Partially by chance a series of opportunities arose for me to travel to several places within the West Bank. To be honest, it has taken me a little while to write this blog entry because although it was an amazing experience, not every aspect was the most uplifting and to say the least - it really tested my optimism for this torn land....
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| Wandering the streets of the Nablus old city |
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| The random assortment of traveling friends for the day:) |
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| Market Spices |
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| Transferring chickens through the market |
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| Nablus Soap Factory |
The highlight of Nablus was getting a tour of one of their famous soap factories. In the 19th century, the tradition of olive oil soap-making evolved from a practice maintained by the Palestinian grandmother into a fully fledged industry and art. Even though the industry has expanded, the factories in Nablus still maintain their traditional formulas and process. Without modern mechanisms, one bar of soap can take months to make! First the ingredients (olive oil, water & a sodium compound) are mixed in a large vat over low heat for 3-5 days. Then the mixture is poured over the large floor space where soon after casts are laid down to cut the soap- Next, each individual bar is stamped with a seal of the factory. After this the artistry really shows as they stack the soap bars into geometric hollow towers, leaving just enough space between them to allow for proper drying. This method of drying is the 'tried and true', and they say it has the perfect balance between height, width and airflow. The amazing part is not only in the structural beauty of these towers - but the fact that they remain standing for up to a few months before they are dismantled and the soap skillfully wrapped.
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| This man was incredibly fast at wrapping the soap - it would only take a few seconds to wrap one soap and he could wrap thousands in one day! |
Before the Intifada in 2001, Nablus had around 30 traditional soap factories. Unfortunately due to the occupation and the numerous checkpoints and borders, it has become extremely difficult for the Nablus factories to export their soap and today there are only 3 remaining factories.
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| Creating the pillars of soap to dry~ |
The Freedom Theatre
Next stop in the West Bank was Jenin, home of the Freedom Theatre. It was an extra five hours of travel time to spend one hour at the Freedom Theatre and it was worth every second. Like many refugee camps in the West Bank it has been there long enough to be established, and it could easily be confused with just another dilapidated town. But when you look closer you see the grim picture; that the 15,000 people are surrounded by barbed wire and an electric fence and that well over half of the population are children or young adults with 80-90% unemployment.
The Freedom Theatre's story was first heard by many people earlier this year as the murder of the theatre's director Juliano Mer-Khamis shocked the world. Juliano was an amazing individual that believed culture, art and a child's ability to be free and dream would bring about the liberation of the people. His legacy continues as volunteers maintain the theatre.
During our visit we were able to sit down with some of the passionate staff and take a tour of the theatre. The place was in good condition even though just a week before the Israeli Army raided the theatre - breaking windows and arresting three of its members under unknown charges. The theatre and it's members continue to be harassed by the military, even the day that we were there they received a phone call that some of their members had been detained at a checkpoint. Their reaction was systematic - showing their familiarity with the conditions. They were the ones telling us not to worry - that they would find a way to beat the system..... there was so much underlying hurt in their eyes but you could tell that their hope would prevail. Their strong will is something I will never forget.
The theatre's classes and workshops create a unique platform for expression and use art/drama therapy to help children cope with post-traumatic stress. The most important aspect of the theatre is that it allows people to dream beyond the world of hate and struggle that they have always known. Where the life of the girls is 'moving from their father's home to their husband's kitchen' and for the boys the life of a martyr.
I hope that someday in the future I can watch one of their productions - from small pieces that I have seen you can tell that the productions represent something so much bigger.... truly a cultural revolution. Here is the link to the theatre's website as well as a youtube video of their 'Animal Farm' production (if you have the time I highly recommend this one).
http://www.thefreedomtheatre.org/http://www.youtube.com/user/thefreedomtheatre?blend=8&ob=5#p/u/13/N4JmD_gc0gQ
Operation Dove
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| The village of At-Tuwani |
From the far north in Jenin, the following day I joined a small group to the far south of the West Bank into a small village that wasn't even on the map, At-Tuwani. In a small nondescript home we sat down with the members of 'Operation Dove', a Spanish non-violent peace corps group. Operation Dove's mission to reduce violence is a process requiring passion and patience. First, they live and create a presence in conflicted areas, sharing the life of the victim. Then they work with the community in supporting non-violent acts. Last but not least they aim to enhance the dialogue between the oppressed and the oppressor, working slowly towards a brighter future.
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| Looking over the fence into the settlement fields |
At-Tuwani is located in Area 'C' of the West Bank, which means that under the Oslo accords it is under full Israeli Occupation. This translates into strict restrictions on all infrastructure and thus an invite for the building of Israeli settlement infrastructure (as Palestinians are forced to move to places where they can have a livelihood, the land 'opens up'). Next to the village there is a growing settlement and outpost full of Israeli nationalists and religious extremists. (The only real difference between an outpost and a settlement is that the settlements are legal under Israeli law & the outposts are not - however they both receive support from the military). For the past decade the settlers have been silently moving their fences to obtain more land. On top of this, many of the extremists have displayed violence towards the village shepherds through physical attacks as well as poisoning their animals.
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| A broken land with the view of the forested outpost in the background |
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| Keeping the goats close to home |
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Another major problem for the village has been the constant harassment of the school children that must pass by the settlement to reach the humble school in At-Tuwani. Having internationals in the area such as those at Operation Dove to witness this cruelty has helped bring these things to the attention of the media and governments and now the children are escorted by the military on the way to school.
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| Members of Operation Dove point out the settlement fields and their ever expanding fenceline |
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| The road that runs between the settlement and the outpost - the only way for most of the children in nearby villages to travel to and from school. |
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| A picture is worth a million words and this one found hanging in the At-Tuwani 'museum' says it all. |
Final thoughts~
Each place and story held a complicated union between beauty & despair..... in the end these struggles in the 'holy land' seem so unfortunately ironic with each case fueling the perpetual circle of fear.
"It's really a wonder that I haven't dropped all my ideals, because they seem so absurd and impossible to carry out. Yet I keep them, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart." - Anne Frank
Thanks for more enlightening observations. you are becoming a journalist.
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