Briefs
Village meetings:
Village members continue to meet for dialogue sessions and more. Says member Samah Salaime, Head of Communications and Development, “We have to work hard everyday to produce mutual trust and cooperation, to build an atmosphere of security and equality between Arabs and Jews. We learned that even a difficult crisis like the war can strengthen our common values. The foundation on which we built the village of peace, justice, equality and democracy: This foundation needs to be constantly strengthened so that it will be our safety net in times of war.”
After the original shock wore off, several groups came together to act. One participates in demonstrations against the government, calling for actions to bring about the immediate release of the hostages. The second group volunteers with farmers, picking crops on farms in the south, as their workers have either left or cannot enter the country.
Dr. Riham Nasra led a training session for alumni of the School for Peace and village members on the right to Free Speech. The session was held in the Spiritual Center, and was a joint project of the Spiritual Center and the School for Peace. In the session, participants learned about their rights, how to protect them and when to proceed with caution. Nasra is a civil rights lawyer who is defending Palestinian activist Munther Amira, who was arrested in Israel for incitement.
Prof. Bashir Bashir, a senior researcher in the Open University and a fellow in the Van Leer Institute gave a thought-provoking lecture to village members, followed by discussions in small groups. The talk, held in the village library, was well attended. The name of the lecture was “Interrogating Modernity and Egalitarian Binationalism in Palestine/Israel.” Bashir has a long-standing relationship with the village, and he began by reminding the participants that he had attended the School for Peace as a part of a youth program.
Outreach
Samah Salaime and Ariela Bairy-Ben Ishay were interviewed together on BBC radio. Ariela: “The way we have chosen works. Arguing and still being committed to each other’s well-being.” Samah: “This war told us that what we do is on very small scale, but it can change the world.” Ariela: “It is possible to manage the conflict in such a way that both sides win. It is not easy, but it can be done.”
Samah Salaime was a guest of honor at a peace conference in Sardinia, Italy. She spoke to the city council, and later in the main church, in the presence of the city mayor and bishop, about living together and working toward peace. It was an emotional speech, and many had tears in their eyes at the end. She later participated in a candle-light peace march through the town’s center, together with residents of the surrounding area.
Community
Visit to Latrun abbey: On Dec. 30, members of the village went to the Latrun abbey, next door for their traditional, annual visit. The friars received the many people who came with warmth, and they were especially pleased by the number of young people, who had been organized by Nur, the NADI youth club coordinator, and who sang Christmas songs for the monks. These visits reinvigorate the ties between the abbey and the village. The visitors brought with them cakes donated by the hotel, chocolates and other goodies.
The community created a fundraising campaign for the village workers who lost their work permits during the war. They raised 15,000 NIS to help them through this period and to show solidarity with these people, who have worked for many years keeping the village in repair and the gardens tended.
Hotel
The hotel found a unique niche in the present situation, in which tourists are not coming to the country. Those who evacuated from the border villages went to other hotels in the country, but they did not come to the Wahat al-Salam – Neve Shalom hotel. So the management started a campaign to attract peace organizations to the hotel, for seminars, workshops and meetings. The idea caught on, and in December, the rooms were full nearly to capacity. An article in Ha’aretz daily (in Hebrew) brought more people to the hotel. We are hoping this will tide the hotel over until the regular tourist business picks up.
Link to the BBC interview: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001trw6 (segment begins at 13:00)
Interview with Samah Salaime (in Hebrew) on Kan 11 https://studio.youtube.com/video/aq6ePyEuVvk/edit
Link to the hotel campaign (in Hebrew); https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NKZZR5SaNWoLz200gUkqbKxMIsvZ9Use/view