MIFTAH
Friday, 29 March. 2024
 
Your Key to Palestine
The Palestinian Initiatives for The Promotoion of Global Dialogue and Democracy
 
 
 

During the first Intifada which erupted during the late 1980s, countless numbers of Palestinians found themselves behind bars. Conditions were torturous, sometimes deadly; the cost of resisting the occupation was high. During their time spent in a military prison on the outskirts of Nablus, which now sits abandoned, three Palestinian men from Askar refugee camp came together and plotted. But they were not plotting revenge; they were discussing promising ideas for the future. They refer to their time spent in prison as their “university”.

The three young men, Ahmad, Mohammad, and Khalil thought about their lives growing up in the refugee camp and the opportunities they had had, which weren’t many. What could they do for the next generation? Life in the overpopulated camps is not easy, and the fiercest resistance often erupts from them. In response, the camps are hit the hardest by Israeli raids and excursions which leave no one unpunished and leave no one’s mind at peace. Resisting the occupation in some way, whether violent or not, gives people a sense of purpose, especially when other opportunities or outlets are not readily available.

Because of the severe overcrowding in Askar, it was forced to expand into “New Askar” in 1965. Since refugee camps do not spatially accommodate any natural growth of its residents, problems such as unemployment are even worse than in other areas in Palestine. By the second half of 2010, the unemployment rate of refugees in the West Bank according to UNRWA statistics stood at 27.9%, which is higher than that of the non-refugee population.

Refugees are classified as anyone “whose normal place of residence was Palestine between June 1946 and May 1948, who lost both their homes and means of livelihood as a result of the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict”. This includes their descendants, still residing in the camps almost 64 years later.

For New Askar, even this classification doesn’t apply. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) does not recognize the camp as an “official” refugee camp and does not provide services as it does to the others. New Askar Camp falls under Area B, which means joint Israeli and Palestinian control. Israeli military raids that occur under the cover of darkness are a reality.

Back in prison, Ahmad, Mohammad, and Khalil decided they would provide a different outlet for the children in the camps, a different method of resistance. It would come in the form of a place to escape to-- a place to play sports, to create art, to forget the hassles of everyday life. This is how they came to open the Rehabilitation Committee of New Askar Camp in 1992, which originally sought to provide services to injured and disabled youth following the Intifada, but eventually expanded to become much more than that. They also opened the Nablus Association for Social and Community Development and recently a center in the nearby village of An-Nasiriya in order to reach additional populations.

During the summer camps that are held at the center, the kids are taken to the nearby water park or the cultural center in the city to watch plays, when funds allow. The teenagers assume the position of role models and they are there for the children when they need them. They teach them dabkeh, drama, and art as well as sports such as soccer, volleyball, and basketball.

Even though the center is a place for fun, no child lives outside the reality of occupation. During art time, the children sometimes draw tanks and sniper towers. Releasing their feelings through art and other creative outlets, acts as therapy for these kids who have internalized a war zone. Martyrs’ posters line the narrow streets of the camp, and the graves of young children are in the backyard of a kindergarten. When the camp was under siege during the second Intifada, the residents were forced to find places to bury their dead. Reminders of violence are everywhere.

The idea that was born in a prison cell many years ago is still very much alive today. The center has become widely known and internationals visit to form friendships and partnerships, showing the children that they are not forgotten by the rest of the world. Judging by their enthusiasm and excitement during the camps, it is clear that the youth will keep the center running for the next generation. In a place where safety and a sense of security are hard to come by, the center offers a slice of normalcy.

The center and all that it has accomplished is a testament to what a small group of visionaries can do when they refuse to lose hope, even in a dark prison cell where one has every excuse to do otherwise. It is what happens when people refuse to let the occupation dictate their dreams and instead, create something bigger than the political situation in which they live. The reality they have created will continue to instill hope in generations to come.

Meg Walsh is a Writer for the Media and Information Department at the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH). She can be contacted at mid@miftah.org.

 
 
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