its counterpart. Day 1 After checking in at the hotel we go to
People at Bir Zeit University ersity, with 5,500
oNe first have to take a 'shared taxi from the centre of Ramallah to a checkpoint at Surta, which is in reality a roadblock..
To get through, we have to get out of our taxi, walk 2 kilometres to another roadblock and then get in to another 'shared taxi, to the campus.
Previously there had been one roadblock - this system is simply designed to make people walk. The students have to organise to help disabled get through, and older people have great problems.
At the university we meet representatives of the staff, and some academics. They tell us how disruptive the checkpoint system is to the university's work. Some students have to change transport at 7 places -nost checkpoints will only let you walk through. Two weeks ago the whole university was dosed for a week, because all the surrounding checkpoints were closed for that Richardson has travelled there on behalf of the Oxford Ramallah Friendship Association, which 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. He is also representing the Trades Union Council, which is already twinned with Here are extracts from his diary, which was updated daily in the Oxford Mail during his two-week visit from June 2. Week one is in Ramallah, week two in Nablus.
period. Dates for exams have to be changed constantly, and even then some students can't get to them. Concentrating fully on studies is a complete impossibility Basma Khoury is in charge of women's s at the university She explains that she has to raise finance to keep v the university: In a patriarchal society women's education is seen as the first thing that can be dispensed with, when money runs out. I am told that very few students get jobs in their discipline when they graduate. Recently 700 graduates applied for a single job, working as a bill collector for the Water : Board. There are 2 armoured vehicles outside my hotel in central Ramallah when I get back. Young people are throwing stones at them. Teargas shells are fired. Escaping to the only café still open, I learn that Qualandia checkpoint is closed completely, and Ramallah is blocked off. Day 2 I am woken by gunfire several times during the night. When I leave my hotel at 8.30am, the streets are almost deserted. I
impossible here.
the only real form of transport.
ing in.
meet the well known artist Vera Tamari.
Vera used to live in Oxford, and worked
Art. She is very interested in the twinning
project Day 3 Zeit, where tear gas and live bullets are being used at the checkpoint, keeping the university closed for a 2nd day.
My first visit today is to the Mayor of Ramallah, Ayoub Rabah, who | present with the twinning resolution passed by Oxford City Council. He expresses support for the way the 'Oxford Ramallah Friendship Association ' is proceeding. organization helps female children, mainly of 'martyrs' (these are anybody who has been killed by the Israelis). Where there is great poverty, it is usually the young girls who suffer first, having to go into early marriage, with little or no education. This organisation tries to stop this by giving them access to higher education in nursing, computing etc. They are keen to relate to organizations in Oxford.
Next to the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Centre, where we meet the director Adila learn that the Israelis have declared total shutdown for the day. Most of my meetings are therefore cancelled. Planning anything is
Looking around the streets, the only vehicles about are ambulances, fire engines and taxis. Here shared taxis are cheap and
Kids are playing in the street. They can't go to school so they are bored. They break very useful. one of the windows of the office I'm workAt about 6pm I manage to get out and with the Ashmolean Museum. She now lectures at Bir Zeit, and is working on a project to create a museum of the history of Islamic Day 4 ¿ to traffic noise at 8am, I realize n is open again. Not the case at Bir Then to the 'Society of Ina'sh Usra'. This
twinning.
Laidi. The Israelis raided the building last
April, breaking down doors and shooting
into walls. Some of the bullet holes are still ices.
there. The centre has exhibitions of paintings and puts on plays and musical events.
They are working on having a place for
sculptors, as there isn't currently one in
Ramallah. It is clear to both of us that a cultural relationship with Oxford would be
Our final visit of the day is to The
Palestinian Working Women's Society'.
which has a number of branches in the
West Bank and Gaza. They have projects to
encourage women to vote and stand in elections. They also see a major role in stopping the trap of early marriage.
This morning I am off to see George Ibrahim, General Director of the Al-Kasaba 'Theatre & Cinematheque. They are currently installing a second screen in the theatre, significant given that these are the only screens in Palestine. George is working on a project to tour films around Palestine. His problems centre on closures. They have no takings during closure periods but still have to pay full price for the use of the films. He is looking to develop a relationship with theatres in Oxford, with the possibility of plays being translated and put on in Oxford.
In the afternoon we go to the Democracy & Workers Rights Center" where I meet the General Director, Hasan Barghouti. He and his staff are very sup portive of "people getting together at grassroots level". He is strongly involved with the International Federation of Workers Education Associations', and he hopes the Oxford branch becomes involved with the I spend the evening in "Sangrias', a popular bar, with a lecturer from Bir Zeit. The lecturer lives on the Ramallah side of Qualandia checkpoint. His area is considered a part of Jerusalem District, so he pays
taxes to that municipality, but gets no servHe tells me about a student of his whose
mother has cancer. The only treatment
centre in Palestine is in Beit Jahour, near
Bethlehem. To take her for treatment they
have to go through several checkpoints,
walking and changing vehicles
They can't afford this and the potholed
Palestinian roads make the journey very
painful. If they lived in one of the settlements, they would be sped on beautiful settler roads to hospital in Jerusalem, and
would have daycare as well. Day 5
Fridays are a holiday for many people here, which creates a problem for me meeting people. I take the opportunity to have a look around. The tanks have taken a toll on the roads - curbs are broken and there are potholes - as well as rubble in the roads from the confrontations.
lam encouraged by the response to the Oxford Ramallah twinning project. People are keen to grasp the opportunity to break out of their isolation. They have great difficulty travelling abroad - Israel controls all borders, and all issuing of travel documents. Day 6
I meet Khaled Daoudi, of the Ramallah Co-operative organization to discuss twinning with Oxford Co-ops. He explains to me that, whereas UK co-ops are mainly consumer-based, in Palestine they are on the produce side
Farmers get together at the co-operative level to get cheaper seeds, pesticides, glass for greenhouses etc - it is generally a purchasing co-operative. The co-operative also provides agronomists, training, and other such services. Only in one place do they have a processing co-operative, for olive oil,
page 15 of the scan
which is one of the best in the world, but quite expensive.
A major problem is that the Israeli Government subsidises their farmers, and they are able to flood the Palestinian market. Khaled is keen to relate to Oxford Coops, but their only real commodity is olive oil, and that would have to be sold on a soliBritain what is happening here.
I phone my contact in Nablus and she tells me the whole West Bank has been closed. For people here there is no roadmap to peace, only a road block to misery. I set off back to Jerusalem, to try again tomorrow.
Make it to Nablus and the Balata Refugee fluorescent yellow jackets and rush down to ricade is already there. We head to the next entrance and get there before the bulldozin front of us, then it moves back, and sounds its horn and moves determinedly the main entrance but are too late - the barer. Soldiers start firing in the air, the bulldozer starts to move towards us then stops just handcuffed Palestinians:
socla ist resistance Summer 2003 15 while negotiating the release of several
As we go to bed all hell breaks loose, with firing in the districts all around us. The ishment'.
Palestine people who live in the house have committed no crime, and therefore that to knock the house down is an illegal collective punAll the families have moved their furni-