SYMPTOMS:
Depressed that most Jews and Palestinians
still want to "take sides" and blame the "other" -- a
prescription for failure?
Hopeless about the poverty of creativity, the
poverty of spirit, the poverty of courage?
Angry that political "leaders,"
wanting votes and personal position above all, move no further than the
condition of the people -- distanced, ignorant of one another, fearful,
distrusting, catering for popular approval?
PRESCRIPTION:
Take heart.
Seriously.
In fact, new research in neurocardiology teaches us
that the heart -- with many cell's like the brain's -- acts in brain-like ways
to direct the rest of our thinking and acting.
So touch hearts in positive ways, to help
people's brains become more useful, imaginative, and wise in ways that
"facts" and "information" cannot.
Learn about "Emotions: The Inside Story," at
http://www.heartmath.org/estk_t/emo_intro.html
.
In
the beauty and safety of camps in nature, Jews and Palestinians -- Muslims,
Christians, Jews, Israelis, Arabs -- are touching one another's hearts.
Some of the camps we know about are described at http://traubman.igc.org/camps.htm
.
SOME RESULTS: a wealth of new relationships,
creativity, hope, and courage -- life for all the peoples back home.
Read the stories not seen in most traditional
broadcast and print media.
Pass on the stories; they can transform people.
Become creative where you live.
IN THE HOLY LAND:
===== 1 =====
Heart to heart, THE SULHA PROJECT recently
brought together about 4,000 Palestinian and Jewish Israelis, including a
large delegation from the West Bank, for two days of understanding and
closing chasms.
Sulha is an indigenous, Middle Eastern way of
reconciliation. They rebuild trust among neighbors, Arabs and Jews, as a
grassroots contribution to the public peace process. In a safe place,
even in these excruciating and critical times, they hear and appreciate each
others' stories, hopes, fears, traditions and cultures beyond a specific
political agenda.
See them on the Web in Arabic, Hebrew, and English,
at:
===== 2 =====
For two weeks this summer, GIVAT HAVIVA , a
beacon of responsible research, information, and was turned into a "pulsating
day camp" by 165 Jewish and Arab children from the Wadi Ara-Menashe
region. In the shadow of the Givat Haviva Peace Tree hewn by Arab and
Jewish youth last summer. The were guided Jewish and Arab teenage
councilors, some of whom participated in the Peace Tree project the same time
last year.
The camp results from close, sustained working
relationships promoting co-existence built over time between local Arabs and
Jews, and involving many hundreds of local youth and educators from both communities.
Read about them in Hebrew, Arabic, and English:
IN NORTH AMERICA:
===== 3 =====
This was the third year in Seattle, Washington for
The Middle East Peace Camp for Children -- Arabs and Jews.
"The camp was a tremendous success this year, we're all so excited and
can't wait for next year," e-mailed a woman organizer. It is on the
Web at:
Look at headlines from the local
newspaper and TV media:
===== 5 (and last) =====
In its first year, Peace Camp Canada, with
20 Jewish and Palestinian campers, has two co-directors:
If you read French, an article about
them both is at:
Read their side-by-side statements are
at:
Published in the The Globe and Mail -- Ottawa, Canada --
Friday, August 6, 2004
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20040806/PEACE06/National/Idx
Israeli, Palestinian teens talk peace in
Ottawa
Participants take part in 10-day
debate
By GLORIA GALLOWAY
OTTAWA -- Ten Israeli and 10 Palestinian teenagers
spent yesterday morning getting to know a bit about each other before launching
into a 10-day debate on the difficult and often deadly issues that serve as
their divide.
But first, the participants in Peace Camp Canada
heard from Michelle Divon, the 18-year-old daughter of Israel's
ambassador to Canada, whose own Ottawa experience inspired this experiment in
international peace-building.
"I said that I was really hoping that they
would take . . . this new vision, and what they would go through in the next 10
days, back to their own communities and hopefully affect what is happening
there," said Ms. Divon, one of the camp's two co-directors.
"The vision was to pull people out of the area
of conflict so they can really be able to get a new perspective, get a better
perspective. . . . That's what helped me."
It was early in the last school year at Ottawa's
tony Ashbury College -- the same school that is hosting the peace camp -- that
Ms. Divon's own deeply ingrained perspective on the conflict in her homeland
took a sharp turn to the centre.
Her friendship with Tara Ogaick, the child of an
Iranian mother and Canadian father living in Saudi Arabia, had begun badly.
Both stormed away from a classroom argument about the Middle East -- one
replete with insults, barbs and harsh generalizations -- believing they had
little reason to like each other.
Then Ms. Divon started to wonder how she could hope
for peace in her homeland if she couldn't even communicate with a schoolmate in
Ottawa. So she made overtures of conciliation to Ms. Ogaick, who responded
in kind. And the two became fast friends, eventually bringing Lana Ayoub, the
daughter of the Jordanian ambassador, into their circle.
In the end, the three-way relationship dramatically
altered their views about the strife that has coloured their lives. And this
week, Ms. Divon, an 18-year-old with a maturity beyond her years, hopes to
replicate that experience for the Peace Camp Canada participants.
There are similar camps in Israel, she said
yesterday. But "it was only when I left that I was able to question
myself, question the conflict. . . . It was the first time that I was given the
opportunity to socially interact with people of Arab descent."
Her partner in this venture is a 27-year-old
university student named Forsan Hussein, who was born and raised in a small
Arab village called Shaib in northern Israel. Ms. Divon had read about his
lifelong interests in peace-building in an Israeli newspaper. "I said I
have to contact this individual," she explained. "I was looking for a
counterpart so it could be a true joint effort and I found the perfect
match."
The students will have a life-changing experience,
Mr. Hussein promised. Israelis will share rooms with Palestinians.
They will eat together, sleep together and -- most
important -- communicate together.
Among the 20 participants are Muslims, Christians and
Jews, Mr. Hussein said. "You have Ethiopian Israelis, you have Israeli
Arabs, you have Palestinians who come from East Jerusalem, from the West
Bank."
For many, it is the first time they have been to North
America. For some, it is the first time they have ever travelled.
The campers were chosen on the basis of application
forms that asked what they thought they could accomplish over 10 days and take
back to their own communities.
"We're not here to talk to the ones who want
peace already," Mr. Hussein said. "We're more interested in talking
to the ones who think peace is a challenge."
The tone set during first few hours was friendly.
"However, we are coming here to talk about the
real issues that many of our leaders can't even handle," Mr. Hussein said.
"There will be a lot of tension, I'm sure. But I know they will bring that
tension to a positive energy where they can channel it to better peace work."
The camp, which cost about $100,000 to organize, has
been funded through local donations, and the campers essentially received
scholarships to participate, he explained.
Mornings will start with debates about the Middle
East, but there will also be drama sessions, field trips and life lessons in
which they will explore religion and the meaning of the human existence.
"We're hoping that they will go back and bring
this new way of thinking back to their communities and affect the people around
them," Ms. Divon said.
