Rutie AtsmonWindows |
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Obstacles and Challenges and Fear:
“ Many of our members will tell you, "Yeah I trust the Palestinian members [of the organization], but what about the neighbors, what if someone you know, does something?" And it's very hard to discuss it, what are the options, how to do it, what can happen, to make people feel comfortable enough to do it [go to Palestinian villages]. And of course, I cannot take the responsibility to tell anyone nothing is going to happen, because I don't know. So the question is, are we willing to take the risk? Do we trust our host Windows members that they will do all they can to protect us and to make sure that nothing will happen. And you can never know. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Community Responses to Peace Work and Fear:
“ I have been visiting the [Palestinian] Territories for almost 30 years, so we get used to things after such a long time. I'm used to walking around Palestinian cities, I have spent so much time in Palestinian villages and cities that it's normal for me, there's nothing strange about it. But maybe because I'm so used to it, I've lost my sense of danger. I don't know, and maybe I'm making a mistake! Some people tell me, "You're crazy, you're crazy, you're going there, you trust them?" I don't know, maybe I am, but I personally feel very comfortable. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Fear:
“ We invite people to come to Palestinian villages with us to overcome the fear that something may happen to them, we can get shot or something. Some people are afraid they can get shot by Palestinians, others are afraid they can get shot by soldiers, it is to overcome the fear of coping with what you see there, what we do as Israelis to the Palestinians, and overcoming the fear, the very basic fear that we have to do those things because otherwise Israel will not survive. This is the main fear that we try to help people overcome. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ If you only know what is going on from what other people tell you, or from watching the news-- your side of the media-- you know what your side wants to know, or what some people on your side want you to know, or the way people on your side perceive it, which is not the full picture. If you want to know what is going on, you have to be exposed to the reality itself, and also to other sources of information that give the other side's perception. This is what Windows is about, helping people see both sides, and trying to open ourselves to being able to understand and see things through the eyes of other people. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Obstacles and Challenges and Vision:
“ It's not a question of just crossing the physical boundary. It's also a question of overcoming the suspicion and the fear, not only the fear of Palestinians that some people feel, but also the fear of seeing the truth. I think that the biggest boundary between our nations is the fear of seeing the reality as it is, and coping with it as it is. It says a lot about what we are, what we do, what we are responsible for. It's on both sides; it's in every situation. When we look in the mirror, how many of us as human beings are able to tell ourselves the truth about what we are and who we are and what we do. It's so easy to find excuses. If I do something wrong, then it's not my fault. I do it because I have no other choice, I have a good excuse, something bad was done to me and this was the only way I could react. We always find ways to give ourselves a break. It's not our fault; we're not responsible. Especially in a situation like this where so many terrible things are happening. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Violence and Nonviolence:
“ We don't judge people if they support the army or if they support attacks. What we try to do is work with them to see why they feel that way, why they support this way or that way. We try to lead people to believe that the best way is to talk to each other, that the best way to solve the problems is without violence. But in order to bring people to feel this way, we have to understand why people support, if they do, acts of violence, on any side of the conflict. And part of it will be to understand the fears, the anger, the frustration that people on both sides feel that leads them to support violence. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Fear:
“ There's not much difference between the psychology of an individual and the society. One of the things that we try to explain to the Palestinians is the very deep built-in fear Israelis, or Jews in general, have because of our history. We to help Israelis feel the fears, and frustrations, and anger of the Palestinians because of their history, which is connected to us, because we are part of it. Dealing with the fears, understanding the fears helps people a lot to understand each other. To overcome the fear is part of healing, is part of working towards reconciliation. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ So the Israelis are not aware of a Palestinian peace camp, and Palestinian society is hardly aware of an Israeli peace camp, and this is part of what keeps the cycle of violence going, because people on both sides don't have hope, people are desperate and they think that there is no one to talk to on the other side. There is, and we know. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ People need to open their eyes to understand that they don't know everything about each other, and about the situation. People need to understand that what they see in the media is only a very small part of the picture. If they will look for more information, look for the truth about our past and present, they will see different things. When people go through this process and they see the reality from different perspectives, they are already closer to reconciliation, to accepting each other. We just need to reach more people, and quickly. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ What gives me hope is knowing there is no choice. We are here, both nations, and we want to live here. We have the right to live here-- both of us-- and people will not be able to accept the status quo much longer, because a lot of people are fed up with violence… A lot of people here, and also on the Palestinian side, were led to believe that using power, using violence, could bring about a political solution. More and more people understand that it doesn't. Violence brings more violence. We need to end it. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ I think that one day history will judge the role of media in our time of war, and what an important role it plays in making wars happen. The media lets people believe that wars are possible-- leads them to believe that it is the right solution, and the only solution. People don't know enough about other solutions. But then it will be too late for a lot of people. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ Tell a random Israeli about house demolitions. He will say, "Yes, they built without a permit, so they destroyed his house." or "That's a terrorist's house, so he deserves it." They don't know how many houses have been demolished because of the subject of no permits, and they don't know that there's no such thing as building permits, that if they want to get permission, no one will give it to them. They don't have the kinds of facts that will create consciousness. When you learn those facts, you understand that something is not right. If they destroy a person's house when he built without a permit because no one would give him one for years, and he doesn't have a choice because a person needs a home, then you begin to understand, why this boy whose house they destroyed grows up and is raised with the desire to revenge and kill. Otherwise people don't understand those things. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ People will tell you, "We need checkpoints so that terrorists won't get into Israel." What people don't know is that the checkpoint is on the road, but ten meters to this side, and ten meters to that side, no one is guarding. And whoever wants to come in and do an attack, he can go over the hill or the wadi, not by the road. That is, the checkpoint doesn't really stop people. In most cases, the checkpoints only hurt people who are not suspected of coming to do an explosion. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Fear:
“ People are so afraid to go on buses, but there are more chances that a bus will flip over because of an accident than that it will be exploded. So what are we afraid of, why are we afraid of things? Who makes us afraid? What information is being pushed to our brain all the time that makes us afraid of one thing and not the other? ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Political Peace Processes/Political Leadership:
“ During one of the talks at Camp David, the Israeli negotiation team wanted to break the ice with the Palestinian negotiators so they suggested coming to the meeting wearing sweatpants. Now anyone who knows anything about Palestinians understands that this is ridiculous because in Palestinian culture one doesn't go to a summit wearing sweatpants. It isn't respectful and it is even insulting to suggest it. What seemed so natural to the Israelis wasn't natural for the Palestinians. The person who told me the story said that the Palestinians were willing to loosen their ties a little… ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ That same week, the one and only Richard Gere came to the country to mediate between the Israeli Prime Minister and the Palestinian Prime Minister in order to bring peace. We worked so hard to try and reach him and to invite him to our event but we couldn't reach him. All the connections we thought we had with the people who had invited him failed. They obviously weren't interested in him meeting us. We managed to get an answer from Yedioth Ahronoth, which is a very big newspaper and a word from them means exposure. They put it very clearly: if you bring a picture of your kids with Richard Gere, we'll put it in the newspaper. Without him, we aren't interested. "It isn't news," "good news isn't news," "why should people be interested in Palestinians wanting peace or coming to Israel?" ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ The kids involved in Windows are mostly from working class families and not from upper class families, so most of them don't always speak English and our kids [Israelis] don't always speak English. We work in Hebrew and in Arabic. During the kids' free time, during breaks between the sessions, the kids -- if they can -- communicate in English. At the age of 12-14 the kids usually don't speak enough English though, so it means that it is more difficult to create connections between kids because of the language barrier. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ I think it is very important that people refuse to serve in the army altogether because it's a voice that should be heard: it says, we do not want to serve in such an army. I think it's also very important that people who do go to the army refuse to serve in the Territories; it's another voice that should be heard and it resonates more because it's easier for the Israeli public to accept refusal to serve from someone who is in the army. I think it's also very important for people serving in the Territories to refuse to do obey certain orders; this voice resonates even louder because they are from there. I think it's important that people be everywhere. I think that if all the people who feel bad about what the army is doing refuse to perform military service, the army will be left in the hands of more militaristic people who believe that the army needs to fight and that there is no alternative, and this is very dangerous. I think that for society, it's important that people who don't believe in a military solution serve in the army so as to give this voice in the decision-making process. I think it's important that people be everywhere and that people with a conscience use it in different instances. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Political Peace Processes/Political Leadership:
“ Barak offered the Palestinians the "ultimate proposal they could not refuse" without realizing that regardless of what was included in the proposal, you just don't offer a closed deal; you negotiate, you discuss. This is done all over the world, especially in the Middle East where negotiation is such an important part of the culture, including how to negotiate, how to deal with all that. When Barak laid a closed deal on the table, not open to negotiation, he demonstrated a lack of understanding of the place he lives in and who he is talking to. Even if the proposal was perfect, which it wasn't, I don't think the Palestinians could have accepted it because that just isn't done anywhere in the world. It's very patronizing to come with a closed offer. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ I think that it could have been helpful to have connections, more than I had when I began, maybe even spend months and months just looking for a patron, someone with power, money, connections -- someone who can open doors. It would have saved us a few years of work had we had someone like that. [...] I don't know what I would have done differently. Even struggling financially created a certain atmosphere in the organization and perhaps if we had more money to begin with we wouldn't have this. Most people who came to the organization came knowing there was no money in it. Often when there is money, the wrong people come because you get a good salary, so why not? If people joined Windows for money, they left pretty quickly. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ Israelis don't feel that if something were to happen now the world would stand by us; maybe the United States would if it was in their interest. This is very important and I think this needs to be done at the same time as telling us to behave. Definitely there is a role for the international community. Part of it is giving a push to the Palestinian economy, to make it less dependent on Israel. Oh, yes, and giving us-- organizations that work to promote peace-- money, a lot of money! [...] If countries could contribute more money towards work that can change the way people think. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
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