As part of a solidarity campaign in Oxford to develop closer ties with Ramallah on the West Bank, Socialist Resistance supporter TONY RICHARDSON, who visited Palestine last year, has again travelled there on behalf of the Oxford Ramallah Friendship Association. The Association is promoting the twinning of the peoples of the two cities at every level of organisation: university, trade union, church, women's group, and cultural organisation. Tony was also representing Oxford's Trades Union Council, which is already twinned with its counterpart. Here is his account of the latest visit. Get the
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Are left for Ramallah on April 24, three days after the assassination of Sheikh Yassin by the Israeli state. We expected problems. East Jerusalem, the Palestinian area was closed down, in commemoration. But the following day we went through the Qualandia checkpoint, into Ramallah, without any problems. We went about our business, of meeting people, with a view to twinning Oxford and Ramallah. Our concentration this time was on medical contacts. We met an organisation that does medical statistics, as well as training medical workers. The most interesting, and invigorating, was meeting elected workers committees in the three main hospitals, as well as being given a tour around two of them. We also met the voluntary medical/ambulance workers, of the Palestinian Red Viewpoint! A monthly review of news and analysis from the Fourth * 10 issues by airmail for only £30 International Viewpoint, PO Box 112, Manchester MI2 5DW. JULY'S - still available - was a special double issue with documents from 15th World Congress of the
Fourth International (send £5 plus £1.00 p&p) workers. wanted to give the best service possible. ers for drugs. to the young people. ning they would be on half wages.
1 Los Crescent, who supplement the regular
The same problems ran through our discussions: All had problems with training, as the Israelis restricted travel, all had the prob- completely dictatorial. lem of lost wages whilst being stuck at checkpoints, and all had problems of the decreas ing value of wages through cost of travel etc.
One other thing was clear that they all had a strong feeling for Palestine, and therefore
All the services are free, apart from in the Sheikh Zayed Hospital, which is free to martyrs, and ex-prisoners, and only charges othWe also met an organisation that deals with traffic, and the environment, whose main projects, at the moment are setting up school play areas using used tyres, and in the process teaching traffic, and pollution lessons
We are already planning our next trip which will be to make links in the education was stolen by the wall. sector, so we spent some time at Birzeit University, setting this up. Here the staff had just been told that for the second month runmidnight every night.
Our other contact work was with the Youth Club at Al Amari refugee camp, in
Ramallah. Here we met the committee, and were taken around the facilities that they had developed, art classes, Arabic, and English, to help those falling behind at school, as well as a well equipped computer centre. They had good sports activities, in a tiny space, including epee (fencing) training! They had also built their own theatre/cinema. All the committee are elected, and they are all in the camp.
In my discussions with the Trade Unions, the one issue dominated, this is the lack of democracy, and the need to unite the left against the Palestinian Authority, who are
When we visited the apartheid wall, on our last day, at Abu Dis, which is a suburb of Jerusalem, everybody we spoke to talked of this lack of democracy. They have had an elected council for a long time, but because it is not Fatah, the Palestinian Authority say they are going to be replaced by appointees.
My political impressions are these: Ramallah is much more lively, than previous visits, because a small number of checkpoints have been dismantled, and people from some of the villages can come in. But this is clearty a false impression, because the wall is being built at a pace, and land all around is being stolen. At Abu Dis I saw a valley that
On the days we were there we didn't see much military activity, but the people in the camp told us that military vehicles came in at
Politically it is clear that Hamas is growing because of the ineffectiveness of the PA. Tony Richardson beside the wall, which snakes for mile There was a huge demonstration, 5,0 strong, in Ramallah, as well as one at Birz while we were there. They now have majority on the Student Council at the u versity, despite the fact that it is renowned being liberal, and the fact that women are per cent of the students.
On the other side of this is the moveme for democracy, there is a strong move unite the left, and organisations have aris that are trying to put forward anti corru tion, and pro-democracy programmes
One other thing is clear, nobody suppo Sharon's annexation of sections of the W Bank. If settlements are allowed to stay th life would be unliveable
As you look out from the University y see a settlement two hills away, and anoth one two further hills away. In Ramallah y look at a settlement almost the same size the city itself. This is repeated all over t West Bank. All of these settlements ha their own roads which Palestinians are n allowed to go near. So even without che points you cannot move
Add to this is the wall that I saw snaki through the countryside, stealing more lan
Abu Dis has the wall going down the m dle of the road, those on the wrong si now have to take a 3 mile trek to a cher point, which they might not get through, get to Jerusalem, which was a 10 min journey before.
As they steal this land the Israelis shooting dead villagers, who are peacef protesting - and yet they have the cheek say they 'can't reward terror'.
Our visits are getting a good respor because the Palestinians want us to tell world about this hypocrisy. There is now Oxford Ramallah Friendship Associat formed in Ramalla itself, to alitte work
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Kurdish resistance