Showing posts with label Independence. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 18, 2026

4 principles guide the United Nation's humanitarian work: Humanity + Neutrality + Impartiality + Independence

United Nations

@UN

Humanity

Neutrality

Impartiality

Independence

These 4 principles guide the UN's humanitarian work. Learn more ahead of Wednesday's #WorldHumanitarianDay: un.org/en/observances

[AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES (or quotes or watch videos) IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine]

https://x.com/UN/status/2089683981998395798

Let’s make protecting each other our greatest achievement

On 19 August, we mark World Humanitarian Day: a time to honour humanitarian workers and to stand with people affected by crises around the world.

When lives are at risk, the people who come to help should never be targets. Yet humanitarian workers continue to be killed, injured, abducted, detained and obstructed while carrying out their work. Most are national staff serving their own communities.

Under international humanitarian law, civilians — including humanitarian and medical personnel — must be respected and protected. Parties to armed conflict must allow and facilitate humanitarian relief for people in need, in accordance with international humanitarian law.

Attacks on humanitarian personnel have consequences far beyond the individuals directly affected. They interrupt food deliveries, health care, protection and other life-saving services, leaving communities with even fewer ways to survive and recover.

Concern is not protection. Condemnation is not accountability.

International law and humanitarian principles must be upheld in practice. Preventing attacks, protecting humanitarian access and ensuring accountability are essential to preserving life and human dignity.

This World Humanitarian Day, we call on States and parties to armed conflict to:

Respect and protect civilians, humanitarian personnel and medical personnel.
Allow and facilitate safe, rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access, in accordance with international humanitarian law.
Prevent arbitrary arrest and detention, and release humanitarian workers who are unlawfully detained.
Conduct prompt, impartial and effective investigations into alleged violations and ensure accountability in accordance with international law.
Support survivors and the families of humanitarian workers who have been killed or injured.
Strengthen practical measures that help keep humanitarian personnel safe, including appropriate equipment and technology, security training, and mental health and psychosocial support.

bright red background showing a map of earth inside a white heart stating 'World Humanitarian Day'

Join the #ActForHumanity campaign

Protecting humanitarian workers protects the people who depend on them for food, health care, shelter, protection and hope. Let’s make protecting each other our greatest achievement.

Use your voice: Share verified campaign information and call for the protection of civilians and humanitarian personnel using #ActForHumanity.
Support humanitarian action: Support organizations delivering life-saving assistance, particularly local and national responders working in their own communities.
Stand for accountability: Call for respect for international humanitarian law and for credible investigations and accountability when violations occur.
Remember the people behind the numbers: Honour humanitarian workers who have been killed and stand with their families, colleagues and communities.

Protecting those who help others

Every life is more than a number

Every humanitarian worker killed leaves behind family members, friends, colleagues and communities whose lives are forever changed. World Humanitarian Day honours their lives, service and legacy, while renewing the call to protect those who continue this work.

Local humanitarian workers face the greatest risks

Most humanitarian personnel affected by violence are national staff working in the places where they live. Protection efforts must reflect the risks they face and ensure that local and national responders have the resources, training and support they need.

Drones and other emerging war technologies

From armed drones to artificial intelligence, the technology of war is changing. Our humanity cannot. Whatever weapons or technologies are used, parties to armed conflict remain bound by international humanitarian law.

All feasible precautions must be taken to avoid, and in any event minimize, civilian harm.
Human judgment and accountability must remain central to decisions involving the use of lethal force.
Humanitarian and medical personnel, their facilities, vehicles and work must be respected and protected.
Technology used to identify or track humanitarian operations must never be misused to target them.

Background

On 19 August 2003, a bomb attack on the Canal Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq, killed 22 humanitarian workers, including the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello. Five years later, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 63/139, designating 19 August as World Humanitarian Day.

Each year, World Humanitarian Day brings together partners from across the humanitarian system to advocate for the survival, well-being and dignity of people affected by crises, and for the safety and security of humanitarian workers.

World Humanitarian Day is a campaign by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

2026 Campaign Message

The time for concern is over. The time for consequence is now.

Join the campaign! #ACTFORHUMANITY now!

Facts & Figures

By the end of May 2026, more than 252 million people were in urgent need of humanitarian assistance and protection — 13 million more than when the 2026 Global Humanitarian Overview was launched. (source)
At mid-year, humanitarian partners were planning to assist 143.2 million people, with nearly 89 million people facing the most severe needs prioritized for life-saving support. (source)
By the end of April 2026, humanitarian partners had provided an estimated 45.2 million people with at least one form of assistance or protection — about one in six of all people in need. (source)
As of 31 May 2026, humanitarian plans required US$33.66 billion and had received US$8.21 billion — 24.4 per cent of the amount required. (source)
OCHA reported that at least 326 humanitarian workers were killed across 21 countries in 2025, bringing the number killed over the three-year period to more than 1,000. (source)
The United Nations recorded more than 37,000 civilian deaths across 20 armed conflicts in 2025 — approximately one recorded civilian death every 14 minutes. The figure is a documented minimum and does not represent the full toll. (source)

Figures reflect the reporting dates indicated in the cited sources and may be revised as additional information becomes available.

Documents

Related websites

Sunday, October 19, 2025

Humanitarian principles & UNRWA

Endorsed by UN General Assembly Resolutions 46/182 and 58/114, humanitarian principles guide the work of all actors working in the humanitarian sphere. As an Agency with a humanitarian mandate – to assist and protect Palestine refugees – humanitarian principles provide the space to make our work possible. From ensuring the sanctity of our shelters in times of crisis, to maintaining access to the most vulnerable populations, to advocating on behalf of Palestine refugees, the principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence are at the heart of all UNRWA operations.

The four principles together drive humanitarian action. A humanitarian response requires a focus on humanity, placing those in need at the centre and addressing suffering wherever it is found, respecting the dignity and fundamental rights of beneficiaries. It requires UNRWA to be impartial and provide a response based on independent assessments of need without distinction, neutral to allow operations on all sides and among various parties, and independent to make its own decisions in shaping operations. https://www.unrwa.org/humanitarian-principles

"The UN agency entrusted with the protection and welfare of Palestine refugees for three-quarters of a century, Unrwa, which I lead, was always meant to be temporary. The conclusion of its mandate was foreseen at its establishment. The choice before us today is whether to jettison a decades-long investment in human development and human rights by chaotically dismantling the agency overnight, or pursue an orderly political process in which Unrwa continues to provide millions of Palestine refugees with education and healthcare until empowered Palestinian institutions take over these services." Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of Unrwa* https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/dec/20/unrwa-stop-saving-lives-gaza-israel-un-agency

1940s- April - August 1948: More than 700,000 Palestine refugees are displaced as a result of the 1948 War.

The United Nations General Assembly adopts resolution 194 (III), resolving that “refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return and for loss of or damage to property which, under principles of international law or equity, should be made good by the Governments or authorities responsible.”

8th December 1949

UNRWA is created by General Assembly resolution 302 (IV), with the initial mandate to provide “direct relief and works programmes” to Palestine refugees, in order to “prevent conditions of starvation and distress… and to further conditions of peace and stability”. UNRWA takes over from the United Nations Relief for Palestine Refugees (UNRPR), established in 1948.

1940s

https://www.unrwa.org/content/resolution-302

READ MORE re Mandate:

In response to developments in the region, the General Assembly repeatedly extends and expands the UNRWA mandate, requiring the Agency to engage in a wide variety of humanitarian, development and protection activities based on the needs of beneficiaries.

General Assembly resolution 614 (VII), in 1952, notes a need for “increased relief expenditures” in the UNRWA budget. In 1955, resolution 916 (X) notes the "serious need of other claimants for relief […] namely, the frontier villagers in Jordan, the non-refugee population of the Gaza Strip, a number of refugees in Egypt, and certain of the Bedouin”. General Assembly resolutions in 1958 and 1959 recommend that the Agency increase programmes relating to education, vocational training and self-support, an emphasis that will become an important blueprint for the Agency.

Following the hostilities of June 1967, in which 300,000 people, including some 120,000 Palestine refugees, are rendered homeless or leave their homes, resolution 2252 (ES-V) asks UNRWA to “continue to provide humanitarian assistance… on an emergency basis, and as a temporary measure, to persons in the area who are currently displaced and in serious need of continued assistance”. In later years, the General Assembly repeatedly restates the Agency’s mandate for those displaced in 1967, and, after the invasion of Lebanon by Israel in 1982, extends it to encompass those displaced by “subsequent hostilities.” In the same year, resolution 37/120 (J) explicitly adds protection to the list of UNRWA responsibilities, urging the Agency to “undertake effective measures to guarantee the safety and security and the legal and human rights of the Palestinian refugees in the occupied territories.”

From 1992 to 2002, UNRWA collaborates with the Office of the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO) and other specialized agencies of the United Nations system to contribute to the development of economic and social stability in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt). In 1993, after Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) sign the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements, UNRWA begins developing its Peace Implementation Programme, which works “to meet Palestinian requests for assistance and priorities” during the interim period; General Assembly resolution 49/35 (1994) notes its “significant success.”

While other agencies and actors have the central role in arriving at a resolution of the Palestine refugee issue, UNRWA is mandated to work with governments on interim measures and to provide relief and assistance to Palestine refugees “pending the just resolution” of the Palestine refugee question. The role UNRWA plays in the region has evolved to reflect the needs and pressures of the times, but the Agency’s central mandate remains largely unchanged: UNRWA protects and assists Palestine refugees, seeking to help them achieve their full potential in human development.

https://www.unrwa.org/resources/strategy-policy/unrwa-and-sustainable-development-goals-sdgs

Poverty eradication and respect for human rights, central pillars of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), are at the core of the Agency’s human development, humanitarian and protection work. By investing in the human capital of Palestine refugees, UNRWA actively contributes to the realization of the 2030 Agenda. As the largest direct service provider to Palestine refugees in its areas of operations, the impact of UNRWA is concrete and sustained, with the following Sustainable Development Goals central to our work: SDG 1: No Poverty; SDG 2: Zero Hunger; SDG 3 Good Health and Well-Being; SDG 4: Quality Education; SDG 5: Gender Equality; SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation; SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth; SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities; SDG 13: Climate Action; and SDG17: Partnerships.

UNRWA joins the global effort to promote the SDGs through the “Decade of Action” and, in particular, the work UNRWA has done over the past 70 years. To learn more, view our factsheet on “UNRWA and the SDGs”

Palestine refugees

Who is UNRWA mandated to serve?

37865

UNRWA is mandated by the UN General Assembly to serve ‘Palestine refugees’. This term was defined in 1952 as any person whose "normal place of residence was Palestine during the period 1 June 1946 to 15 May 1948 and who lost both home and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 conflict." Palestine refugees are persons who fulfil the above definition and descendants of fathers fulfilling the definition. Read the full eligibility rules (Arabic PDF) or learn more here.

In addition to Palestine refugees, the UN General Assembly has also mandated UNRWA to offer services to certain other persons who require humanitarian assistance, on an emergency basis as and when required, in UNRWA fields of operations. Notably, the General Assembly has mandated the Agency to provide services to persons in the region who are currently displaced and in serious need of continued assistance as a result of the 1967 and subsequent hostilities. These persons are not registered as Palestine refugees. Only the UN General Assembly can change the mandate of UNRWA, the definition of a Palestine refugee and whom the Agency is mandated to serve. https://www.unrwa.org/who-we-are/frequently-asked-questions

Saturday, October 31, 2015

"What is so special about the Journal of Palestine Studies is our commitment to academically rigorous content that is also accessible to non-academics, to anyone interested in Palestine. I want to make sure Palestinian non-academics who crave this information and history can enjoy the Journal as much as a scholar in Middle East studies." Nehad Khader, managing editor of The Journal of Palestine Studies

"As managing editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies, I have a responsibility to other scholars and a responsibility to be true to the history of the Palestinian people." Nehad Khader

"... The thing I value the most about the Journal is our independence, though. There’s no one who steps in at any point to tell us what content we can or cannot publish. We have full independence, and that’s rare. Unless it’s bad scholarship, at no point does anyone stop us and say “that topic is too controversial” or “this is unacceptable because it might upset so-and-so.” When I started working here, I was surprised to discover that nobody would be looking over the Journal team’s shoulder. Our articles are meticulously fact-checked, well researched, and peer reviewed by experts, but never censored. JPS is so trusted and highly regarded for a reason, and I know how important that legacy is..."

[AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine (& America...etc...)]

http://blog.palestine-studies.org/2015/10/07/1879/

I know you’re an integral member of the Journal team now, but when did you first learn of the Journal of Palestine Studies?

I first found out about the Journal of Palestine Studies when I was in high school exploring a used bookstore in Philadelphia. Even as a young person I was drawn to these bound archives documenting the latest conversations and shifting fate of my homeland. My family is originally from Haifa, so growing up in Philadelphia I was ecstatic to discover a window into my own history through the Journal.

I kept these first few issues that I found in high school and they have a special spot in my office in DC today. One of them is Issue 41, from 1989, the 10^th anniversary issue of the Journal of Palestine Studies.

When I brought them home my parents recognized the names of renowned Palestinian academics and scholars inside the cover—at the time, such as Professor Walid Khalidi and Hisham Sharabi. We sat around the kitchen table exploring this treasure that I happened upon. I couldn’t have imagined then that one day I’d get to work side by side with these incredible scholars to make the Journal possible. ...READ MORE

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Another Look at Palestinian Culture

"Palestinians deserve the opportunity they've been denied for so long, to build their own state and develop their culture in independence and freedom"

by Dr. Ziad Asali, President, American Task Force on Palestine

[AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ziad-j-asali-md/another-look-at-palestini_b_1760294.html

Given the current conversation about issue of Palestinian culture and its relationship to politics and economics, I feel it's appropriate for me to add my own Palestinian-American perspective.

Palestinian culture has developed in the broader Arab, and more specifically Levantine, contexts. Contemporary Palestinian Arabs are among the primary, although not the sole, heirs of the accumulation of history in their land, including prehistoric, ancient, biblical and Jewish, Roman, Islamic, Crusader, Ottoman and British periods. Their distinct national identity emerged contemporaneously with and parallel to the Israeli identity and Zionist movement. Palestinians differ from other Arabs culturally in many ways, but within different localities they also differ from each other.

It is the experiences of the 20th century, particularly the British mandate, the encounter with Zionism and Israel, and the often tense interaction with other Arab societies and states that has given the Palestinians their distinctive national culture. The persistence of the Palestinian issue for so many decades reflects the tenacity and resilience of their national identity and culture.

The Palestinian quest for excellence in education isn't culturally hardwired or built into their DNA. It is rather the specific byproduct of the Palestinian experience in the past century. Palestinians, particularly of my generation, were forced to confront a reality without national institutions to rely on. Our parents and we knew, after the Nakba in 1948, that we had few real alternatives other than education in making our way in the world.

The Palestinian spirit of entrepreneurship has been reflected around the region and the globe, and continues to resiliently operate in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. This entrepreneurship and the knowledge-set acquired through intensive education significantly contributed to the whole region in the 50s-70s as Palestinians helped to develop many Arab societies.

As former president Bill Clinton noted in 2011, Palestinians "have done remarkably well outside their country. I have never met a poor Palestinian in the United States; every Palestinian I know is a college professor or a doctor." This is not to say, of course, that all Palestinians belong to an elite group. But it does mean that there are other explanations for a struggling Palestinian economy in the occupied territories than simply the Palestinian mentality.

Every serious study of the Palestinian economy has noted the deeply onerous effects of the restrictions of the Israeli occupation. Without them, there is no question that Palestinians would be faring better.

During the first Intifada that began 1987 and the second that began in 2000, education among Palestinians was significantly disrupted and has not yet fully recovered. A World Bank report issued on July 25 recognized the centrality of occupation restrictions to hampering the development of a more robust Palestinian economy, but it also emphasized the need for Palestinians to revamp their educational system to better prepare their people for private-sector employment.

Like most of the Arab, and much of the developing, world, Palestinian education tends to emphasize rote learning rather than fostering analytical skills and critical thinking. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad recognized this in an important speech on education he gave on August 8, 2010, in which he said the educational system in the West Bank should focus on critical thinking, language skills and combating fanaticism.

Palestinian politics has, not surprisingly, mirrored that of other Arab societies and included elements of patronage, corruption, and a lack of transparency and accountability. But since at least the 1970s there has been an active and dynamic Palestinian civil society that was unusual in most of the Arab world. This relative political pluralism and openness, however imperfect, may be among the key reasons that Palestinians have not experienced their own uprising during the current "Arab Spring." And importantly it was the Palestinians themselves who began seriously tackling problems with governance and emphasizing self-reliance, particularly through the state and institution building program launched in 2009.

Even before the "Arab Spring," serious reforms aimed at good governance, transparency and accountability were underway in one of the most unlikely Arab contexts: the occupied West Bank. The institution-building program led by Fayyad still stands as one of the most thoroughgoing efforts at reform in the Arab world and anticipated many of the key demands that erupted throughout the region in the past 18 months. Palestinian society is currently the scene of a wide-ranging set of debates about the role government, the rights and responsibilities of citizens, and the quality of private and public institutions. This debate should be acknowledged and encouraged.

Over the past 30 years, the rise of religious fanaticism in some parts of Palestinian society, mirroring that in the broader Arab world as well as among Jewish Israelis, has also undermined healthy social, cultural and educational attitudes. However, such fanaticism does not define the Palestinian mainstream or essential national culture. To the contrary, most Palestinians, while devout and socially conservative, remain essentially secular and fundamentally worldly.

Palestinians are no better or worse than any other group of human beings. They've reacted to a series of harsh developments over the past century much as any other group of people probably would have. As long as they remain without a country in which they can be first class citizens, this will continue to hamper their economic viability and stunt the development of their society and institutions. Palestinians deserve the opportunity they've been denied for so long, to build their own state and develop their culture in independence and freedom.

Click here to go to this article on ATFP's website .
Click here to see this article on The Huffington Post.

Monday, November 14, 2011

One Day, a True Independence Day by Joharah Baker for MIFTAH

[AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER PALESTINE AND PEACE...]

http://www.miftah.org/Display.cfm?DocId=24109&CategoryId=3

One Day, a True Independence Day

Date posted: November 14, 2011
By Joharah Baker for MIFTAH

Tomorrow is a special day for the Palestinians, at least in the world of symbolism and tenacious hope. Tomorrow is November 15, the day in 1988 when late President Yasser Arafat declared a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital.

Yes, we Palestinians – perhaps out of sheer survival – have learned to cling to symbols. We thrive on moral victories, on eloquent speeches and on support from countries that can make no real difference in the unbalanced corridors of power. And we celebrate, each year, on November 15, we take the day off, our children stay home from school and we remind them that one day, we will have a real independence day, but that until then, we cannot lose faith.

There is truth at the heart of this. We cannot lose faith in spite of all that has gone wrong. But there must be a balance between symbolism and reality. Each has its advantages and disadvantages equally and if we find that balance, we will not allow ourselves to get lost in the symbolism that merely lifts our spirits.

This is particularly true today, as the Palestinians face innumerable challenges, both diplomatically and on the ground. Earlier this week, the first blow was delivered to the Palestinians at the UN Security Council admissions committee which said it failed to reach an agreement over Palestine’s bid for full membership. The United States – wanting to spare itself even the slightest bit of awkwardness – seems to have been able to coerce France and Britain among others to either abstain or vote against the Palestinians should the latter decide to take it up in the Council so the US would not be singled out in its veto.

Naturally, the Palestinians are frustrated with the lack of justice and imbalance in powers that govern its diplomatic efforts to gain independence. But, like all these years of various tactics have proven to us, there is always one more way to go, one more idea to get us closer to our goal.

Officially, the leadership is not backing down on its option to turn to the United Nations to achieve statehood – symbolic again, but with a measure of diplomatic clout that could make a difference in their ability to take Israel to court and to get Palestine recognized as an occupied state. That, obviously, goes beyond empty symbolism and is why the leadership insists on pursuing it.

But back to our Independence Day and what it means to us Palestinians living year after year under occupation. At the time when President Arafat proudly took the podium in Algeria during the historical Palestine National Council’s special session, we all believed it would be just a matter of time before the dream came true. Even Arafat told us so – “We are in our last quarter hour,” he would say of the remaining duration of our long and hard struggle. “Jerusalem is just a stone’s throw away.”

That has not yet come to pass. Since then we have ridden the highs of our moral victories such as President Mahmoud Abbas’ speech at the UN General Assembly and the more recent UNESCO vote to include Palestine as full members. But we are no closer to independence than we were back in 1988 and perhaps just that much more disenchanted.

However, all is not lost. Those moral victories and the symbols we desperately cling to are meaningful for a reason. If it were not for the pride we feel when the Palestinian flag is flown on rooftops in Jerusalem or when three-fourths of the General Assembly gave President Abbas a standing ovation after his speech, we may forget what we are fighting for. The symbols are important, but not in and of themselves. It is not enough that Abbas got a standing ovation or that we are members of UNESCO. But it is something. And it is something when countries and individuals speak in our defense or condemn Israel for its crimes on Palestine soil. These are all stepping stones to the higher cause.

So, tomorrow, on our virtual Independence Day, let us be fair. It is not an “illusion” like some fazed cynics might call it. Neither is it the final destination because we are obviously still under occupation. But it is an important day to remember what we are working towards, why we are such a proud people and why, no matter how many more “virtual” independence days we have to celebrate, one day it will be for real.

Joharah Baker is a Writer for the Media and Information Department at the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH). She can be contacted at mid@miftah.org.

Friday, November 5, 2010

"I can see the path to the state of Palestine. And education is an integral part..." Daoud Kuttab: Education is Palestinian’s path to independence

Education is Palestinian’s path to independence

Published by Daoud Kuttab at 9:45 pm under Articles

I can see the path to the state of Palestine. And education is an integral part of it.

Palestinians have always prided themselves on being among the highest educated among all Arabs, but if this was true in the past, it is not true anymore, and it is certainly not true for Palestinians in the occupied territories.

Sure the illiteracy rate is very low. And it is true that Palestinians continue to seek basic and higher education, but in the last few decades, the level of Palestinian education has suffered, and local universities had to lower their standards in order to be able to accept the recent high school graduates.

Refocus on education has been a few years in the making. Many senior educators say that some of the problems they had to deal with were due to the repeated closures during the Intifadas, the lack of respect for authority, the occupiers, as well as some of the decisions made by the Hamas-led government in 2007.

Salam Fayyad, who took over as acting prime minister shortly after the split between the West Bank and Gaza, has worked hard at making education one of his government’s top priorities. The Fayyad administration made sure that resources were made available to reduce overcrowdedness, by taking on an ambitious construction programme. Tens of new schools and hundreds of new classrooms were built in a short period of time.

But the emphasis on education was not limited to construction. A concerted effort was made to revise the existing rote-based educational programme, the ministry introduced totally new programmes, new computer labs were added and serious efforts were exerted to digitise the entire educational system.

A five-year well-thought-out educational plan was designed and implemented. The plan looks at education with a more holistic approach, with serious thought given to the need to augment present programmes with preschool education, and the introduction of new methodologies that focus on critical thinking.

The Palestinian version of Sesame Street, funded by USAID, filled the screen of Palestine TV, radio stations will soon air a programme targeting parents and a website for parents, children and early education practitioners will be launched early next year.

While the priority given education is meant first and foremost to benefit the Palestinian people, it has finally put to rest attempts by Israel and its international promoters to paint Palestinians in an anti-educational stereotype. Efforts to label the Palestinian educational effort as promoting hatred and bigotry have become a joke to anyone following the tremendous push for moderation and wholesome learning by the Palestinian leadership.

Not only have Fayyad and his government succeeded in shaking off the falsehoods about what is happening in the Palestinian educational field, now the Israelis are guilty of exactly some of the accusations they were levelling at Palestinians. Israeli intolerance, for example, was crystal clear a month ago when it was revealed that Palestinians are willing to participate in an experiment in which the two historical narratives (the Palestinian and the Israeli) are presented in a straightforward and truthful m?nner. When the organisers of this experiment attempted to get the approval of the Israeli ministry of education, the idea was rejected, without the relevant Israeli officials even looking at the content that made up the parallel narratives.

This week, there was yet another example of Israeli intolerance and opposition to serious educational attempts by Palestinians. The Israeli authorities banned Fayyad from attending a ceremony celebrating the revamping of 15 Palestinian schools, some of which lie within the Jerusalem municipal boundaries. These schools, which have been neglected and abandoned for years by the Israel-run municipality and the Israeli ministry of education, were fixed with Palestinian money in record time.

A former Israeli Knesset member, Yossi Sarid, summed it up in a tongue and cheek article in Haaretz titled “Why is Salam Fayyad Israel’s public enemy number one”, in which he argued that the Palestinian prime minister is killing Israel with his moderation.

The state of Palestine will need a lot of hard work to become a reality. All successful modern states have given priority to education. If the present Palestinian attention to education continues, I am sure that the dream of an independent state will become a reality much sooner than many think.

Annie's New Letters (& notes)

Labels