Confrontation, Immigration, and Apartheid

As birds migrate from one place to another because of changes in the weather or the availability of food, humans also migrate to different countries but for different reasons. People move to other countries for better life and job opportunities. However, in Palestine it is different. Some Palestinians immigrate in order to resist the Israeli Occupation, to help and support Palestine financially and in many other ways. Some people think immigrating to a different country is an act of surrendering; however, with my own personal experience I think it is an act of resistance.

In summer 2000, my family and I closed our home and moved to the United States. We moved there because of the Second Intifada. The Second Intifada was very harsh and painful to every Palestinian. The Second Intifada was part of the Palestinians enduring resistance for justice, national liberation and an end to the Israeli Occupation. Due to the curfew, strikes and many other difficulties we faced going to school during the Intifada, my father decided that we would move to the United States in order to continue our education and have a better life. When we left to the United States, the people living around us thought they would never see our faces ever again. They thought that we would become westernized and stay living in the United States for the rest of our lives. They did not see the resistance that we were a part of. Living in the United States, my father was very strict on us in order not to become westernized. It is true that we adopted some of the American lifestyles and lived according to their system and regulations, but we did not forget who we really are and where we come from. We were always, and still are proud to be Arab-Palestinians. Even when the twin towers fell down on September 11, 2001, we were never ashamed of the fact that we are Arabs. After living for three years in the United States, with our heart, mind and spirit with our fellow Palestinians, and when things settled down, less curfew and strikes, we returned to Palestine. Today, I am an undergraduate student in The Honors College living in Palestine, majoring in economics and finance. I hope that after graduating and finishing my studies, I will be able to help and support Palestine.

I have not realized my resistance until I made a visit and walked through two of the most beautiful villages in Palestine, Turmus Aya and Battir. Turmus Aya was named after a person named Turmus. He used to live in that village and he refused to pay taxes to the British. When the British tax collector went to the government and told him that Turmus refused to pay, they told him “Turmus Aya” which means, Turmus refused to pay. So they named the village after him. As any other Palestinian village, the landowners of lands in Turmus Aya are forced to cultivate their lands in order to stay owners. As Raja Shehadeh mentions in his book, Palestinian Walks, the Israeli law is the following:

We were aware that the main argument the Israeli military was using was that non-registered land in the West Bank was public land. This could be used to settle Israeli Jews. The implications were calamitous. According to this interpretation of the land law, the only registered land that truly belonged to Palestinians was that over which they would prove use either by living on it or continuously cultivating it for a period of no less than ten years. All the rest was public land. This would render Palestinians living in he West Bank squatters, not rightful owners. The only rightful owners, according to the Israeli government’s version of law and history, were the Jews. (Shehadeh 57)

So if a land owned by a Palestinian is not cultivated, Israel has the right to confiscate it forever. In other words, Israel is trying to steal lands from Palestinians “legally.” Israel is trying to take over Palestinians lands without breaking the “law.” Israel is deceiving the world with its laws and no one is able to say anything. If the leaders of some countries unite and go against Israel, the Palestinian conflict will be solved. However, none of these leaders care about what is happening to the Palestinians. They would not care unless if it starts to effect them. As Susan Sontag wrote in her book, Regarding the Pain of Others, about how one could prevent war. She wrote the following passages about how people are passive to images they see: “Whenever people feel save–this was her bitter, self-accusing point—they will be indifferent” (Sontag 100). “People can turn off not just because a steady diet of images of violence has made them indifferent but because they are afraid” (Sontag 100). And “To set aside the sympathy we extend to others beset by war and murderous politics for a reflection on how our privileges are located on the same map as their suffering, and may—in ways we might prefer not to imagine—be linked to their suffering, as the wealth of some may imply the destitution of others, is a task for which the painful, stirring images supply only an initial spark” (Sontag 102). The problem is not that the people are being passive about the apartheid going on Palestine; it is the leaders of the Arab countries and Western countries who are passive and are not putting an effort to help the Palestinians.

Walking in the village and reaching its center, I looked at the hill to my left. On top of that hill, stood houses with red roof tiles and they were built with the same structure. There was a water tower for infrastructure in the middle. To the right of those houses, there was a big building, which is a public building. The trees in that area were not olive trees and they were different than the ones I saw in Turmus Aya. All of these characteristics are characteristics of settlements. I asked the people about the settlement and they told me its called “Shilo.” There is another settlement on the other side, which is called “ShfRahel.” The Israeli government confiscated 4000 acres of land, which was planted with olive trees, in order to build those settlements. One can see this happening all around Palestine. Israel builds settlements surrounding the villages in order to prevent Palestinians from expanding their villages. However, the people in Turmus Aya are trying their best to not lose their lands. They cultivate their land, and build houses all around Turmus Aya in order to deny Israel building and expanding their settlements.

“The Israeli Occupation government took their own census in 1967 and found there was 1562 people. In 1989 the population grew to 5140 people. 2500 Turmusaya residents currently live there while 66% of the total population are living in the U.S.” (Turmusayya Municipality). The people abroad come to Turmus Aya every summer to see their family and to cultivate their lands. They leave their jobs in order to cultivate their lands and to save them from being confiscated by Israel. Also, almost all of the money they make in the United States, they invest in Turmus Aya. Turmus Aya is a village in the process of becoming a city. It already has two banks, jewelry stores, restaurants, cafés, its own municipality, and many others things that qualifies it as a city. The mayor of the village proposed to the Israeli government for Turmus Aya to be a city instead of a village but they have not received an answer. Without the hard labor of the immigrants who immigrated to the United States, Turmus Aya would not have been in the development it is right now. If those who are living in the United States did not immigrate there and worked hard in order to save their lands, Turmus Aya would have been smaller and less developed. This is where I realized that immigrating to a different country is also part of resisting the Israeli Occupation.

In Battir, it was totally different but shared some things in common. Totally different in terms of immigration and development, but the same in terms of the Occupation and the struggle people are facing by living in Battir. Battir is an ancient village that Israel kicked the people out from in 1948. The people were afraid and left the village. However, one man went at night, turned on all the lights and asked the Israeli government to let the people stay in their village. I do not know how exactly the man did it, but it worked. The Israeli government made an agreement that if the people are living in their homes and cultivating their lands, they could stay in Battir. Since that day, the people living in Battir have been planting and cultivating their lands. In Battir, like Turmus Aya, the landowners are forced by the Israeli law to cultivate their lands in order to keep the ownership. Settlements are being built around Battir so it would not expand, a wall is closing it off to other villages and a railway, which they are unable to cross, is their boarder. The railway in Battir made it an even more special and beautiful place. However, it would have been perfect only if that railway did not serve as anything else but a railway. It served as the border or the green line to the people living in Battir. People are permitted from crossing it only if they were from Battir. If anyone does cross it, which does not live in Battir, his or her life is in danger. This is when my happiness was distracted. I felt as if I was handicapped. I wanted to explore the landscape behind the railway so bad, but I could not. I did not want to risk my life.

The people in Battir are living from their lands and what they produce from them. Their income is mostly from the vegetables and olives they produce on their land. Unlike Turmus Aya, there is not much immigration going on in Battir. It is a stable village where the United Nation is helping it to develop.

Palestinians who immigrate to different countries are not surrendering to the Israeli Occupation but actually resisting in another way. If a Palestinian is not living in his country, which is being occupied, it does not mean he or she is not resisting or surrendering to the occupation. He or she is actually helping Palestine either financially or educationally. In Turmus Aya, people are working day and night in the United States in order to save their lands from being confiscated by the Israelis. They are purchasing more lands, building houses and opening up new businesses to help their village develop. Some are immigrating to the Untied States in order to study and to help their village in the future. Some of those who are immigrating to the United States are not immigrating there to become westernized. They are immigrating to the United States to help and keep Palestine alive.

Reference:

Sontag, Susan. Regarding the Pain of Others. New York: 2003.

Shehadeh, Raja. Palestinian Walks. London: Profile Books LTD, 2008.

Turmusayya Municipality - Ramallah. May 22, 2010

mun.org/eindex.htm>.

Turmus Aya

Driving through the wonderful pathway of Turmus Aya, I felt the tranquility of the place fall upon me. It was a beautiful sunny day and the sky was high blue. I stood by my car looking at the beautiful landscape. It was green and alive by the spirit of its owners. I wanted to walk through the landscape and hills of Turmus Aya to experience the feelings of some great writers when they had their walks. As Jean-Jacques Rousseau felt true happiness, when he wondered off in landscapes and hills. I wanted to be in the state of true happiness; however, I could not because of the many Palestinians problems and conflicts with the Israelis and Israeli settlers.

Turmus Aya is known for its grapes, which its name partly comes from. According to Ibrahim Jamil, the head of Turmus Aya’s municipality, the name Turmus Aya originated from the following:

The name Turmusaya was written in the older maps and books such as the DABAGH series as THORINASIA. In DABAGH's book, "Palestine is our Land" the name Turmusaya is broken into three parts TOR-MASHh-AYYA. TOR means mountain, MASHh indicates the grape pulp left after squeezing the juice from them, and AYYA means humid. Others say the Name Turmusaya consists of two parts, TERRA which means land in Latin, and MESIA which means THE CHRISTIAN, or the LAND OF THE CHRISTIAN. (Turmusayya Municipality)

Another story which was told by the people living in Turmus Aya about where the name Turmus Aya came from was that a man who was living in the village named Turmus refused to pay taxes to the Israelis, so the Israelis who went to tell the government that he refused to pay, they told him “Turmus Aya” which in Arabic means, Turmus refused to pay. So they named the village after him.

As any other Palestinian village, the landowners of lands in Turmus Aya are forced to cultivate their lands in order to stay owners. As Raja Shehadeh mentions in his book, Palestinian Walks, the Israeli law is the following:

We were aware that the main argument the Israeli military was using was that non-registered land in the West Bank was public land. This could be used to settle Israeli Jews. The implications were calamitous. According to this interpretation of the land law, the only registered land that truly belonged to Palestinians was that over which they would prove use either by living on it or continuously cultivating it for a period of no less than ten years. All the rest was public land. This would render Palestinians living in he West Bank squatters, not rightful owners. The only rightful owners, according to the Israeli government’s version of law and history, were the Jews (Shehadeh 57).

So if a land owned by a Palestinian and it is not cultivated, Israel has the right to take confiscate it forever. In other words, Israel is trying to steal lands from Palestinians “legally.” Israel is trying to take over Palestinians lands without breaking the “law.” Israel is deceiving the world with its laws and no one is able to say anything. If some countries unite and go against Israel, the Palestinian conflict will be solved. However, none of these countries care about what is happening to the Palestinian. They would not care unless if it starts to effect them. As Susan Sontag wrote in her book, Regarding the Pain of Others, about how one could prevent war. She wrote the following passages about how people are passive to images they see: “Whenever people feel save–this was her bitter, self-accusing point—they will be indifferent” (Sontag 100). “People can turn off not just because a steady diet of images of violence has made them indifferent but because they are afraid” (Sontag 100). And “To set aside the sympathy we extend to others beset by war and murderous politics for a reflection on how our privileges are located on the same map as their suffering, and may—in ways we might prefer not to imagine—be linked to their suffering, as the wealth of some may imply the destitution of others, is a task for which the painful, stirring images supply only an initial spark” (Sontag 102).

Walking in the village and reaching its center, I looked at the hill to my left. On top of that hill, stood houses with red roof tiles and they were built with the same structure. There was a water tower for infrastructure in the middle. To the right of those houses, there was a big building, which is a public building. The trees in that area were not olive trees and they were different than the ones I saw in Turmus Aya. All of these characteristics are characteristics of settlements. I asked the people about the settlement and they told me its called “Shilo.” They told me there is another settlement on the other side, which is called “Shf Rahel.” The Israeli government confiscated 4000 acres of land, which was planted with olive trees, in order to build those settlements. One can see this all over Palestine. Israel builds settlements surrounding the villages in order to deny Palestinians to expand their villages. Also, when looking at the settlement I noticed something different. On the hill, there were some containers that some Israeli Jews uses to expand the settlements. These containers are illegally there even by Israel. However, the Israeli Jews are discriminated and treated better than Palestinians are treated. Some laws are not forced on Israeli Jews as much as they are forced on Palestinians. For example, if a Palestinian has an illegal container, the Israeli government will destroy it if he does not remove it. However, when the Israeli Jews does such an action, they might just give him a warning or a fine and eventually he will succeed in whatever he want to do.

Turmus Aya is a village in the process of becoming a city. It already has two banks, jewelry stores, restaurants, café, its own municipality, and many others things that qualifies it as a city. The mayor of the village proposed to the Israeli government for Turmus Aya to be a city instead of a village but they have not received an answer. Turmus Aya also has a population around 5000 people, 80 per cent have a U. S citizenship, and only 2000 people are currently living in it. The people over board come to Turmus Aya every summer to see their family and to cultivate their lands. They leave their jobs in order to cultivate their lands and to save them from being confiscated by Israel. Also, Turmus Aya is like a big family. The people living in it all know each other. If they have a problem, they try to all solve it like a big family. They all share the spring, which distributes water to the whole village. They are also kind and they help the poor. For example, if someone’s buys a land in Turmus Aya and does not have enough money to build a house, the people in the village collect money form everyone in order to build him a house.

There is only one problem in Turmus Aya, which is the old city. In fact, not only in Turmus Aya but in many villages in Palestine. The old city in Turmus Aya was destroyed and ruined in the 1948 war. One should reestablish his or her the roots with their past. There are different approaches that are trying to bring people to live in the old city. Whenever one finds a ruined house, one finds a cactus growing out through the ruins of the house. The Palestinians should renovate these old houses because they are our past and history. The Palestinian problem is that we ask for our old cities that were destroyed in the 1948 war, but when we take them back we do not fix, renovate or even live in them.

Today, everyone prefers a new big house to live in. Also the architecture of the houses is different than it used to be. The used to build the houses with flat roof tops or even with the dome as the roof. Now some use the red tiles in a pyramid shape as rooftops. They use this kind of architecture because people have been living in the U.S. and like the idea. They also live in big houses because each one wants to live with his family. For example, my family and me live in one huge house. My grandmother lives on the top floor, my uncle lives next to her, we live in the first floor, and my aunt lives next to us. This is the reason why they build big houses.

Battir

After hearing about Battir and how beautiful it is, I was very excited to visit it. The day had come, and I went for a walk from Bet Jalla to Battir. I started out my day very excited to go on the walk because of what I heard from my friends. However, when I was driving from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, my excitement vanished in the wilderness. When I reached the end of the first tunnel, on the way, and going to the mouth of the second tunnel I was shocked by what I saw. There were three soldier jeeps down the hill, a couple of bulldozers and people demonstrating on top of the hill. I stopped the car to see what was going on. One of the soldiers came up to me and started screaming to move my car somewhere else and to go away. I had no other choice but to listen. So I went back into my car, parked it a little further and went back to ask the people. The people told me that the Israelis had decided to cut down someone’s olive trees to build the segregating wall. I stood for a second and wondered about how the Israelis could do such a thing. This was very cruel to the person who owns the olive trees and to nature itself. My answer to the question was that Israel does not care about either. They only care about doing what is on their mind. They think that they can do whatever they want and whenever they want to. And I’m sorry to say, they do.

Moving on with my trip, I reached the checkpoint. The exit to Bet Jalla was to my left. However, I could not make a left. I had to drive for another kilometer or something, take a left, make a U-turn, and take a left again to go back on the road I was coming from but from the opposite direction. Going through that process, I thought to myself: we are not able to go through the main checkpoint to Bet Jalla; we have to go around, and drive another kilometer or so, and go through all that process I went through just to get to Bet Jalla. The Israelis are torturing us and treating us miserably little by little. I think they just want us dead.

I finally made it to Bet Jalla and parked my car next to the District Coordination Office checkpoint. I waited until all my friends and professors gathered around. They finally arrived and we started our walk. We started walking down hill looking at different plants. We also looked at some of the old houses and caves that Palestinians used to live in long time ago. These houses were destroyed, and left empty. We made it all the way down hill safely, without anyone being injured. We took a five-minute break, so we could all gather up again. During the break, Samir, who works in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, talked about the landscape. He told us about how man had created terraces to plant and to cultivate the land. However, the land has been untouched and by time without being cultivated had been naturally transformed. One could see the terraces these a days, but not as clearly as one would have seen the terraces hundreds years ago. There were parts of the landscape that were still planted. People cultivated it, but not a lot. We kept on walking and learning about the different trees and flowers.

We finally reached Battir after walking for a very long time. I was tired, hungry, and thirsty. Battir was a whole different landscape from what we saw from before. It was green, and full of life. Birds flew and sang high in the sky. There was a sound of a donkey and a horse in the background. It was all very wonderful. I wished that moment could never end. The sound of the birds grew higher and higher, the view became clearer and clearer. I felt that I became younger with that beautiful, wonderful and happy moment. I forgot about my hunger, thirst, and pain. I just stood and looked at the beautiful landscape, wishing that I had a house on top of the hill. Unfortunately, we had to keep on walking. On the way we met some kids from the school in Battir. They were very nice to us and happy to see us.

The railway, at the bottom of the hill, made Battir even a more special place. However, it would have been perfect only if that railway did not serve as anything else but a railway. That railway served as the borders of the people living in Battir. They are prohibited from crossing the railway. If they do cross it, their lives are in danger. This is when my happiness was distracted. I started thinking about how the kids in Battir are able to see the train and the railway, but cannot ride on the train or cross the railway. It must feel painful as if one is handicapped. I felt sorry for the innocent kids and people of Battir. I wanted to explore the landscape behind the railway so bad, but I could not. I did not want to risk my life.

We continued our walk, and we walked up the hill to meet some people who are living in Battir. They were very happy to see us. They welcomed us with pleasure. They were very kind to invite us for lunch. We all went inside of their store, which they make pieces of arts made from clay, and had a wonderful lunch. We all ate, drank, and sat on the balcony enjoying every second of our time. Then, the owner of the store came up and spoke to us. He told us about the history of Battir and how they are living now.

He told us that Battir is an ancient village that Israel kicked the people out from in 1948. The people were afraid and left the village. However, one man went at night, turned on all the lights, and asked the Israeli government to let the people stay in their village. I do not know how exactly the man did it, but it worked. The Israeli government made an agreement that if the people are living in their homes and cultivating their lands, they could stay in Battir. Since that day, the people living in Battir have been planting and cultivating their lands. Now their border is the railway. However, the Israelis are planning on building and continuing the wall into Battir, which I think will serve instead of the railway. However, if they are going to build the wall, they are going to destroy the landscape, lands owned by people, and possibly houses. The Israelis are also planning to expand the settlements of Har Gilo. The expansion of the settlement will surround Battir and other villages so they cannot expand.

At the end of our walk and visit, we decided to help the people of Battir by planting some olive trees in their lands. We were all excited to help them. Each one of us grabbed a tool, dug up the ground, and planted a tree. The people of Battir were very pleased with our work and they really appreciated it. At the end, they helped us find taxis, so that we can go home. We all went home tired but very happy. It was a day that I will never forget.

After reaching home, I could not stop thinking about Battir. I could not stop thinking about how beautiful it was, about the situation that Battir is in and about the people living in it. So in order not to forget every detail of my experience I wrote it down in my journal.