Must we be saved from our men?

*This article  of mine was originally published in Norwegian on the newly launched website, Infofada. 

Upon reading various Western articles regarding Palestinian women, one notices the tendency of placing Palestinian women as antagonistic to Palestinian men, deeming them as the source of women’s oppression without mentioning how Israel’s illegal settler-colonial project has both added to and perpetuated the violence that they experience on a daily basis. One also gets an image of Palestinian women being powerless, voiceless beings unaware of the oppressive conditions that affects them. Such writings create a false representation of Palestinian women while undermining both their capabilities and their struggle.

Israeli Occupation as the Cause of their Oppression

It should go without saying that Palestinian women experience dual forms of oppression, one from Israel’s occupation and another from their patriarchal society which has become increasingly so as a result of the former. If one were to look into the history of Palestinian women, one could see that the source of their power came from the rural lifestyle that they lived, making them a vital asset to the economy and well-being of the home and society. An additional means of self-empowerment was their crucial participation in national liberation movements and uprisings against the British Mandate and Israel’s occupation. However, due to Israel’s theft of Palestinian land and the signing of the Oslo Accords and how it put an end to or watered down the various resistance movements, a sense of desperation among men who tried to maintain power formed and they used the oppression of women as the foothold in which they can do so. Consequently, women were forced to live a life of domestication where their responsibility was that of a caretaker or as a secondary economic provider.

Therefore, the tendency of putting the blame on the effect (Palestinian men) and not the cause (Israel’s occupation) is to say that Palestinian women experience only an internal form of oppression. It is to say that the external form of oppression that kills, exiles, imprisons, tortures, rapes, starves, and threatens Palestinian women and their loved ones is not oppression after all. Moreover, it is to undermine what Palestinian women and feminists consider a fundamental part of their cause: The liberation of Palestine.

Agency among Palestinian Women

The characterization of Palestinian women as being weak and powerless entities is to provide an inaccurate representation of who they are. Although this is the case with some Palestinian women, there are many who do voice their thoughts and opinions regarding the various things that happen on a national and international level, and who participate as active members in their societies on political and cultural levels despite Israel’s deliberate (and at times successful) attempts to hinder any such doings.

“Palestinian women stand as a barrier in the face of compromise” (General Union of Palestinian Women, 1975)

Unlike people who are privileged enough not to concern themselves with political issues, the politics of Israel’s illegal occupation manages to force itself upon every aspect of Palestinian lives, therefore making the very existence of Palestinians a political act in itself. As mentioned before, since the 1920’s, Palestinian women played a tremendous role in the struggle for liberation as their activities in the past and present range from participating in demonstrations to party affiliations to running for president to being active members in the PLO.

There are two different forms of politics that women engage in: The formal and the informal. The formal participation entails women working in the government and in governmental organizations such as the Palestinian Authority and its various committees and ministries. The role of women in this form was strengthened by women’s rights organizations who lobbied for a quota system that reserved more seats for women in legislative and municipal elections and in municipal and village councils. Furthermore, there is a Ministry of Women’s Affairs that aims to decrease the gender disparity and to amend laws that afflict Palestinian women and discourage them from practicing their natural rights.

However, the participation of women in the informal political scene is far greater than in the formal, as this practice is far more decentralized and local and, therefore, more accessible to women. The major means of political involvement has to do with attending and organizing political demonstrations and protests. Palestinian women often attend the weekly Friday demonstrations that take place in Nabi Saleh and Bil’in, and they also participate in other demonstrations that call for the end of Israel’s siege on Gaza, its continuous construction of settlements, its theft of Palestinian land, its burning of Palestinian olive trees, and its tendency to incarcerate Palestinian men, women, and children under administrative detention. Palestinian women also turn to print and social media to present their take on various events and issues and this includes articles being published on personal blogs and news magazines (there is a newspaper that circulates around Palestine known as “Sawt Al-Nisa’” which is dedicated to creating a platform for women to discuss national and social matters). Palestinian women who engage in such activities either do so in the name of a party that they are affiliated with like Fatah, Hamas, The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the other existing parties, or they do so independently as Palestinians.

Palestinian women are known to maintain the many valuable aspects of their culture and heritage in a way that promotes Palestinian economy and preserves Palestinian history. A lot of the cultural centers and organization in Palestine are run by women, such as “In’ash Al-Usra”, that provides Palestinian women with the necessary materials needed to create embroidered dresses and design pieces along with containers and ingredients used for pickling fruits and vegetables, both of which can be sold to the public to increase the income of the household. There are also Palestinian women who participate in dance, singing, and theatre clubs where they learn how to sing traditional and modern songs and dances along with how to act in or produce plays. Palestinian women, such as Fadwa Tuqan and Adania Shilbi, are also known to contribute greatly to the literary scene in Palestine as they offer a perspective that sheds light on aspects of Palestinian society that are generally not covered by male authors. Such action is necessary in today’s context, as there is a deliberate attempt by Israel to appropriate many aspects of Palestinian culture as their own, so any act of maintaining what is Palestinian is an act of resistance.

The intention of this article is not to insinuate that the Palestinian women experience full equality nor is it say that Palestinian women do not undergo hardships because of social repression. The truth of the matter is that occupation and patriarchy have yet to cease to exist. Though if the rights of Palestinian women is truly a concern for the West, then the best way to support them is to help dismantle Israel’s illegal occupation, which is a prominent acting force to the tyrannical conditions that they experience.  Projecting a limited, Western understanding of the conditions of Palestinian women is not the way to lend a hand and such actions is neither respected nor tolerated by Palestinian women. Essentially, if one wants to help them, one must listen to them!

The Intruders who Wanted Some of Our Coffee

After one of the longest semesters I have ever had at Birzeit finished, my parents decided it was time to visit our family back in Tulkarm. So, this Friday was spent in my father’s parents’ house in the village Ateel. It started off like it always does. I wake up, go down stairs and help my aunt around the house, and we make breakfast, eat and clean. The men attend Friday prayer at one of the local mosques, and as soon as they get back, my family packs up our belongings and go to my mother’s side of the family. This time, a delightful phone call interrupted the mundane Friday schedule. It was my mom’s sister, my beautiful aunt who was inviting us to Al-Ahrash, which is a terraced hill terrain in a village called Qaffin (22 km northeast of Tulkarm), where a lot of people like to go with their family and friends to enjoy the beautiful scenery that Palestine has to offer. We accepted her invitation and after an hour or so, we were off.

Just so you all can get an idea of the setting.

One thing I have noticed while being in Palestine, is that we like big numbers of everything, especially children. Bless our mothers, the fact that their bodies are still intact is beyond me. The group I went with consisted of only three families, yet we had over 20 people, half of which are still children. The other families we passed by on our way up the hill seemed even larger than ours, too!

As soon as we found the right spot for us, we laid down our blankets, got out our sunflower seeds, and started a fire for tea and coffee. After our cup of tea, we all decided to walk around and observe the stunning terrain. There were beautiful flowers, almond and pine trees, and intriguing insects (most of which scared the bajeezus out of me). We got back and decided it was time for some coffee and once the caffeine got into our systems, we began to play one of my favorite games ever!

The game is called Seven Stones, but my Palestinian friends in America that I grew up playing it with called it Ambar. The game originates from India, but it managed to find its way around the world. Pretty much, the whole game revolves around seven stones that are piled on top of each other. The players divide themselves into two teams, and each team has one of their members try to knock down the stones with the ball. The first team that knocks down the stones automatically becomes on offense, and the other on defense. Now, the objective of the offensive team is to stack the seven stones back on top of each other, while the defensive team have to prevent that from happening by tagging them out with the ball. If the offensive team stack the stones, then they win and if the defensive team tags everyone from the offensive team out before they stack the stones, then they win. It is very simple, but very intense!

My team lost the first round and thought that we would be able to redeem ourselves in the second one, which we were. Half way through it though, we were interrupted. Who interrupted us, you ask? Well, the IOF, of course! Apparently, they were watching the surveillance cameras that they have implanted around the area when suddenly there were a few loud noises that echoed in the sky. (If the cameras surprise you, it really should not. Consider the IOF to be the non-fiction equivalent to INGSOC. They have got microphones and cameras everywhere, even in the places you would least expect, say for instance, a place where people go to simply relax with their family and friends.) It was probably some of the teenage boys messing around with fire-crackers or something which definitely was not the smartest thing to do on their part considering we were technically in a forest, but anyways, the IOF were “alarmed” and started to patrol the area in their Jeep. Out of nowhere though, they decided to arrest someone for some reason that is unknown to me, and a large group of Palestinians surrounded the Jeep and started protesting against them, demanding that they release the boy. After around 20 minutes, the IOF gave in and the boy was set free. On their way back to wherever it was they were, they stopped by our spot and asked my dad a few questions. In the end, they tried to act as though they were our friends who were trying to protect us, then they jokingly asked if we had any coffee we would be willing to offer them, and left. The answer to their question would be: No, you cannot have some of our coffee. Have you not taken enough from us? And you, our enemy, our occupiers, are not our friends. The thought alone sets the fire in me blazing with intense fury!

The jeep surrounded by Palestinians

There you go! What was once a simple gathering with my family suddenly turned into an arrest of a fellow Palestinian. One thing that is beautiful though, is that the Palestinians refused to let the IOF take yet another one of our people into their miserable prisons, where torture is inevitable. We stood together, we protested, and we fought for what was right. This proves one thing, one very important thing: We have it in us to resist this occupation and that means that we have it in us to be free. We can liberate the country its intruders that believe they have the right to steal our land, our culture, our heritage, our history, our people, and our freedom. We can do this and never should we doubt our abilities and our strength.

Yes, I am Privileged.

Earlier this year, I took a Democracy, Human Rights and International Law course at my university and there was once a discussion about how Palestinian resistance is not where it should be.  I, who usually do not say much in class because my Arabic is absolutely humiliating, managed to muster up what little courage I had and thought that maybe now is the time to participate. I dared to say that Palestinians have become lazy, and that the only way things are going to start heading in the right direction is if a third Intifada were to take place. Although a lot of my classmates agreed with me, my professor said, and I remember this clearly, “My dear, that is easy for you to say. As soon as things get a bit dangerous, a plane from America will be sent for you and you will be taken to safety.”

I was born in the United Stated of ‘Murica, into a well-to-do, middle class Palestinian family who have provided me with food, shelter, education, and good health. When I was 13, they decided to move to Ramallah, Palestine. There, I was entered into the unreasonably over-priced private academic institution which I deemed, and still deem to be a horrible place to learn. I must admit that it did provide a better education in comparison to the public schools in the country, and that is saying something. I now attend Birzeit University, and although money is not flowing in like it used to, my family is able to make ends meet.

I have been living in Palestine for around seven years now and to say that I have experienced a life similar to that of your average Palestinian who lives in a town, village, or refugee camp would be an absolute and utter lie.

In a nutshell: I am privileged.  However, do not think that I find the way I have been living honorable or fortunate. I am truly jealous of those Palestinians who are actually experiencing our culture and heritage, who speak our beautiful language with exquisite fluency, and whose strength is beyond that of a Herculean warrior.  I am privileged in the sense that I have advantages, access to certain possessions and institutions that many Palestinians long for but are unattainable to them.

I live in Ramallah, where phony, duplicitous politicians, upperclassmen, and internationals have taken over and claimed their own; a city where Palestinian culture and heritage is almost non-existent.  As a result, I have not experienced a majority of what most Palestinians go through: the humiliation of living in camps or going through checkpoints, and the honor of those who fight for freedom; the painful moments when a loved one is arrested, and the joyful moments when they are freed; the tormenting taste of salt water that a hunger striker endures, and the gratifying taste of their first meal after the strike has ended; the painful feeling a caretaker bears because of their inability to provide, and the satisfying feeling they encounter when they manage to find a way to get what little they can.

I have experienced none of that, save for the few times IOF constructed random checkpoints on the road to my father and mother’s hometowns which I visit occasionally, or the two times my family managed to get a permit to go to East Jerusalem. So, I, who am Palestinian, cannot say that I have deep understanding in the joys and sorrows that Palestinians have.

Therefore, those who do not truly understand the conflict have no right to act as a savior to the Palestinian people, or pretend to know what path is best for them to take. I am not saying that one cannot have or form an opinion on the situation, but do not get upset if it is not considered valid or is not agreed upon by Palestinians. It is their right to form opinions on their own, without interference by those fortunate enough to not have to go through the battles that they face every day.  Though, all of us have a responsibility in resistance. We all must participate, but the way in which we involve ourselves matters and responsibilities differ from one person or people to another, because these contributions that many people have provided Palestinians with have further put Palestinian resistance in a detrimental state.

I guess what I am trying to say is that living in Palestine for a few years does not make one an expert on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Studying the conflict does not make you one either.  The only experts on the conflict are those who are directly affected by it.  The architects of resistance must not be the Palestinian Authority, or foreign countries, or privileged members of Palestinian society. As soon as people start to understand that, Palestinians would be able to form a means of resistance that is suitable for them. One that they are in agreement with, rather than one that was imposed upon them.