16 - 22 May 2002
Issue No.586
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 16 - 22 May 2002 Issue No.586 |
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Letter from Ramallah
Providing succour,confronting taboos: these, writes Mouin Rabbani, are the aims of Al-Nawa, an informal grouping that has emerged in Ramallah
Crisis brings out the best and worst in people, a truism of which rank-and-file members of the various Palestinian security forces in Ramallah have recently had plenty of experience. Having received neither clear instructions nor meaningful support from their commanders on the eve of Israel's 29 March invasion most were left to fend for themselves. "Our planned withdrawal," explains one, Youssef, "was cut off by the speed of the Israeli advance so we were forced into hiding instead." And when those who managed to elude Israel's campaign of violence and mass arrests finally emerged, they did so with little else beyond the shirts on their backs.
Since most of Ramallah's security personnel are drawn from the Gaza Strip, or from other regions of the West Bank, and all the facilities they used had been destroyed, they emerged without knowing what to do, where to go, where even the next meal was coming from.
"It was only after I met some of these young men through a nephew who works in the police force," explains Wafa', "that I realised how difficult their situation was. Since I had received a modest sum from a relative abroad to give to the needy I arranged to use it for their benefit."
With a little money, several friends and a great deal of energy Wafa' established Al-Nawa ('the Nucleus'), an informal grouping that set about providing support faster than you can say "particle theory". As well as purely practical concerns -- the provision of hot meals for example -- it organises events, including a performance by Sanabil, the band based at Birzeit University. Several dozen homesick, disoriented policemen -- some of them barely out of adolescence -- attended this melange of traditional songs, rousing anti-American poetry, and dancing, screaming children whose impromptu performances most seemed to genuinely enjoy.
Over tea and coffee afterwards the organising group initiated a discussion intended to confront various taboos head on.
"We are part of the Palestinian people," said Hassan, "yet during the occupation we were treated like lepers. We had nowhere to go yet were routinely denied entry to buildings. In one case I asked a woman to take in a wounded comrade while I tried to arrange for an ambulance and she refused point blank on the grounds no men were in the house though I could see her husband. Legitimate fear is one thing, cowardice another."
"We saw a man watering his garden and asked him for some water," another policeman said. "He said the water wasn't drinkable and then disappeared."
After discovering four hungry and dehydrated men hiding on her property, one woman, Suha, explained how she was subsequently berated by neighbours for offering the men food and drink.
"Some people went out of their way to help us despite obvious risks," said one of the policemen, "while others betrayed us to the Israeli army, not because they wanted to collaborate but because they wanted us gone."
As the discussion turned to the reasons behind the ambivalent attitude towards the Palestinian security forces, their failure to protect Ramallah from the Israeli onslaught despite their otherwise ubiquitous presence emerged as a key factor.
"What's the purpose of so many checkpoints," asked Rula, "when they are all abandoned at the first sight of an Israeli tank? Where were the specialists supposed to disperse demonstrations when the Israelis ran riot all over town?"
"The checkpoints aren't tank traps," Youssef shot back. "We have orders -- understandable under the circumstances -- to verify the identity of every person entering Ramallah. At the Qalandia checkpoint the Israelis treat you like dogs and you willingly comply. We treat you with respect and get showered with abuse and special pleading. Next time, go tell the Israelis your father is a deputy minister or colonel in one of the forces. Call them names for a change."
As the frank discussion wound to a close a general consensus emerged that commanders and decision-makers, rather than the powerless rank-and-file, should be held accountable for objectionable policies. It was also acknowledged that if officers were stationed in their home towns few residents would have turned their backs when they most needed help, though one participant privately noted the contrast between Ramallah's treatment of Gazan policemen and Gaza's enthusiastic reception of Bethlehem's deportees.
"Our initiative," explained Wafa, "stems from a realisation that the occupation of Ramallah reflects not just the defeat of the security forces, but the weaknesses of an entire society, which needs to change its ways and unite."
* The writer is a Palestinian scholar and activist living in Ramallah.
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