Salwa Abu LibdehDialogue On The Road |
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Obstacles and Challenges and Language:
“ The biggest challenge to joint work] was the language. I can't speak Hebrew, so I decided to start learning Hebrew. If I want to understand the other and try to create a link together, I need to understand his language. There's a proverb in Arabic that says, "If you learn the language of a nation, you guarantee that they can't harm you." So I followed the same idea, to understand him more to be able to deal with him better. So my first goal now is to learn the Hebrew language. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Community Responses to Peace Work and Media and Normalization:
“ At first I was worried to do this work and to work with an Israeli journalist, because I didn’t want people to think that I was normalizing relations with the Israelis. But I think that anyone could do his work and maintain his personal opinions. I didn’t change who I am or what I believe in, I just did the work. I didn’t humiliate any value or principle, I just went and filmed and did my job. I also delivered my message. I had the freedom to decide what I wanted to cover and what questions I wanted to ask, nothing was imposed on me. However, we were careful not to touch religious issues because it's very sensitive, even though I, as a Muslim, believe in all three religions, Islam, Christianity and Judaism. We just wanted to see the average person on the street. A lot of my friends told me to be careful that the film should not turn out to be about normalization, but I told them that I am working on this film with my own thoughts and beliefs, and I have the right to agree or disagree with the work. Even the management of the television station supported us. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Family and Palestinian Refugees:
“ I was raised in a very conservative home, I learned that the land equals the soul, and my brother died for that cause. Our dream is to go back to our home. My father died here, but he always used to tell us about his house and the fields of orange trees. We have carried on his dream to this day and in turn I tell my children about the house of my family in Jaffa. We will pass it from one generation to the next; this is something that will never be forgotten. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ I worked on this film [with Palestinian and Israeli journalists] not for the good of the Israeli government; I worked on it because of a certain thought within me. If I knew that the Israeli was going to make a film and offend the Palestinians I wouldn't have worked with him. At the same time, if I knew that my work with an Israeli would mean that I gave up one drop of my brother's blood or one orange from our orange gardens, I wouldn't have done this work. But I had a thought in mind, which is to be able to go inside Israeli society and know what it is. If you see the film, you will see that I filmed the nighttime there, how they dance and party, and at the same time I filmed the poverty in their society. I also filmed the ones who refused to serve in the army, and the extremists who are also a sector in this society. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
Personal Loss/Bereavement and Family:
“ I don’t want to lose my son. I lost my brother before and that’s enough. I want my son to grow up and get educated. Until this day I think about my brother and what it would have been like if he had lived and had a family and children. Until this day my mother grieves for him. He died in 1979, but she still keeps his clothes in a bag and takes them out once in a while to look at them. Why? Doesn’t she have the right to see her son grow up and have a life? ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ I know one boy in the ninth grade who can’t go to school because of the wall and is now crying because he has to change schools and leave his friends. His mother told me that he is having psychological problems because he had to change schools. So how will you convince this boy that the Jews are good? The Israelis need to give me the reasons to convince him. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ It means the same as it would mean to any Palestinian. It means to be in my house and feel like I can sleep safely in it. Peace is to be in your home on your land. For example, when you are abroad you start to long to come back home. So how do you think it feels when you are on your land and you still have that feeling? Real peace is the peace of the soul [...] At the same time, I think of peace on the Israeli side, that they shouldn’t go out on the streets and get killed. Just like I am a mother and care for my children, there are other mothers who feel the same way. This is why I want peace for my children, to live in comfort and security, and I want peace for myself to know that I will not get hurt. But I want peace in my home, on my land, while I am still on it. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ When you have a home and I have a home, we can be good neighbors, but if you have a home and I don’t, I will continue to "screw" you until you get out of the house! I mean, I had a piece of land, and you took it from me, built your house on it and forbid me from building my house! Let me build my house like you did. There needs to be compromise, giving and taking. We could have good relations, but not when you have a high quality of life and I live in the dirt under your feet. There can never be peace between the master and the servant. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
“ I was in the USA for a media course, and they don’t know what Palestine is, they only know Israel. The Americans are in charge now, but they and their people know nothing about the Palestinian issue. So [....] they need to see what those two small nations are doing together. This needs to be shown to them and to the two people themselves. ” [Source in Complete Interview]
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