We left Bethlehem towards Ramallah. Because of Beit-El we needed to go a circuitous route to Taybeh Brewery, the only Palestinian brewery started by Palestinians from Boston. Taybeh, a Christian village looked like a ghost town. Apparently many people have left there and live abroad and their houses lie empty.
We then went in to Ramallah and met with Palestinian businessman and advocate Sam Bahour. He was from Ohio and also received an MBA from Tel Aviv University. He was one of the first Palestinians that we spoke to from a more political and advocacy perspective. He noted that in our travels we were only seeing 40% of the Palestinian people, we weren’t seeing Palestinians in Gaza and 40% of population who live in refugee camps and other Palestinians in the diaspora. When Palestinians were unified the PLO represented all Palestinians . At that time the international community refused to recognise that political body. He said that Palestinians were pressured in to recognising the State of Israel, in writing, in an extreme kind of way. Palestinian Authority is responsible for people under occupation. The international community recognised PLO for one day and focused on the PA. All monies focus on PA. When Palestinians were forced to have elections, they became split because of Hamas and Fatah. The international community has become more enthusiastic to help Palestinians and the PA as they have become less and less representative. Anyone serious about reaching a final status agreement cannot allow fragmentation of Palestinians.
He then talked about the political context. Is this a military occupation or not? If this is a military occupation- which all countries accept, except for Israel- then Geneva Convention and international law kicks in. We can then look at katyushas from Gaza and bombing in to Gaza can say it is against international law. If this is not occupation noone should be surprised if Palestinians lay claim to Haifa, Tel Aviv and other cities because everything is up for grabs. Claiming it to be an occupation implies a greater burden of responsibility. We need to understand the game we are playing. If we are playing occupation we know that, or if it is not, tell us and then everything is up for grabs. For example it is illegal under international law to move civilian population in to occupation area- Obama knows as a student of international law. Borders are less clear under international law.
If it is not an occupation why can’t he go and live in Haifa? Sam Bahour relocated to Ramallah after Oslo. He believes that this process will not end in a final status solution. With collapse of negotiation, PA will go to UN and will ask international community to recognise State of Palestine. What that means without other changes, he is not sure. What does it mean if there is no end of occupation, no freeing up of trade, etc. He says that it risks normalising the occupation. He wants to separate ending the occupation from reaching a final agreement.
Military occupation by definition is a temporary status- 43 years later hard to understand. Bilateral peaceful negotiated settlement may take 50 or 100 years. Not patient enough to wait for the occupation. Even end occupation 85% and let Palestinians come to negotiation in good faith. Without good faith there can be no positive result.
An annex in Oslo agreements was the privatisation of communications for Palestinian Authority- he was invited to be part of that process. Palestinians have right to own company. You need frequencies and you need to come back to Israelis to get frequencies (IN order to run this you need at least 6 lines of frequency released. Israel has the power over the frequencies but they didn’t release 6 required but only 1.5 lines). They did it despite the fact that any business textbook would have said this is unfeasible. It certainly is not maximising return today. He was involved in building the first Palestinian Mall, 10.2 million dollars (now up to 10th branch- usual growth would be about 40 by now).
Sam said he was proud he built Telecom and Malls, but that is not economic development for statehood. Building a mall should not be headlines in the New York Times. Building economy for future state requires land, movement, access, freeing of trade relations, water, borders. At the moment these major resources are in Israeli hands 100%. They control resources required to build state. They release when they want. What they can do is economic activity as opposed to economic development for statehood. He is not deterred by that. He said we won’t end occupation by staying home. It is important to keep people here so Israel can’t take geography without the demography.
He argued that ending the occupation doesn’t have to work for both parties. Ending the abuse of my human rights has to happen irrespective of if it is comfortable for others. It doesn’t need to be negotiated. International community need to penalise Israel for breaking international law.
We then returned to Jerusalem before Shabbat. Without checking in we had a presentation by Rami Elhanan, an Israeli man involved in the Bereaved Family Forum-Parents Circle. He described the bond and treaty between the Jews and Palestinians in this organisation through the price they have paid for ongoing conflict, the loss of a loved one. In the war 37 years ago he was in a platoon of 11 tanks and only 3 of them survived. He lost his closest and best friends. He came out of that war bitter and angry and determined to look after himself. And then, 10 years after that, his daughter Smadar was born. They lived life in a bubble looking after their own interests until 13 years after that, on the 4 September, 1997, that bubble was blown up by 2 suicide bombers on Ben Yehuda St, downtown Jerusalem. Five people were killed including his 14 year old daughter Smadar. He described hearing the explosion and the hope that he wouldn’t be touched by it. The long and frustrating hours running between hospitals and police stations until finally in the morgue, seeing the sight that noone ever wants to see. He described how in the seven days of mourning the house was filled with thousands of people and he was enveloped in love and compassion. And then on the eighth day, he said he was forced to make a decision about what to do with this unbearable burden. He said hurting someone would not bring her back. He tried to understand why it happened. He asked what would cause someone to be that mad? Do we have any responsibility in this? What can we do to prevent this pain? And since that moment – and meeting people in the Bereaved Family Forum-Parents Circle- he has been speaking to people , advocating for dialogue. He said it is not about forgiveness (I can’t forgive someone who killed my child) but that there is a space between hatred and forgiveness. Once he was confronted by a Palestinian young man who wanted to shake his hand. The man said that he didn’t think Rami would want to shake his hand. It turned out that this man’s brother was a suicide bomber. But Rami said the goal was not to punish families of suicide bombers. He said that someone who has hope does not become a suicide bomber. Terror is not in the genes.
I then needed to run up and get ready for Shabbat and light candles before shule (synagogue). My key was broken so I only got let in to my room by the time I was meant to be ready. But it worked out fine. I lit candles and then we walked to Shira Hadasha, a group of us from the trip. On the way Arab families were having very smoky barbeques in Gan Pa’amon, Liberty Bell Park. I ashamedly noticed my racism through thinking that I wish they weren’t there and I wish I didn’t need to walk through a puff of smoke on my way to synagogue on Shabbat. (I may have thought that about Jews but it was poignant that it was Arabs there.) Then my second thought was that the same thing could also actually be a sign of the vibrancy and richness of this city that I did walk through that puff of smoke at this time on my way to Shule!
It was so good to be in Jerusalem on Shabbat, to be at Shira with song, in a Jewish religious environment that felt like home. It was amazing to see old friends including the female prayer leader. I sang and cried and felt so happy to be there. It was wonderful to be in prayer and in song at the end of the week that we’ve had. I was so glad to share the experience with several students who also really enjoyed themselves.
After dinner back at the hotel we called a sharing circle- that Ilana led, with my support- about reflecting on ourselves as peacemakers and sharing moments when we have experienced transformation. It is obviously not appropriate to give any details of anyone’s story but it was wonderful to create the space of safety where people could share deep feelings and experiences. The circle made me see, in new ways, how important it is to reflect on our own journey and what we bring to this work of peacebuilding. It also showed that we only hear people through the limits of our own hearing and projections. Certain things stick with us that people say because of our own struggles and challenges. It is a deep pleasure of mine to be present with people in their vulnerability, keeping my heart open and being present to them in creating a safe space for sharing and being visible. It was wonderful to process afterwards with some of the group leaders.
One highlight for me was also taking the risk to share some of my challenges with Ilana, my roommate and fellow leader, the local Israeli guide (who I will write about in more detail soon- the first blog about the leaders was lost in cyberspace) directly about my relationship with her and the challenge of liking myself enough to support her in her fullness and not believe myself threatened by that. To have the courage to support her leadership (as part of my leadership) and to face the feelings of fear that it brings up in me. We have been working really well together in collaboration. It is not of the present. I am not diminished. It is wonderful in the face of the fear to keep on acting on the truth of the benign reality and the reality of the space for all people to be in their power and fullness. Each fear, and each pang is an invitation to bring more of myself to myself and expressed in the world. I am grateful that she could not only hear my sharing but thank me for it and acknowledge it's beauty.
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