Reprinted from Christian Peacemaker Teams with Permission
At-Tuwani Reflection
Joy Ellison
No one will call the shepherds from Tuba and Magher Al Abeed heroes. You won’t see these Palestinian men in red kefiyas and mud-stained boots on the evening news. But while Israeli politicians turn a blind eye to the activities of extremist Israeli settlers, these farmers from the South Hebron Hills are successfully nonviolently resisting settlement expansion.
“I haven’t been to this valley in three years,” Issa* told me as we stood over looking Havot Ma’on settlement outpost. Over the past month, Issa and other shepherds have brought their sheep to pieces of Palestinian land they have not been able to graze since the establishment of the illegal Israeli settlement outpost. By doing so, they are showing the Israeli army and Israeli settlers that they plan to continue grazing on their land. Using this strategy, Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills have successfully regained access to land previously stolen by Israeli settlement. Right now, the shepherds of Tuba and Magher Al Abeed are at the forefront this dynamic nonviolent movement.
“The people of Tuba and Magher Al Abeed are strong. The army has to bring three jeeps for you!” my teammates and I joke. “Yes, yes, we’re strong,” the shepherds laugh. Since they began this campaign the shepherds have proven their strength over and over. The Israeli army has brought out jeeps and asked the shepherds for their IDs. Soldiers have kicked the sheep and threatened to arrest the shepherds. Soldiers have pulled off their pants and “mooned” us. Settlers have approached the shepherds carrying clubs, have fired on the shepherds and their flocks and thrown stones at them. Just to graze their sheep on land they have farmed for generations, Issa and the other shepherds risk arrest and violent attack.
But day after day the shepherds keep coming back to their land and showing their determination. When angry soldiers ordered two young shepherds to leave, the boys responded by sitting down. When a group of settlers came out of the settlement and threw stones at the shepherds and the volunteers accompanying them, the shepherds simply stood their ground. Soon, their lack of fear drove the settlers away.
Everyday the shepherds of Tuba and Magher Al Abeed prove that their nonviolent resistance is stronger the might of the Israeli army or the hatred of extremist Israeli settlers. They are the heroes of the South Hebron Hills.
*Not his real name.
Showing posts with label nonviolent resistance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nonviolent resistance. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Gaza: Israeli "End the Siege" Action at Erez Checkpoint
Reprinted from Christian Peacemaker Teams with Permission
30 January 2008
On January 26, almost 2000 people arrived at the Erez Checkpoint, Gaza, in buses, trucks and a long convoy of cars. Participants displayed enthusiasm, energy and hope through Palestinian flags, Hebrew and Arabic signs, two tons of relief food (donated by the participants) as well as 5 tons of essential foodstuffs and water distillers the organizers had purchased. Though demonstrators could not hand the commodities directly to the Gazans, the organizers promised that in the next two days this will be accomplished or they will appeal to the High Court.
Jessica Frederick and Paulette Schroeder, representing the Christian Peacemaker Team in Hebron and Sean O’Neill a CPTer from At-Tuwani, along with representatives from at least 26 Israeli human rights and peace activist groups who had organized the Action, traveled in this convoy.
The program included speakers: Nurit Peled Elhanan, Uri Avnery, Dr. Eya al-Sarraj who spoke of solidarity among Jews, Arabs and Christians working toward freedom for Gaza. Nurit Peled Elhanan, an Israeli peace activist whose daughter had been killed by a suicide bomber stated: The world is afraid of the Muslim womb..."Dr. Sarraj from within Gaza on his cellular phone declared with great passion: "Every drop of blood is a crime against humanity." Shir Shusdig, a young Israeli woman from the Israeli village Sderot near the Gaza border, spoke with courage: “For seven years I am suffering from the Qassams (rockets) in Kibbutz Zikum and Sderot. I know that the people on the other side are also suffering very much. That’s why I am here.”
Many journalists and peace activists from around the world recorded the news to send to their constituencies back in the States, Mexico, and Great Britain. One peace activist from Israel, 85 year old Pnira Feiler, a nurse, now serves as a volunteer with Physicians for Human Rights in clinics within the Occupied Palestinian Territories. She is quick to point out: “The Palestinians do not have access to medical services and at many of these checkpoints mothers have babies and people actually die.”
The action to “End the Siege in Gaza” ended as a shining example of Israelis, Palestinians, Christians, and Muslims working together for peace and for humanity.
As of this writing, Israeli authorities have not allowed the supplies into Gaza. Organizers of the action plan to take this issue to the Israeli High Court.
Photos and video of this action are available at: http://www.cpt.org/gallery/ENDtheSEIGE
30 January 2008
On January 26, almost 2000 people arrived at the Erez Checkpoint, Gaza, in buses, trucks and a long convoy of cars. Participants displayed enthusiasm, energy and hope through Palestinian flags, Hebrew and Arabic signs, two tons of relief food (donated by the participants) as well as 5 tons of essential foodstuffs and water distillers the organizers had purchased. Though demonstrators could not hand the commodities directly to the Gazans, the organizers promised that in the next two days this will be accomplished or they will appeal to the High Court.
Jessica Frederick and Paulette Schroeder, representing the Christian Peacemaker Team in Hebron and Sean O’Neill a CPTer from At-Tuwani, along with representatives from at least 26 Israeli human rights and peace activist groups who had organized the Action, traveled in this convoy.
The program included speakers: Nurit Peled Elhanan, Uri Avnery, Dr. Eya al-Sarraj who spoke of solidarity among Jews, Arabs and Christians working toward freedom for Gaza. Nurit Peled Elhanan, an Israeli peace activist whose daughter had been killed by a suicide bomber stated: The world is afraid of the Muslim womb..."Dr. Sarraj from within Gaza on his cellular phone declared with great passion: "Every drop of blood is a crime against humanity." Shir Shusdig, a young Israeli woman from the Israeli village Sderot near the Gaza border, spoke with courage: “For seven years I am suffering from the Qassams (rockets) in Kibbutz Zikum and Sderot. I know that the people on the other side are also suffering very much. That’s why I am here.”
Many journalists and peace activists from around the world recorded the news to send to their constituencies back in the States, Mexico, and Great Britain. One peace activist from Israel, 85 year old Pnira Feiler, a nurse, now serves as a volunteer with Physicians for Human Rights in clinics within the Occupied Palestinian Territories. She is quick to point out: “The Palestinians do not have access to medical services and at many of these checkpoints mothers have babies and people actually die.”
The action to “End the Siege in Gaza” ended as a shining example of Israelis, Palestinians, Christians, and Muslims working together for peace and for humanity.
As of this writing, Israeli authorities have not allowed the supplies into Gaza. Organizers of the action plan to take this issue to the Israeli High Court.
Photos and video of this action are available at: http://www.cpt.org/gallery/ENDtheSEIGE
Is there peace now?
Reprinted from Christian Peacemaker Teams with Permission
Art Gish
Hebron, West Bank
23 January, 2008
Right after the big meeting in Annapolis, Md., 27 November 2007, I returned to the Middle East for another three months of work with Christian Peacemaker Teams. I have been viewing that meeting and President Bush’s recent trip to the Middle East from the perspective of what I see happening in Israel/Palestine. So far, I have not seen one step taken by government authorities here toward peace.
On the very day the meeting took place in Annapolis, Israeli soldiers came to the village of At-Tuwani where I am living to deliver a military order to demolish the mosque in the village.
The Israeli government has announced that they will continue settlement construction and expansion in spite of international law and recent agreements. Immediately after the Annapolis talks, the Israeli government announced they would build 300 new housing units right outside Bethlehem. Even the Bush administration protested this clear violation of the Annapolis agreement. Sixteen new settlements were established in the West Bank in the two weeks before Bush’s visit.
Building of the Wall continues to isolate Palestinian communities and results in the confiscation of Palestinian land. One small section of the Wall south of Bethlehem will result in the loss of 5,000 acres of prime farmland for Bethlehem area farmers.
Israeli military killing of Palestinians has greatly increased since the Annapolis meeting. The kill ratio now is over forty Palestinians killed by Israelis for every Israeli killed by Palestinians. The situation in Gaza is horrendous, as has been well reported in the news media lately.
I continue to look for signs of peace. I have seen none coming from governments. The only signs of peace I see are the grass-roots efforts of Palestinians and Israelis to build a nonviolent movement to end the Occupation and bring Israelis and Palestinians together in peace. That excites me.
Art Gish
Hebron, West Bank
23 January, 2008
Right after the big meeting in Annapolis, Md., 27 November 2007, I returned to the Middle East for another three months of work with Christian Peacemaker Teams. I have been viewing that meeting and President Bush’s recent trip to the Middle East from the perspective of what I see happening in Israel/Palestine. So far, I have not seen one step taken by government authorities here toward peace.
On the very day the meeting took place in Annapolis, Israeli soldiers came to the village of At-Tuwani where I am living to deliver a military order to demolish the mosque in the village.
The Israeli government has announced that they will continue settlement construction and expansion in spite of international law and recent agreements. Immediately after the Annapolis talks, the Israeli government announced they would build 300 new housing units right outside Bethlehem. Even the Bush administration protested this clear violation of the Annapolis agreement. Sixteen new settlements were established in the West Bank in the two weeks before Bush’s visit.
Building of the Wall continues to isolate Palestinian communities and results in the confiscation of Palestinian land. One small section of the Wall south of Bethlehem will result in the loss of 5,000 acres of prime farmland for Bethlehem area farmers.
Israeli military killing of Palestinians has greatly increased since the Annapolis meeting. The kill ratio now is over forty Palestinians killed by Israelis for every Israeli killed by Palestinians. The situation in Gaza is horrendous, as has been well reported in the news media lately.
I continue to look for signs of peace. I have seen none coming from governments. The only signs of peace I see are the grass-roots efforts of Palestinians and Israelis to build a nonviolent movement to end the Occupation and bring Israelis and Palestinians together in peace. That excites me.
Why can't you bring us our donkey?
Reprinted from Christian Peacemaker Teams with permission
At-Tuwani Reflection:
Joy Ellison
22 January 2008
When I saw Heba* talking to the Ma'on settlement guard, I went running
towards her with my video camera poised. In at-Tuwani, extremist
Israeli settlers have attacked Palestinian children walking to school,
as well as Palestinian adults working on their own land. But as I
hurried towards Heba, I realized this 7-year-old was about to teach me
a lesson in nonviolent resistance.
Her hands clasped behind her back, Heba looked up into the face of the
settlement guard. With her usual composure, she spoke to him. This
particular settler is notorious for harassing Palestinians; I've seen
adult Palestinians take off running when he approached. But he was
looking down at Heba and listening. Before I could reach where she
stood, Heba turned and calmly walked away.
"What did you say to him, Heba?" I asked. A small, shy girl, Heba
didn't reply at first. But soon my teammates coxed an answer from her.
"I asked him why he couldn't bring back our donkey."
Recently, Israeli settlers beat a Palestinian man from the village of
Tuba and stole his donkey. (See Release: Large Israeli-Palestinian
Solidarity Walk to Tuba) Palestinians living in the South Hebron hills
have had their livestock stolen before. From experience, they know
the Israeli police are unlikely to do anything to help them recover
their property or prosecute settlers who attack them. Perhaps the
entreaties of a little girl could succeed where the Israeli police fail.
About a half an hour before I watched Heba make her case to an armed
settler, Israeli soldiers drove up to where Palestinians where were
plowing. Palestinians asked CPT to film as they insisted on their
right to work their land. Neighbors came to see what was happening.
Soon they were joined by a crowd of children. Heba's mother passed
out tiny cups of Arabic coffee. As soon as the settlement guard
arrived, Heba's grandmother, the oldest woman in Tuwani, walked up to
him. She greeted him without a trace of fear and asked him where the
donkey was.
Armed with nothing but their rights as human beings, the people of
at-Tuwani stood on their land and demanded their due expertly. The
farmers convinced the soldiers to allow them to work and the
settlement guard assured Heba and her grandmother that he would do his
best to bring back the donkey. I don't have much hope that the donkey
will be returned, but I'm sure that Heba will grow up knowing how to
resist injustice. And that gives me hope for the villages of the South
Hebron Hills.
*Not her real name.
At-Tuwani Reflection:
Joy Ellison
22 January 2008
When I saw Heba* talking to the Ma'on settlement guard, I went running
towards her with my video camera poised. In at-Tuwani, extremist
Israeli settlers have attacked Palestinian children walking to school,
as well as Palestinian adults working on their own land. But as I
hurried towards Heba, I realized this 7-year-old was about to teach me
a lesson in nonviolent resistance.
Her hands clasped behind her back, Heba looked up into the face of the
settlement guard. With her usual composure, she spoke to him. This
particular settler is notorious for harassing Palestinians; I've seen
adult Palestinians take off running when he approached. But he was
looking down at Heba and listening. Before I could reach where she
stood, Heba turned and calmly walked away.
"What did you say to him, Heba?" I asked. A small, shy girl, Heba
didn't reply at first. But soon my teammates coxed an answer from her.
"I asked him why he couldn't bring back our donkey."
Recently, Israeli settlers beat a Palestinian man from the village of
Tuba and stole his donkey. (See Release: Large Israeli-Palestinian
Solidarity Walk to Tuba) Palestinians living in the South Hebron hills
have had their livestock stolen before. From experience, they know
the Israeli police are unlikely to do anything to help them recover
their property or prosecute settlers who attack them. Perhaps the
entreaties of a little girl could succeed where the Israeli police fail.
About a half an hour before I watched Heba make her case to an armed
settler, Israeli soldiers drove up to where Palestinians where were
plowing. Palestinians asked CPT to film as they insisted on their
right to work their land. Neighbors came to see what was happening.
Soon they were joined by a crowd of children. Heba's mother passed
out tiny cups of Arabic coffee. As soon as the settlement guard
arrived, Heba's grandmother, the oldest woman in Tuwani, walked up to
him. She greeted him without a trace of fear and asked him where the
donkey was.
Armed with nothing but their rights as human beings, the people of
at-Tuwani stood on their land and demanded their due expertly. The
farmers convinced the soldiers to allow them to work and the
settlement guard assured Heba and her grandmother that he would do his
best to bring back the donkey. I don't have much hope that the donkey
will be returned, but I'm sure that Heba will grow up knowing how to
resist injustice. And that gives me hope for the villages of the South
Hebron Hills.
*Not her real name.
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