February 28, 2006

Hebron Reflection: "If I were a Palestinian I would go to Tel Aviv and blow myself up."

by Bill Baldwin*

People in Hebron on all sides of the conflict want peace, but often seem trapped in a cycle of violence from which they see no way out. However, both Israelis and Palestinians sometimes show a surprising honesty in telling their own story as well as a sensitivity to the pain of those on the other side of the conflict.

The other day, a member of the International Solidarity Movement and I confronted an Israeli soldier about mistreatment by soldiers and settlers of Palestinian school children. The Israeli soldier complained that everybody criticizes Israel although American atrocities in Iraq and at Guantanamo Bay are much worse than what Israel does.   He also spoke of the abuse of  Arab human rights in other countries, including Canada.

I am a Canadian and told him, "Human rights abuses anywhere are everybody's problem and  when I get home I will be confronting my own government."

The Israeli soldier said his grandparents came from Poland where they had no surviving relatives because of the Jewish holocaust. He said he would make sure, at any price, that that devastation never happened to Jews again.   I reminded him that the Palestinians had nothing to do with what happened under Hitler. The soldier agreed.  I then spoke of how Jews, faced with persecution, had learned to stand together in defense of their own interests. The Israeli soldier said, "This sometimes causes others to be hurt." However, he went on to say that Israel has to defend itself from Palestinian violence.

I said that when people are really angry they can do terrible things. The Innu of Davis Inlet on the Labrador coast of Canada have suffered from the devastation of their traditional lifestyle. The resulting despair has led to many teenage suicides.  An Innu woman, sharing stories with a Palestinian immigrant, said, "If those kids could go to Montreal and blow themselves up maybe someone would listen to us." 

Hearing the story, the Israeli soldier said, "Do you know what? I think if I were a Palestinian I would go to Tel Aviv and blow myself up."

Bill Baldwin, Ottawa, is a retired Anglican priest. He is a member of Canadian Friends of SABEEL (SABEEL is a Palestinian organisation that works for peace and justice in the region) and is active in Nonviolent Peaceforce Canada. Baldwin is currently in Hebron with Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT).  Hebron and the South Hebron Hills have been a hotspot for years. Palestinian children have been attacked on the way to school, Palestinian shepherds have been attacked and rat poison has been put in their fields to kill the sheep. CPT  school patrols and sheep accompaniment have helped to reduce settler violence against Palestinian.

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Bill Baldwin, Ottawa, is a retired Anglican priest. He is a member of Canadian Friends of SABEEL (SABEEL is a Palestinian organisation that works for peace and justice in the region) and is active in Nonviolent Peaceforce Canada. Baldwin is currently in Hebron with Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT).  Hebron and the South Hebron Hills have been a hotspot for years. Palestinian children have been attacked on the way to school, Palestinian shepherds have been attacked and rat poison has been put in their fields to kill the sheep. CPT  school patrols and sheep accompaniment have helped to reduce settler violence against Palestinian.