By JOHARAH BAKER
Almost every word is linked to associations. In the case of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, people immediately think of fighting, Israeli settlements, perhaps the separation wall, when this term is mentioned. Images of rock throwing (or rocket firing) Palestinians are conjured up along with gun-toting belligerent Israeli soldiers firing live ammunition and tear gas at protesters. Of course, the images of mangled buses and hysterical Israelis reeling from a Palestinian suicide bombing have become some of the most powerful images in the media, even more so than bombed out houses and dead Gaza children.
Still, I am a firm believer that part of the reason the Palestinians are so badly misrepresented in the media and political forums is because their reality is also so badly misrepresented. While the things mentioned earlier are certainly the most visible aspects of the conflict, I can't help but cringe at the thought that there is so much more that nobody knows anything about. To understand just how difficult life can be under an occupation – in this case Israel's of the Palestinian territories – we can't afford to ignore even the so-called little things.
Let me offer an example. The Oslo Accords, signed in 1994 between the PLO and Israel were ostensibly a means of resolving this years-long conflict, eventually leading to the establishment of a Palestinian state. Almost anyone even vaguely versed in the conflict has heard of the Oslo Accords and the broad outlines it offers. But how many people know that one clause stipulated in the Oslo Accords was that Palestinian fishermen would be allowed a 20 nautical mile radius off the Gaza shore for fishing? More importantly, how many people know that in 2006, Israel unilaterally decided to downscale this privilege to a six mile radius. And how many people are aware of the fact that just yesterday, the six miles were pared down to three.
What this means in real terms is that the Palestinian fishing industry has lost millions of dollars, fishermen have not been able to sufficiently provide for their families and even if they are able to catch a few fish, they are under the constant threat of Israeli naval ships lurking in Gaza's waters, which point their guns at any wayward fisherman they perceive to have trespassed into prohibited waters. Many a Palestinian fishing boat has been shot at by Israeli naval forces for allegedly breaching the Israeli-imposed restrictions.
Moving on to Jerusalem, the heart of the conflict, almost everyone knows that the Palestinians in the eastern sector must endure excruciating procedures in order to prove their residency in the city lest they lose their status as permanent residents. How many people, however, know that if Israel has even the slightest doubt that the family in question is not living within the Israeli municipality borders, one spouse can be denied residency or the children denied registration as Jerusalemites? How many people know that recently, when Israel actually grants birth certificates or registration for children of these families, it is only on a two-year basis, which is up for review after the aforementioned period has lapsed? If the family cannot prove they live the Jerusalem's borders (self-proclaimed by the Israeli municipality to accommodate the ever growing settlements), residency rights are duly revoked.
On that same note, how many people know that parents of children with a different ID card must produce birth certificates at Israeli checkpoints to prove their blood relation? I can speak from personal experience on this, so as not to be branded as an exaggerating Palestinian propagandist. With my West Bank ID (and Israeli-issued permit to enter Israel), I must produce my children's birth certificates at the Qalandiya crossing to prove they really are mine and be allowed to cross into Israeli territory. Never mind that my children are only nine and six years old. If the birth certificates are not with me, they can only cross Qalandiya with their father, the original Jerusalemite. Never mind that we have been trying for 10 years to get approval from Israel's interior ministry for family reunification, attempts which have been repeatedly shot down under the pretext of "Israeli security." This uncomfortable life in limbo means I am essentially "illegal" in my own home. My children, however, are not. Never mind that should I be kicked out of Jerusalem, they would only be able to follow at the risk of losing their own residency status.
Speaking of checkpoints, how many people know that West Bank residents with permits to enter Israel can only cross into Israel via specified crossings? For example, Ramallah residents who have a permit can only cross at Qalandiya. Crossings such as the one at Dahiyet Al Barid or Hizmeh are off limits to West Bankers. Under no circumstances can the other checkpoints be used. "You can always go back," was the response of one Israeli soldier when Qalandiya's electric turnstiles, gates and computers were incapacitated because of a power cut. Never mind that people have lives, families and jobs they need to reach on the other side. "You can always go back." Just like that.
This is really only the tip of the iceberg. I wonder how many people are aware of the fact that in Jerusalem, families are billed for the demolition of their own homes. Or that on the rare occasion of a prisoner release as part of Israel's "good will gestures", there have been men re-arrested at Israeli checkpoints on the way home, only to serve yet another sentence. How about the fact that children as young as nine have been taken into custody by Israeli occupation forces or that 12-year old boys have stood before an Israeli military judge and been sentenced as an adult.
My point here is not to whine. There has been much said and written about Palestine and the difficulties faced by its people as a result of Israel's occupation. What I would like to say is that even though the bombs are no longer raining down on Gaza and there are no visible signs of conflict in the West Bank, the battle is far from over. There are so many other injustices being perpetrated every day against the Palestinians that go unnoticed, unseen and disregarded. They should not. A fisherman who cannot put food on his family's table or a mother who cannot cross a checkpoint to take her children home are huge injustices for those on the receiving end. Just because they do not reach our television screens or newspapers does not make them any less significant.
Joharah Baker is a Writer for the Media and Information Program at the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH). She can be contacted at .">mip@miftah.org.">.
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