of administering heavily populated areas in the West Bank and Gaza, and has kept total control over the land, air and sea. Israeli occupation forces were redeployed and never withdrew.

The Oslo accords led to the creation of a neo-colonial administration at the expense of the PLO; an administration that does not have real power in spite of the flag, the national anthem, the presidencies, premierships and ministries: all mean absolutely nothing except a perpetuation of the occupation, but in a different gown. After 17 years of the "peace industry", Gaza has been transformed into a large open-air prison, a concentration camp a la Auschwitz and Warsaw, and the West Bank has been sliced into three major Bantustans—but with no sovereignty whatsoever.

The most dangerous outcome of Oslo is that it has managed to pacify the Palestinian Left. Nothing is left of Palestinian Left! Most left-wing activist, and I mean the hard-core here, have been NGOized. This process of NGOization, interrelated with Osloization, aims at washing out any revolutionary consciousness that the left is supposed to safeguard and replace it with false consciousness characterized by a new discourse about "empowerment of the disfranchised, projects, proposals, culture of peace, negotiations…etc".

http://www.litci.org/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1691:israel-has-turned-gaza-into-the-largest-concentration-camp-of-history&catid=39:middle-east

Austrian Armed Forces Advance Training - Day Two

2010-07-31T01:03:00.002-07:00

Modular Period Three - Native Challenge

Austrian Armed Forces Advance Training - Day Two

Students in self-defense training

Just imagine for a moment, you are on a peacekeeping operation and you are confronted with one of these scenarios or situations: a planned or spontaneous negotiation with armed forces or militant groups, positioned in a dangerous mine location, entering into a building with explosive booby traps or stopped at a checkpoint. After that, you are held at gunpoint by a child soldier or member from a dangerous group and then kidnapped. What would you do? In reality, depending on the situation, one wrong decision may cause you to lose your life or a bodily limb; one wrong choice may put your life in jeopardy.

Students of this semester embarked on a journey, which went beyond creating these mental images. Rather, they were introduced to relevant theoretical knowledge by the military force on how to approach such situations. Simulations were also staged by the facilitators to allow students to use the knowledge gained in these and other situations.

Topics covered included: basic introduction to negotiations, mine awareness, self defense and security awareness. The aim of the presentation on negotiation was to familiarize students with the principles and aspects relating to preparation and conduct of negotiations in a typical peace keeping operation. A situational plot was carried out which involved negotiations with the different teams and a representative from an armed force in a staged conflict setting. Students acquired firsthand experience on the do’s and don’ts of negotiations and learned both from their successful attempts as well as their mistakes.

Students also viewed a film on mine awareness. It provided basic information on the general threat of mines and more importantly, what should be done if you are in a location which is suspected to have mines or other explosive traps. The facilitators even went a step further and created a situation of an empty house with staged booby traps and explosives. This demonstrated to students how simple it is to design and detonate such life threatening devices.

On a more physical note, through self-defense training, students became more aware of their strength and how it could be used when attacked under different circumstances and from different positions. It was emphasized by the facilitator that the purpose of the exercise was to demonstrate how to defend yourself and not to attack the perpetrator.

Day two of the training ended with a theoretical session on security awareness. The idea was that students would become more exposed to the importance of being cognizant of their environment and the security risk surrounding them. They were introduced to contingency planning, emergency procedures relating to passing check points, hostage taking or detention, armed robbery, shelling and communication with the radio.

While the four teams concluded an interesting day of training, the headquarters spent the day and most of the night planning the mission for the simulations which would commence on day three. Lights went out and they rested in preparation for the toughest days of the training; limits would be tested and memories of challenges created.

http://www.peacestudies-alumni.at/cms/index.php?id=30&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=12&cHash=97326868d65d3d0214ee05b7bb61e3f1

Austrian Armed Forces Advance Training - Day One

2010-07-31T01:03:00.001-07:00

Peace Students 2010 Modular Period Three - Native Challenge

Austrian Armed Forces Advance Training - Day One

Is this the toughest peace program in the world? Some individuals may answer yes to this question while others may disagree; nevertheless, the program definitely offers a unique learning approach encompassing new challenges and unforgettable experiences for peace students.

36 summer term students, coming from approximately 22 different countries, completed the first day of a five-day military training program. The training was facilitated by the Austrian Armed Forces at a military secured location in Tirol over 2000 meters high in the Austrian Alps.

As peace students, we often need the extra guidance and insight in choosing our main career focus as future peace workers. In this regard, students were given the opportunity to be exposed to situations through practical simulations and role-plays to help them make the decision or reflect on whether fieldwork in conflict and post conflict zones is an appropriate choice for their future.

Lessons were conducted by military personnel with an extensive accumulation of experience and expertise from missions abroad in locations such as Kosovo, Afghanistan, Chad etc. The Major in command noted to the students in the introduction session that the aim of this intense training is not only to provide them with basic deployment knowledge on peacekeeping operations abroad, but also to create an environment for developing the relevant practical skills and abilities which may save a person´s life on a field mission.

As the schedule of the day unfolded, students became familiar with the main objectives governing the activities for the training period. The facilitator in the introduction re-emphasized that a key feature of the training is learning by doing. As such, theoretical lessons are accompanied by practical training. It was further explained that there would be the planning of tasks by students to connect imparted fields of knowledge and situational training. Two days were designed mainly for theoretical and practical training and the remaining three days allowed for practical and suituational exercises.

“How can these objectives be achieved or realized?” To start with, the students were divided into five groups; a team which played the role of a headquarters in a typical peace keeping operation abroad (3rd term students) and four other teams or squads, which focused more on the implementation of plans designed by the headquarters (1st and 2nd term students).

The platform for the development of leadership skills, team building and interpersonal communication approaches was intricately presented to students since each group was assigned with a leader and second-in-command and working team members. This also applied for the headquarters team who had the responsibility for planning and assessing all the details regarding the logistical, financial and communication aspects of the simulation as well as adapting to the events and changes which unfolded from the student’s perspective.

With the teams divided and the main designated roles established, the headquarters was given the task to commence planning the simulated mission, while the other students continued with the theoretical and practical training. A basic overview of the United Nations in peacekeeping operations was presented; this included its role, functions, scope of operation under different UN articles and challenges encountered. The second presentation focused on the basics of peace support operation and the different staff structures.

On a more practical note, the final lecture of the day concluded with training on radio communication. Since the radio is considered one of the main mediums to communicate necessary updates on the location of team members and the status of assignments in the field, students became familiar with the guidelines and procedures and codes for sending and receiving messages.

Essentially, the first day of training served as a critical introduction for the days to follow and more over for students who decide to follow the path of working for peacekeeping operations in the field.

http://www.peacestudies-alumni.at/cms/index.php?id=30&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=11&cHash=fb374467c847fa5f52f2a01761e3b60b

What You Don’t Know About Gaza

2010-07-30T16:28:00.000-07:00

THE GAZANS Most of the people living in Gaza are not there by choice. The majority of the 1.5 million people crammed into the roughly 140 square miles of the Gaza Strip belong to families that came from towns and villages outside Gaza like Ashkelon and Beersheba. They were driven to Gaza by the Israeli Army in 1948.

THE OCCUPATION The Gazans have lived under Israeli occupation since the Six-Day War in 1967. Israel is still widely considered to be an occupying power, even though it removed its troops and settlers from the strip in 2005. Israel still controls access to the area, imports and exports, and the movement of people in and out. Israel has control over Gaza’s air space and sea coast, and its forces enter the area at will. As the occupying power, Israel has the responsibility under the Fourth Geneva Convention to see to the welfare of the civilian population of the Gaza Strip.

THE BLOCKADE Israel’s blockade of the strip, with the support of the United States and the European Union, has grown increasingly stringent since Hamas won the Palestinian Legislative Council elections in January 2006. Fuel, electricity, imports, exports and the movement of people in and out of the Strip have been slowly choked off, leading to life-threatening problems of sanitation, health, water supply and transportation.

The blockade has subjected many to unemployment, penury and malnutrition. This amounts to the collective punishment — with the tacit support of the United States — of a civilian population for exercising its democratic rights.

THE CEASE-FIRE Lifting the blockade, along with a cessation of rocket fire, was one of the key terms of the June cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. This accord led to a reduction in rockets fired from Gaza from hundreds in May and June to a total of less than 20 in the subsequent four months (according to Israeli government figures). The cease-fire broke down when Israeli forces launched major air and ground attacks in early November; six Hamas operatives were reported killed.

WAR CRIMES The targeting of civilians, whether by Hamas or by Israel, is potentially a war crime. Every human life is precious. But the numbers speak for themselves: Nearly 700 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed since the conflict broke out at the end of last year. In contrast, there have been around a dozen Israelis killed, many of them soldiers. Negotiation is a much more effective way to deal with rockets and other forms of violence. This might have been able to happen had Israel fulfilled the terms of the June cease-fire and lifted its blockade of the Gaza Strip.

This war on the people of Gaza isn’t really about rockets. Nor is it about “restoring Israel’s deterrence,” as the Israeli press might have you believe.

Rashid Khalidi, a professor of Arab studies at Columbia, is the author of the forthcoming “Sowing Crisis: The Cold War and American Dominance in the Middle East."