Non-violent resistance in Nabi Saleh

Nabi Saleh

ManalTamini

"The Israeli soldiers shoot tear gas in my home every morning before breakfast." That's what Manal Tamini told me in the village of Nabi Saleh (12 miles north of Ramallah), which has earned international media attention for its weekly demonstrations against the occupation. Every Friday about 70 men, women, and children, accompanied by Israeli and international observers and media, walk nonviolently down the street singing, chanting, and waving flags.  Invariably their effort provokes a violent reaction of tear gas, rubber bullets, and skunk water from the Israeli soldiers.

Manal showed us a video with horrifying and heartrending images of soldiers  beating women and children, a boy screaming after being shot with pepper spray in his eyes, and an observer being dragged into custody. We saw the bloody wound of her own 12-year-old son, who was shot in the side with a high velocity tear gas canister, and sustained liver damage. Manal says more than half of the village's 550 residents have been injured--160 of them under the age of 17, and one  boy was paralyzed.

Janna

Any gathering of more than 10 Palestinians is illegal under Israeli law. Manal has  been spent 10 days in jail and her husband has been arrested four times and had his camera broken. Despite the daily violence, she says they have power from within to keep resisting until the occupation ends. Manal's six-year-old niece Janna sang a poignant song for us about wanting to play, saying "Give me a chance." You can see her bravely confronting the soldiers in this video: Janna link

Manal believes the harsh military reaction to the peaceful protests reflects Israel's fear that the virus of non-violent resistance will spread and spark the third Intifada (uprising).

Sahar Francis

We learned from Sahar Francis of the Adameer NGO that there are currently 4,600 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, most of them political activists, not terrorists. She says all Palestinian political parties are illegal, and mere membership can result in a year or more in prison.  On the positive side, severe torture methods widely used in the past have been abandoned except for serious crimes, but psychological torture is still used, and prisoners can  be tied to a chair for 10 hours.

It was good to hear that the number of persons in administrative detention has been declining, from 300 in recent years to 180 at present. Sahar says "Israel won't give up administrative detention  because it is a powerful tool." The mechanism allows persons to be held for up to six months without charges, and can  be renewed indefinitely. Some have spent six years in administrative detention. It is hard for lawyers to defend them, because the evidence is based on secret materials. Sahar says one of the best ways to help the prisoners would  be to end the occupation.

"If you agree that oppression is wrong, do something about it" said Omar Barghouti, a founding member of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) campaign. He reminded us of one of my favorite quotes from Desmond Tutu: "If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor." There is no balance or middle ground between oppressor and oppressed.  Seven years ago a broad coalition of Palestinian civil society organizations called for the international community to implement BDS to achieve the three objectives shown on the right.

Omar Barhouti

Omar says there has been progress in this global Palestinian-led non-violent movement, and Israel fears it as a "strategic threat." The Quakers "have put their money where their mouth is," divesting from Caterpillar, HP, and Veolia. Presbyterians and Methodists have supported boycotts. Hampshire College has divested, and Minnesota has sold its Israel bonds. Omar said the movement's principles are context sensitivity, sustainability, and gradualism, so it is fine if communities initially boycott only products made in the Israeli settlements in the occupied territories. He pointedly reminded us that as U.S. taxpayers, we are complicit in sustaining the occupation, because the United States gives Israel $3 billion in unconditional military aid every year. I think it is up to us to help build a groundswell of public opinion to persuade our government to put an end to that.