Self-Determination: the right of a people to decide upon its own political status or form of government, without outside influence
International law is very clear on two basic principles: the inadmissibility of the gaining of territory by war and the prohibition of the transfer of civilians of the occupying power to the occupied territory. Both are intended to prevent expansionism and the colonization of occupied territories, both complement another clear principle of international law, the right of people to self-determination, a right that a colonial or occupying power is required to respect. Israel, as an occupying power, has undertaken numerous measures attempting to change the legal status, demographic arrangement and character of the territory by confiscating land, exploiting natural resources, building over 250 settlements and sending more than 400,000 Israelis to the occupied territories, establishing a dual system of law and even annexing part of the territory. Today Palestinians are faced with some key issues that interfere with the right to self-determination.
The Palestinian people have to ensure the following to enjoy the right to self-determination:
· Mutual Recognition: This will take place when Palestine is recognized as its own state.
· Borders: Current the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem are considered Palestinian Territories. Israel does not recognize East Jerusalem as being Palestinian Territory but as a part of unified Jerusalem, Israel’s capital.
· Security/Separation Wall: The wall limits the possibility of a stable Palestinian economy. It is largely recognized as the “Apartheid Wall” because it divides the Palestinians and Israeli’s from each other also limiting the self-determination of the Palestinians.
· Freedom of Movement: Along with the separation walls staggering effect, Palestinians are limited to where they can move. Majority of the Palestinians that are living in the West Bank are limited to movement in the West Bank only.
· Water Rights: Israel has slowly diminished the availability of clean water the Palestinian people as a way of flushing the people out of their land.
All of the issues that the Palestinians have to overcome are all very difficult, but Palestinians have shown resistance since day one, the issues listed are the obstacles that they have been dealing with in order to resist the occupation.
In Battir, the student body and a few faculty members that went on the walk all decided to end the day with a planting project. Olive trees are what we planted, which I believe resemble strength and long lasting in any condition similar to the Palestinian people. Starting off on the morning of the walk, all of our classes gathered at an agreed point in Battir where we were introduced to the schedule of the day. Beginning our journey down a narrow paved road was good for us to familiarize ourselves with the surroundings. As we continue our walk we gradually drifted off our course and started on a dirt trail. With a stray eye, we began to observe our surroundings and all of the beautiful plants and trees with names so extraordinary it is still hard to pronounce them. Observing and seeing all of this beauty makes us aware that the Palestinians still care about the landscape. The initiative many show to ensure the landscape is kept in good condition shows that we are not leaving the land anytime soon. In a sense, it is like a Palestinian settlement because we maintain the landscape and the historic beauty that has always been ours and by doing so we show Israel that it is our land and we are here to stay.
Approaching a rocky terrain we see how nature has transformed over the years making trenches for the water and how everything has shaped perfectly together. After walking for roughly thirty minutes, we began to see the beauty you can only see in your dreams. The way nature develops by itself; it is a wonder of the world. The hills looked just as they should, not a single tree, rock or plant in the wrong place. This was what one would call natural beauty. As the walk continued we approached a point where we were required to all climb down a steep hill. The hills were not substantially large but good-sized, the difficulty was the loose rocks and dirt that we used to try and grip our feet on. After that obstacle, appearing gradually were ruins of what were once homes scattered across the valley.
Preservation of the remains of houses and buildings shows that people do actually care about the history of the land and what it once was. Preserving your heritage and your land is as I said, resisting the occupation. The way the remains were sitting there with the surroundings of hills and little rock fences and in some areas "wells" you could almost picture the structures as they once looked. Keeping in mind what the remains may have looked like made me curious and I began visualizing them as if they were still there and how beautiful everything looked.
During the course of our walk, we took a break and went inside a workshop where the owners made rock sculptures of Jesus and other religious items. The owner talked about the history of the land and how it has changed. Looking off of his balcony you could see a railroad track. Battir sits right above the railway from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which served as the armistice line between Israel and Jordan from 1948 and 1967. One could also consider this as a type of settlement because it represents a division line that is in a sense, permanent.
We were nearing the destination point of where we were going to plant the trees. Along the path leading us to it was a man made stream of water flowing right alongside of us. It was amazing how it was built and how fast the water flowed through the little tunnel. The stream of water ended at what looked to be a swimming pool or water canal/trench. It was not at all very clean water but the local kids seemed to enjoy the water on the hot day. The water stream appears as though it is a main water source for the village. Palestinians water rights are becoming more and more limited by the day. With the flowing water Battir has from the rain season enables them to have access to water when needed without having to depend on Israel. Being able to provide themselves with water that comes during rainy seasons is also a form of resistance against occupation and a form of self-determination.
Olive trees are very hardy, drought-, disease- and fire-resistant, and can live for a very long time. Its root system is very robust and capable of regenerating the tree even if the aboveground structure is destroyed. Olive trees are similar to the Palestinian people. Both are tough, resistant and can regenerate even if almost destroyed. I believe that the reason we planted olive tress is to show that we are not going anywhere and that we will last a very long time.
We arrive to the planting grounds for our olive trees where we all sit down and catch our breath. A van arrives with the tools to dig our holes and of course, our olive trees. We split into groups of two, mostly one male and one female and began digging holes to put our olive trees in. A short while later, all of the groups appear to be finished with there task of planting the olive trees. The teachers come over and tell us what needs to be revised to ensure the olive trees grow correctly and live for a long time. All of the trees looked great and we were satisfied with the outcome. We all packed up the tools and garbage and the students walked to the bus to be driven back to Beit Jalla. I end up in the van with my teacher and the film crew and the driver, I could not finish the very last bit of the walk and drove with them all the way back to Beit Jalla.
Nazareth is the largest Arab city in Israel. To this day it still is predominantly Arab with roughly 65000 residents. As I began my walk in the city of beautiful and historic Nazareth, I wondered what it would be like today if it were still the Palestinians land and whether or not it would be different or not. Keeping this somewhat far-fetched idea in my mind, I began my journey throughout the streets of Nazareth. As I looked around me towards everyway of my surroundings I found my attention focused on all of the people roaming the town as if everything was as it should be. I was standing there trying to determine where I was and where I wanted to set off.
I began to walk down the sidewalk and found an unbelievable fascination in the perfect landscape surrounding me. When I refer to perfect, I mean the trees in the middle of the road separating the cars going back and forth. They were exactly aligned and nearly identical to one another one by one in a row all the way down the street as far as my eyes could go. In between each tree little were plants with perfect purple colored hairs and leaves and blossoming bulbs. To the sides of me were busy storefronts with people laughing and having fun going on with their daily lives. Of course there was a little old man sitting on the corner of the building trying to grab my attention to sell me something random by screaming "hello" in a very odd Arabic accent.
I walked down the sidewalk a few blocks and saw a large sign that says "Nazareth Illit" to the right of me. By simply translating the word Illit I came up with "Elite" or in other words “VIP”. I could not resist but to explore the area to see why it could have such a name and see if the name represented it’s meaning. I would like to add that the entrance looked almost like you were walking into heaven, simply bliss. To the left and to the right of me identical trees, plants and lush green grass lining the entrance even a beautiful proportionally large fountain. The fountain caught my attention the most so I began to look at it more closely. I sat in the grass right in front of it looking deeply at the designs engraved in the stone. I became a little nervous and stood up only to see my reflection in the water accompanied by a Jewish flag. I started to reflect on what this image could mean as I looked around at my surroundings even more.
It began to look like a completely different world, a Jewish world. Raja Shehadah wrote, " Europe, and later Zionism, has endeavored to rescue the historical significance of the region in its search for ancient Israel: a search for its own cultural roots which in the process has silenced Palestinian history and relegated it topre history, paving the way for the modern state of Israel to take control not only of the land but also Palestinian time and space. (Pg. 47) I think Nazareth Illit could be considered a settlement because of its inhabitants are majority Jewish and it is designed with its landscape to praise the Jewish nation. Raja wrote " Menachem Begin, The prime minister at the time, announced: settlements [in the occupied territories] is the Soul of Zionism." (Pg. 56) The landscape absolutely looked like it was the soul of Zionism.
Still standing next to the fountain at the entrance of the settlement on my left and right and in the front of me as well people were walking, some with their children and some with their companion. It was a different walking that they were doing. The difference was not the passion and the friendly vibes that I saw earlier in the day, but a more quiet and shy walk. Was it the fact of them living on someone else's land or was it the segregation that was way to obvious? Raja wrote, " I was a romantic, striving for some sort of heroic role." (Pg. 64) "I was shackled by the prevailing fear and insecurity." (Pg. 64) "The suffering was more subtle, from having to endure the shame of defeat." (Pg 64) Nazareth Illit brought much fear and insecurity to me because it was an instant feeling as if I don’t belong. The reason is because no matter where I go I can only walk so far until I have to turn around. When will it be like it once was? "A Land of the Free"
