Ramallah
Our
first excursion today was a visit to the grave of Yasser Arafat, housed
within the rear of the Palestinian Presidential Palace in the city of Ramallah. For a figure
perceived to be consigned to the history books by someone of my background, Arafat is ever present within Palestinian politics
but also continues to be divisive, even in death. This division was
most poignantly illustrated by the grandeur and ceremony of his
resting place, contrasting the former PLO leader's face having been
cut out of propaganda posters, during our meander through the
refugee inhabited area of Ramallah. From accounts by Palestinians that I heard, it is caused by a clash of the great
admiration of Arafat, and a feeling of anger in relation to the
Oslo agreement. This is but one indication of the multi faceted nature
of the Palestinian question, which at a first glance can appear to be
a conflict based solely upon the idea of a defensive occupier fighting against many oppressed occupants. Nothing is black and white.
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| Ever Present in Palestine: The Grave of Yasser Arafat, Ramallah, Palestine. (Photo Courtesy of Emerson Photography) |
However,
this must not detract from the contrastingly clear cut battle for the
maintenance of human rights in Palestine. The Palestinians are even
denied the right to bury their dead. Every concealable way to
humiliate the Palestinians is allegedly employed by the increasingly right wing Israeli government. In response to resistance against the IDF,
collective punishment is seen as a perfect way to send a message of
who is in charge by the government. Soldiers think nothing of
using explosives to destroy the houses of suspected militants, and we have been told that the more collateral damage to others who happen to live nearby, the
better it is for the Israeli Army. The worrying thought is, that this is only the face of the
occupation we have been shown, a mere look glimpse into a
plethora of multi-faceted abuse and violence.
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| A Campaign for a Basic Right: Ramallah, Palestine. |
Already, only two days into my
experience in Palestine, the sheer reports of inhumanity, degradation and
callousness practices by the Israeli state leaves a cold feeling.
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| A Forgotten Cause?: Ramallah, Palestine. (Photo Courtesy of Emerson Photography) |
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