This week I have had the pleasure of meeting a dedicated group of walkers/ pilgrims who are making their steady way across Europe and the Middle East on foot. I have joined them as a support driver because they need a minibus to assist them with luggage, lunch and lifts when necessary. Today they are in Turkey and they have walked through England, France, Switzerland, Italy, Albania, Macedonia and Greece. They will move on to Jordan from Istanbul and from the capital Amman will walk to the Holy Land and ultimately Jerusalem.
The walkers view their journey as a pilgrimage as well as an act of solidarity and penance. They participate in a daily liturgy, or morning observance, where they together remind themselves that they are walking with those whose rights are undermined, for the oppressed and for peace.
The initiative was set in motion by a guy called Justin, a writer, actor, director, musician and producer who has several years association with Amos Trust, a small human rights organisation supporting educational and rights projects in Nicaragua, India, South Africa, Burundi, South Africa and Palestine. When Justin was in the Holy Land in 2014 he met a Palestinian family whose home had been demolished by the Israeli authorities for the fourth time. The head of the family offered hospitality and graciousness and Justin was moved to consider ways to respond to their predicament.
There are three main aims for the walk which are to a) in order to express solidarity with those who have no freedom of movement, b) to demonstrate a willingness to walk the path of peace together with Palestinian and Israeli peace activists and c) as an act of penance recognise the wrongs of Britain’s political failure in the Holy Land.
The walkers are a diverse group and amongst them is a mezzo soprano called Julia from an organisation called Music with Refugees. She can play the oud and sing Arabic songs beautifully.
The walkers view their journey as a pilgrimage as well as an act of solidarity and penance. They participate in a daily liturgy, or morning observance, where they together remind themselves that they are walking with those whose rights are undermined, for the oppressed and for peace.
The initiative was set in motion by a guy called Justin, a writer, actor, director, musician and producer who has several years association with Amos Trust, a small human rights organisation supporting educational and rights projects in Nicaragua, India, South Africa, Burundi, South Africa and Palestine. When Justin was in the Holy Land in 2014 he met a Palestinian family whose home had been demolished by the Israeli authorities for the fourth time. The head of the family offered hospitality and graciousness and Justin was moved to consider ways to respond to their predicament.
Since 1967 house demolitions have affected thousands of Palestinians and this destruction shows no sign of abating. Palestinian, Israeli and international activist campaigning against restriction of movement of Palestinians by Israel, the illegal separation wall built by Israel, the siege of Gaza imposed by Israel, discriminatory laws, illegal Israeli settlements feel powerlessness yet there is power in being able to put one foot in front of the other and to lead oneself along a path such as the Just Walk from UK to Jerusalem.
There are three main aims for the walk which are to a) in order to express solidarity with those who have no freedom of movement, b) to demonstrate a willingness to walk the path of peace together with Palestinian and Israeli peace activists and c) as an act of penance recognise the wrongs of Britain’s political failure in the Holy Land.
The walkers are a diverse group and amongst them is a mezzo soprano called Julia from an organisation called Music with Refugees. She can play the oud and sing Arabic songs beautifully.
July 10th, 2010 at 6:18 am
The Editor Jerusalem Post
Dear Sir,
In response to questions in a letter you published from Freda Keet questioning me and fellow Gaza flotilla members on our concern for Africa’s humanitarian needs I would like to address her questions directly. Perhaps you could assist through your column.
1)Yes I have volunteered in Africa spending six months there first at a bush school in Zimbabwe providing teaching assistance then travelling on to a mission in South Africa that provided gardening tools donated in UK to pre-schools in the townships of Empangeni, Natal. It is shame that Ms Keet has not checked out the work of IHH with whom I travelled this year. IHH run numerous humanitarian projects in Africa including Congo where food distribution takes place during Ramadan and Qurban periods. The African countries IHH have completed substantial project work in include Ethiopia, Somalia, Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Chad, Cameroon, Sudan Darfur, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Rwanda, Tanzania, Niger, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Kenya. 2)In Darfur region alone IHH had completed 44 water wells, one school and five cultural centres. In addition to this in terms of emergency disaster relief five projects in Darfur Sudan have reached more than 100,000 beneficiaries. The total number of wells across 12 African countries is currently 633, with 40 cultural centres and 16 schools also being constructed. In addition to this in the past two years IHH have completed more than 50,000 cataract operations and undertaken more than 200,000 health screenings in African countries. 1580 orphans are supported across eight African countries. Since 2000, in Africa, during Ramadan more than 1 million beneficiaries receives food each year from IHH across 30 countries and during Qurban more than 2 million each year across 40 countries. 3)In Somalia IHH have completed 276 water wells, 13 cultural centres and four schools. In terms of disaster relief in Somalia six projects have reached a total of more than 100,000 beneficiaries.
Ms Keet mentions UN and UNRWA, I am glad she does so, then Director of Operations in Gaza John Ging called for the international community to respond directly with aid because not enough aid had been getting through for him to be able to conduct his work. Speaking at UN in New York on 22nd April 2010 he reiterated the words of Ban Ki Moon in saying “the increases in access are a drop in the bucket” in relation to Gaza, see video at http://vodpod.com/watch/3481843-unrwa-john-ging-a-drop-in-the-bucket-for-gaza. He states “We are not able to accommodate thousands of children seeking a UN education… who by UN resolution have a right to a UN education, all refugees in Gaza have a right to education….we have not been allowed to build a school in Gaza in three years.” His comments are backed up by United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs special focus report May 2010, “UNRWA reports that it has had 24 construction and infrastructure projects, totalling some $109 million in donor funds, frozen as a result of the blockade.” p. 2, ‘Impeding Assistance: Challenges to Meeting the Humanitarian Needs of Palestinians’, May 2010, OCHA, http://www.ochaopt.org The report goes on to say that “sweeping import restrictions imposed by Israel since June 2007 have either prevented the implementation of planned humanitarian projects or resulted in significant delays….restrictions on the import of cement make impossible the reconstruction of 12,000 Palestinian homes damaged or destroyed by Israeli military operations in recent years, as well as a further 20,000 homes needed to accommodate natural population growth in the Gaza Strip.” p.4
The report presents the fact that despite the high influx of donor aid to the region the operations are restricted to basic food and cash support which are inadequate to address the causes of humanitarian need creating greater reliance in future. In addition to the inefficiency this presents to donor countries also reported are additional blockade-related costs including lack of clarity on the goods allowed, restrictions on the number of crossings, restrictions in the containerising of goods and the lack of flexibility in terms of permits and vehicles. Let us not also forget that during Operation Cast Lead on 15th Jan 2009 the main UNRWA compound in Gaza City was shelled resulting in the destruction of hundreds of tonnes of food and medicine despite information on all UN locations being shared with IDF. The Board of Inquiry commissioned by Ban Ki Moon found that the Government of Israel was responsible for the death and injury of civilians in seven incidents during Cast Lead and as a result Israel paid US$10.5 million to the UN in January 2010.
In regards to Eastern Congo I must admit I have not travelled there. Working as a supervisor of social workers in within the local authority in North London for youth offending services within children and families services I have worked with a number of Congolese boys whose childhoods had been disrupted there and who now live in UK. What drives them to join or form gangs in London, such as one gang named ‘Dem Africans’ due to the number of African boys identified as members? Could it be the disruption of their childhoods and the need for identity and a twisted sense of safety? Does this situation not sound similar to that experienced by the children of Gaza who end up joining brigades? Could Ms Keet perhaps direct me to some academic research that shows that reducing the life chances and opportunities for children helps them to become more moderate and better-tempered young people? As John Ging stated, again in his report to UN on 22nd April 2010, “This should be about the people, its time to put the people before the politics. If we do prioritise the people.. focus on the needs of the people…that will make the politics easier moving forward. Ignore the people, abandon the people, leave the people to despair and desperation and that will make the politics more difficult moving forward.”
In relation to Ms Keet’s final questions: 1)No, there is no points system for grading suffering – we rely on UN resolutions and reports to indicate where problems may need resolution. 2)In relation to Africa please refer to the projects undertaken by IHH indicated above and see their website 3)No, there is no consideration of Palestinian blood above that of African – however when looking at statistics indicating at least 6,348 Palestinians and 1,072 Israelis have been killed since September 29, 2000, it would seem to indicate the value of Palestinian blood appears less than that of Israeli http://www.ifamericansknew.com/stats/deaths.html#source. 4)There is no reluctance to travel to Africa, I have done and so does IHH – I have however been working in my own community in London with disadvantaged groups for the past eight years 5)In suggesting that Jews are my enemy I am very puzzled – considering I work and socialise with Jews regularly in London and particularly in Palestine solidarity efforts where my co-driver on convoy in December 2009 was a Jewish woman – no, simply lawbreakers and human rights abusers are my concern
Finally it is very kind of my father to describe me as compassionate however everyone seems to be missing my selfish motivations – I personally want to live in a safer world. And with Israel carrying on in the ways it does in persecuting the Palestinians with the complicity of Arab, US and UK governments alike, I certainly won’t be. May I also suggest, as she has such clear concerns over the plight of Africans, that Ms Keet seek out the IHH website volunteer application form and complete it offering her services, just as I did.
Yours faithfully, Alexandra Lort Phillips