Yesterday night had not been a calm one. Still evidently angry at having been humiliated when they failed to catch Mahmoud more than a week ago, and having beaten up his father last week, the soldiers came to the family again. They found the 13 year old son on the street late at night, and beat him up. He had to be taken to the hospital. We heard that this same group of soldiers were looking for other Palestinian kids to beat up, so we spent several hours in the Souq, navigating the streets in the night (they are luckily lit well). Fortunately, they did not come out anymore after that.
After saying my goodbyes, I got into a servees and drove to Bethlehem, then a taxi guy drove me to the bus 21 station.
He told me something interesting. He said the Israeli settlers around Bethlehem (the city is surrounded by settlements) sometimes come into the city to do their shopping, and he drives them around in his taxi. I asked him how can this be, aren't the settlers occupying Palestinian land?
Yes, he said, but they are people too.
He told me that among Israelis, even among Israeli settlers, there are good and bad people. With the good ones, he said, we have no problem with. He told me they are welcome anytime.
I have to say I was shocked by his graciousness and determination to see the best in people... in my view, every settler who is in the West Bank is illegally occupying land that was stolen from the Palestinian people. Yet here was this guy who was willing to see the good in some of them.
He told me he hates the crimes the settlers commit in Hebron and Nablus, and that if the settlers that visit him cause trouble, "I would kill them".
However, he is willing to have those who are peaceful to him as his neighbours, and even is friends with some of them. The same is true of other Palestinians he knows.
Why is this important? The reason is simple. The present situation is unsustainable. Israel's occupation of the Palestinians cannot go on forever. The world is waking up, and the military occupation will grow harder and harder to justify politically, and to maintain, especially if military aid is cut off.
There can be only possible solution- a peace where Israelis and Palestinians live in equality and freedom. The occupation can not indefinitely continue, and it cannot be replaced with the roles of the occupier and victim being reversed. Whether this means a one state or a two state or some other solution, I don't know. The ones who can negotiate that will need to be members of a responsible and compassionate and courageous political leadership on all sides (Israeli government, PA, Hamas)... something that is desperately needed, and nonexistent at the present moment.
However, there are already people, like this man, who are ready to live in peace*, when it truly arrives. This gives me a lot of hope. May God foster this spirit in the heart of every person here.
* A true peace, with justice for everyone, not what is happening today.
After a big Arabic lunch meal, I hopped on Bus 21 and rode to Jerusalem. This is the city Jesus wept over, and in which so many prophets and men of God walked.
As always, on the way there, the bus stopped. We had to get our passports ready, and the Palestinians began filing out.
I don't know really what I was thinking. I finished my stint (for this summer!) in ISM, and there was nothing I could do, not even take pictures.
Suddenly, I decided there was something that I could do. I stood up, and got off with them. If the Palestinians had to stand in line in the sun, then so could I. Interestingly, I noticed an Asian woman standing in line with me. Like me, she was from Canada, and not a Palestinian. I briefly asked her what she was doing here, and she said "visiting friends". Perhaps that was true, or perhaps she was an activist from the handful of other international groups that like ISM are active here and trying to document and oppose the occupation. We are encouraged to not say we are with ISM to strangers, so perhaps she was told the same thing. But I am only speculating.
In any case, we asked the Palestinians to go through first, and presented our passports to the Border Police officer last. He asked where are we from, we said "Canada".
The soldier looked surprised, and after seeing our passports, quickly waved us through.
The unjust occupation of the Palestinian people did not begin yesterday, and it will probably not end tomorrow. Tragically, many litres of blood may still be spilt until it ends.
The unjust and sick game of apartheid that the Government of Israel is enacting may be around for a long time before it falls.
However, that doesn't mean we have to play it.
I am reminded of a sign I saw that was painted on the annexation wall in Bethlehem. It reads "With Love and Kisses, Nothing Lasts Forever".
While I have nothing to say in this case about kisses and love, I can say that the second part is certainly applicable. The injustice and violence that happens everyday here is overwhelming, and seemingly eternal. It is not the case.
Justice always eventually comes. Oppression always eventually ceases. We have been created by a God who loves and sides with victims of injustice, and nothing happens outside of His knowledge or will. It is only a matter of time. Things will eventually get better. There is always light at the end of the tunnel.
Thank you for following my blog this summer. I encourage you to read and learn more about the occupation. Maybe one day you can come down to Palestine to see for yourself.
Educate yourself, and then spread the knowledge.
Then see what else you can do to try to make a difference.
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