EAPPI - Advocacy and Action

Tulkarm Team 47 - Spring 2013

Those of you who have been reading this blog post know that I spent the spring of 2013 in Palestine – specifically in the northern Palestinian city of Tulkarm – with the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI).  As an Ecumenical Accompanier (we refer to ourselves as “EAs”), my “job” was to monitor checkpoints, share in the in the day to day lives of Palestinian people, and support Israelis in nonviolent action for peace.

The reports that my EA team filed with the Jerusalem EAPPI office ultimately found their way into United Nations reports, and studies on human rights, access to education and other issues relevant to the ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestine. 

A woman shares her story

But the time I spent living in the West Bank was only half of the job.  The other half is advocacy. Since returning home, I have maintained this blog post, made presentations to church and community groups, written letters to (mostly) unresponsive politicians and joined with organizations and individuals working at the grass-roots level to end the Occupation. 

Recently, the US EAPPI coordinator asked former US EAs to participate in fundraising efforts in an attempt to recruit more Americans to participate in this very worthwhile program.  While EAPPI is an international program, the United States is woefully under-represented, .  Out of 1,400 volunteers who have served as EAs since 2002, only 27 have been Americans. The reasons for this are largely financial.

Advocacy in Ohio - with Randie Clawson (Team48)

EAPPI was started by the World Council of Churches, which oversees the international organization.  Each of the 21 participating country is administered (and funded) by a church-related organization in that country.  Thus, in Great Britain, the Quakers administer the program; in Sweden it is the Church of Sweden; in Canada the United Church of Canada.  In the United States, Church World Services serves as program administrator but, unlike its counterpoints in the other participating countries, CWS has no funding for EAPPI.

Thus, while my counterparts from Sweden and Great Britain not only had the program expenses (currently about $11,000) covered by their sponsoring church organizations, but received stipends while serving abroad, we Americans had to either fundraise or self-fund our time in Palestine.  The commitment of time and the ability to put one’s life on hold for three months is difficult enough.  Added to this, the ability to raise this kind of money severely limits the number of people who can serve as EAs. 

And yet, American eyes are desperately needed in the Occupied Territories – and American voices are desperately needed at home.  It is, after all, American money that funds the Occupation (to a tune of $3.2 billion a year!) and American politicians whose votes perpetuate the human rights abuses. 

Even donkeys must pass through checkpoints!

I’m not very good at asking for money – but I’m screwing up my courage to add my voice to the cacophony of end-of-the-year requests for donations.  If you are inclined to support this wonderful program, donations of any amount can be made by going to to http://www.eappi-us.org/index.php?page=support.  Thank you! 

Bethlehem Revisited

“Oh Little Town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie…”  It permeates the airwaves this time of year – on the radio, in the malls and, of course, in church, where we visualize that “little town” and pray for “peace on earth, and good will to all.

But, if you are getting your news from anywhere other than the “mainstream media,” you know that “little town” hasn’t been still for a quite a while now.  Bethlehem – and, indeed, all of the town and cities in Palestine – has become a focal point for acts of violence and punishing pogroms that, far from bringing “peace on earth,” are moving the Holy Land farther and farther from the vision that the Christmas story suggests.

Church of the Nativity (Diana Fisher photo)

My most recent visit to Bethlehem was in October.  I stayed in an apartment just down the hill from Manger Square – and even attended a Sunday service in the Church of the Nativity. But even in that beautiful setting, the postcard view is marred by the bullet holes in the exterior walls – left by Israeli soldiers who killed eight Palestinians and injured dozens more who had taken sanctuary there during the Second Intifada.

Moving away from Manger Square, the last (and only) vestige of tourism left in a Bethlehem that is now virtually surrounded by the “Security” Wall, one sees few remnants of the once-vital city that remains the unofficial “Christian Capital” of the West Bank (by law, Bethlehem’s mayor must be a Christian).  The market, once thronged with tourists has been decimated, leaving the remaining merchants to compete vigorously for the few remaining visitors who dare to defy warnings that Bethlehem is a “dangerous” place to visit.  For the most part, tourists in their big busses come only to see the church – and leave without seeing anything else or talking to a single Palestinian!

Our next stop was at the infamous Checkpoint 300, the closest checkpoint between Bethlehem and Jerusalem.  This is the point through which Palestinian workers must pass to get to their jobs, the ill or injured must pass to reach medical treatment and worshippers must pass to reach mosques and churches.  And that, of course, assumes that they are fortunate enough to have the proper permit!  Up to 8,000 people will pass through this checkpoint on a busy work day, under conditions that the average tourist will never see – and cannot imagine!

Aida Camp (Diana Fisher photo)

A visit to the Aida Refugee camp, within walking distance of Checkpoint 300, gave us the opportunity to meet third-generation refugees of the 1948 Nakba, who live in tiny cement block houses and send their children to UN-supported schools.  “No room at the inn” for these folks!

Life in the villages surrounding Bethlehem isn’t much better.  In Wadi Fouquin, just a short drive away, the village has been the recipient of sewage dumping from the neighboring settlement for several years.  Worse, the residents of the settlement, ultra-Orthodox “religious” settlers, use the village’s fresh water ponds for their “purification” baths.  And Israel recently announced that it is “annexing” another 1,000 acres of Wadi Fouquin’s agricultural land for settlement expansion!  Still, we spent a pleasant morning picking olives there – and were told that several villagers were traveling to the US to testify before Congress in November.

Olive picking in Wadi Fouquin

At Cremesan, a Roman Catholic monastery, school and winery, the path of the Wall will divide the vineyards from the winery – and the students from the school.  Weekly prayer vigils give voice to those who would object – but the objections fall on deaf ears.

Perhaps, though, the lyrics to the song aren’t as antiquated as they may first appear.  Remember, the closing line: “The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight…”

Revisiting Palestinian Hospitality - and Food!

I have been describing my recent (October 2014) trip to Palestine/Israel as a “spiritual and culinary journey.”  The spiritual part came from my fellow travelers, guided by a clergywoman who provided inspiration and understanding as we dealt with the minefields of viewing the Occupation through the lense of Christianity and humanity.

Makloubah (photo by Diana Fisher)

The culinary part came from the outstanding hospitality we experienced (nothing new to those of us who’d been there before – see, for example, “Food – Glorious Food” - February 22, 2013) and, for me at least, particularly from Easmat in Tulkarm, and then from Lorette in Bethlehem.

Easmat is the wife of Muawya, who was the taxi-drive/translator for my EAPPI team when we were in Tulkarm in the spring of 2013.  She is the mother of four young boys, and was a charming and gracious hostess to our team – welcoming us to their home for traditional Palestinian meals, and cake and coffee visits.  On this, my first trip back since leaving in late April, 2013, I returned to Tulkarm for a visit with Muawya and Easmat and their family.

Palestinian Market (photo by Diana Fisher)

It was a day during which everyone in our travel group of six had made her own plans – and, for me, those plans were to take the bus to Tulkarm (via Ramallah) for lunch with Muawya’s family.  Upon my arrival in Tulkarm, I found Muawya at the taxi stand, and he drove me to his home where I visited with Easmat as she prepared our lunch.  It was the first time I’d seen her without her hijab (on previous visits there were always men present) and she reminded me of my daughters and daughters-in-law, as she bustled around the kitchen, juggling cooking and child care.  I was much impressed that she remembered the names and ages of my children and grandchildren – especially considering how many internationals had been in and out of her home in the past several years.

As we visited in her cozy kitchen, I sipped mint tea and perched on a chair, while Easmat prepared a delicious chicken and rice dish (she wouldn’t let me help).   The boys wandered in and out of the kitchen, looking for a snack, wanting help with their homework, curious about the foreigner in their home but polite and respectful of the adults.  The oldest boy even asked me for help with his English homework!  It was a delightful day – and one I will long remember!

Lorette (photo by Diana Fisher)

In Bethlehem, our small group stayed in an apartment in a “family compound” owned by Lorette and her husband, Nicola .  Other family members lived nearby; their three sons and their families lived in a building a short distance away that Lorette and Nicola had built for them.  Family is important – and they have done everything they can to keep theirs close.

Lorette prepared all of our breakfasts and dinners while we were in Bethlehem – sometimes we were a group of eight (our travel group of six, plus Lorette and Nicola); at other times, the table expanded to include other family members, friends, acquaintances and “drop ins!”  There was always plenty of food to go around!

During our time there, Lorette gave us cooking lessons (the “culinary” part of the trip) in her spacious kitchen.  We accompanied her to the local market in Bethlehem (just one street over from the “tourist market” off Manger Square) and watched her select the foods that would end up in our dinner. 

Then it was back to the kitchen, where she set us to task – one chopping veggies, one frying cauliflower, another chopping garlic (a LOT of garlic goes into Middle-Eastern cuisine!).  The camaraderie of group cooking was wonderful – and the results made for mighty tasty eating!

In Lorette's kitchen in Bethlehem (photo by Diana Fisher)

Palestine “By The Numbers”

I’ve never been a “math person.”  Numbers intimidate me – I’m much more comfortable with words.  I’ve always thought it was a right-brain/left brain “thing,” but my math professor friend tells me I’m wrong – anyone can grasp math concepts!  Not sure I totally agree, but looking at the situation in Palestine “by the numbers,” here are a few to muse upon:

Historic Palestine

67% - Percentage of “Arabs” (Christians and Muslims) making up the total population of historic Palestine before 1948

33% -  Percentage of Jews in the total population of historic Palestine before 1948

78% - Percentage of land that was allocated to the Jews in the 1947 UN “Partition Plan”

22% - Percentage of land allocated to “Arabs” in the 1947 Partition Plan

537 -  Number of Palestinian villages destroyed in the “Nakbah” (disaster) of 1948

750,000:  Number of Palestinians made refugees by the 1948 Nakbah

Berlin Wall/Israeli "Separation Barrier" - a comparison

2/1:  Ration of the length of the Wall (“Separation Barrier”) to the length of the internationally recognized “Green Line” or border between Israel and the West Bank.

8 kilometers (about 30 feet) – height of Wall

$255,000,000 (that’s million!) cost of constructing each kilometer of the Wall

$3,2,000,000,000 (billion!) paid by US taxpayers that is sent to Israel every year (That’s more than $8,000,000/day).

101 – different types of permits that Palestinians living in the West Bank must obtain to cross into Israel for education, work, medical appoints, visits with family, etc.

50,000 – fruit-bearing trees destroyed on Palestinian farmland since 2009

A burned olive tree in Palestine

7 miles wide and 30 miles long:  size of Gaza (living in the Pacific Northwest, I think this is about the same size as the Long Beach peninsula in Washington State!)

1.8 million – population of Gaza

560,000 – Israeli settlers living in illegal settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem

99.7 – Percentage of Palestinian children (some as young as 5!) who are convicted of “crimes” like throwing stones (note: Israel just passed a law authorizing 20-year sentences for stone-throwing!)

200,000 – Current population of Hebron, the largest city in the West Bank.

500 – Approximate number of Jewish settlers living in Hebron (many in homes appropriated from Palestinians!)

1,000 – Number of Israeli soldiers stationed in Hebron to “protect” the settlers.

Shuhuda Street Today

1141 – Number of Palestinian shops closed on Shuhuda Street, Hebron, after American-born Jewish settler Baruch Goldstein killed 29 Muslim men praying in the Abraham mosque in 1994 (and wounded another 125) Yes, you read that correctly!  A right-wing Jewish extremist killed 29 Palestinian Arabs, and the Arabs were punished!

1114 – Number of Palestinian homes on Shuhuda Street closed to their owners at the same time.

0 – Number of shops on Shuhuda Street open today!