<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?><oembed><version><![CDATA[1.0]]></version><provider_name><![CDATA[Occupied Palestine | فلسطين]]></provider_name><provider_url><![CDATA[https://occupiedpalestine.wordpress.com]]></provider_url><author_name><![CDATA[occupiedpalestine]]></author_name><author_url><![CDATA[https://occupiedpalestine.wordpress.com/author/hajarhajar/]]></author_url><title><![CDATA[ei: Education in Palestine in world&nbsp;spotlight]]></title><type><![CDATA[link]]></type><html><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11604.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29"><span class="text14">Eva Bartlett, <em>The Electronic Intifada,</em> 2 November 2010</p>
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<td><span class="text11">The impact of the Israeli occupation on  Palestinians&#8217; right to education has previously not received enough  attention. (Khaleel Reash/<a href="http://www.maanimages.com/">MaanImages</a>)</span></td>
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<p><a href="http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11604.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=Feed%3A+electronicIntifadaPalestine+%28Electronic+Intifada+%3A+Palestine+News%29"><span class="text14"><span class="content"><br />
GAZA CITY, occupied Gaza Strip (IPS) &#8211; The focus on people&#8217;s movements  in Palestine continues to gain momentum with growing nonviolent  demonstrations in Gaza, the occupied West Bank including East Jerusalem,  and with a Palestine-wide call for boycott, divestment and sanctions  (BDS) against Israel.</p>
<p>Years of the nonviolent demonstrations throughout the occupied West Bank  against Israel&#8217;s wall have finally generated some media interest in the  issue of the wall and annexation of Palestinian land. Yet the  behind-the-scenes work of Palestinian unions, Palestinian and  international BDS groups, video conferences bridging Palestine to the  outside world, and the struggle of Palestinian students to access an  education continues largely unnoticed by the cameras.</p>
<p>In July 2010, the United Nations IRIN news reported that roughly 39,000  Palestinian children from Gaza would not have schools to attend,  following the destruction or severe damage of some 280 schools and  kindergartens during the 2008-2009 Israeli war on Gaza, and the  continued inability to repair or rebuild due to the severe Israeli-led  siege on Gaza and lack of construction materials.</p>
<p>The UN also reports that 88 percent of schools run by the UN agency for  Palestine refugees (UNRWA) and 82 percent of government schools operate  on a shift system as a result, still resulting in serious overcrowding.</p>
<p>On the heels of popular protests against the G-20 summit in Toronto, and  branching from the annual World Social Forum (WSF), the first World  Education Forum (WEF) in Palestine began 28 October and in regions  throughout historic Palestine. From Jaffa to Nazareth, Jerusalem,  Bethlehem and the Gaza Strip, forums on education and Palestinian  culture were held until 31 October.</p>
<p>Dubbed &#8220;Education for Change,&#8221; the forums included global points of  focus on education &#8212; including adult literacy and gender equity in  early education &#8212; but delved further into Palestine-specific topics:  occupation and emancipation; the psychological needs of Palestinian  students traumatized by occupation and war; keeping Palestine&#8217;s history  and culture prominent in educational programs; the physical and  bureaucratic roadblocks to higher education within and outside of  Palestine; and the innovative means Palestinians use to educate  themselves under six decades of occupation.</p>
<p>&#8220;Education is not only a basic human right, one that cannot be postponed  or neglected during conflict or emergency, but also has a key role to  play in protecting and sustaining the lives of children and youths,&#8221;  says Dr. Mazen Hamada of Gaza&#8217;s al-Azhar University and one of the WEF  Gaza organizers. &#8220;The effect of siege on Gaza Strip has exceeded the  economical, agricultural, heath and environmental levels to reach also  the educational sector. The academic achievements of the students at all  levels has decreased after the last war on Gaza, and the number of  students not attending their classes has increased.&#8221;</p>
<p>Hamada notes that the siege&#8217;s simple act of banning paper and  educational materials needed for schools affects students&#8217; ability to  study. He adds, &#8220;Because of the siege, many parents are unemployed and  are not able to cover the tuitions of their children at universities and  schools. And university students aren&#8217;t able to continue their studies  abroad, nor are professors able to participate in international  conferences or obtain further training outside.&#8221;</p>
<p>The WEF-Palestine, during its four days of forums and events, addressed  these problems, while reiterating the need to include Palestinian  culture and history in curriculums and activities.</p>
<p>&#8220;When I was a student, we studied Egyptian history and geography; we  never even saw a map of Palestine in school,&#8221; says Abu Arab, 30, of his  studies in Gaza under Egyptian control. &#8220;Palestinian culture wasn&#8217;t a  part of the education program then, especially since the Israelis could  censor any information they didn&#8217;t want studied.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;Ironically, I learned more about Palestine when I was in prison,&#8221; says  Abu Basel. &#8220;I was imprisoned by the Israelis when I was 16 and hadn&#8217;t  yet finished high school. Since they kept me for nine years, I had to  finish my studies in jail.&#8221;</p>
<p>Like many Palestinians, Abu Basel used his time in prison to study from  others who had an education. &#8220;Some had finished university, some had  their masters, some had studied abroad. We&#8217;d study together, like  workgroups. We also studied Palestinian history and learned about  Zionism.&#8221;</p>
<p>Specific to the WEF-Palestine is the problem of access: with all of  Palestine&#8217;s borders controlled by Israel and Egypt, other means of  communication and participation are vital. With group participation from  Japan, Canada, Latin America, Africa and Europe, the WEF-Palestine  included video conferences and live streaming on the Internet, as well  as interactive workshops, visits to important areas and cultural  sessions.</p>
<p>In Gaza, participants joined a popular demonstration in Gaza&#8217;s northern  Beit Hanoun, as well as meeting fishermen whose livelihoods have been  destroyed by the siege and by attacks from Israeli gunboats in Gazan  waters.</p>
<p>For farmers living in the buffer zone, the need to enhance education and  international understanding is not simply a question of their  children&#8217;s futures but also of their livelihoods, routinely destroyed by  Israeli invasions.</p>
<p>The Garrara elementary school in southeastern Gaza is but one of many  schools suffering from multiple problems under siege and under attacks  by Israeli soldiers along the border. &#8220;We are under one kilometer from  the border and the students experience regular firing from Israeli  soldiers,&#8221; says Umm Mohammed, a teacher at the school. &#8220;Many of our  students have classmates who were killed or injured by these attacks,  and that affects their psychological state and ability to study,&#8221; she  says.</p>
<p>The school itself is still in shambles after the Israeli invasion of Gaza, and many of the students study in tents year-round.</p>
<p>The WSF a decade ago set out to promote notions of sustainable  development, fair trade and social justice. The WEF-Palestine by virtue  of necessity focuses on the urgent educational issues at hand, but  likewise harnesses the knowledge of grassroots activists, civil society  groups and educators, citing education as means of resistance, for peace  and equality.</p>
<p>Al Azhar&#8217;s Dr. Hamada is positive about the outcome. &#8220;The WEF is a good  opportunity to exchange information and experiences between Palestinians  and other international educational organizations towards improving the  educational system and teaching methodologies in Palestine,&#8221; he says.</p>
<p>As statement from WEF-Palestine reminds everyone, &#8220;Transforming the  world and liberating humanity from colonialism, racism and exploitation  requires a struggling and educated population. Therefore education is an  indispensable tool for liberation.&#8221;</p>
<p><em>All rights reserved, IPS &#8211; Inter Press Service (2010). Total or partial publication, retransmission or sale forbidden.</em></span></p>
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