Why do people hate us ? Or the very difficult question a little Palestinian girl asked me...

“Why does the world hate us ?” 

 Nadia, Aida Refugee Camp, Bethlehem, Palestine, 10/09/2018

This is the question young Nadia asked me, while she was leading me on a tour of the place she calls home : AIDA refugee camp in Bethleem, Palestine. 

The famous Key of Return, at the entrance to the camp

Her mother Noor is one of several women who founded NOOR WEG, an NGO that focuses on Special Needs Education in the camp.
To support themselves, they give traditional cooking classes, and I had attended their program in the morning. Later on, I asked to visit the school they've built. And enthused by what I was seeing, as well as curious about my surroundings, I wondered whether she would show me around the camp. Instead, she took my hand and led me into her home, and while the rest of her family was staring at the stranger standing in their living-room, she introduced me to her 11 years-old daughter Nadia, who was promptly ordered to give me a tour of the area; It would be a great way to practice her English ...

Noor Weg's cooking class with Nadia's mother, its founder, in the middle

Physiotherapy equipment funded by NOORWEG's cooking classes

At first, Nadia was shy, but we rapidly got talking, me explaining where I was from and why I was here, and her, telling me about school, her French and italian pen-friends, and the languages she loved learning.

It was at that point that she asked me a question, that quite frankly broke my heart, leaving me speechless, and with a fierce and burning anger : “why does everyone hate us?”.

 By “us” of course, she means the Palestinians. I asked her why on earth she thought that (a feeble attempt to mask the fact that even though I was going to deny it for her sake, I too, wondered about the exact same thing...I had absolutely no answer to provide her at that point). She told me about her French pen-friend, whose parents had said they would “never let their daughter travel to such a violent and dangerous place, where she would inevitably get killed”.

Palestine : fantasy vs reality

I can't really blame her parents : after all, what do we hear or see about Palestine in the Media, that would make it lool like it is anything else than hell on earth ? Do we ever hear about the beauty of its land ? About its delicious and creative food ? About how calm, welcoming, and peaceful it is for tourists ? No. All we ever see or hear of are rock-throwing half-naked children (as to my experience there, I never saw them !), chars and tanks (saw a few, Israeli), and blood. 

This pic is from a Google Search "stone-throwing child". First result was "Palestinian child throwing rock". Straight to the point...

There seems to be a huge confusion in the Public's mind between the various Middle-Eastern conflicts, and its actual battlefields (such as Syria or Yemen). As if the rest of the world saw the entire area as a land filled with brown-skinned dark-haired bearded people, praying to Allah, and throwing bombs at one-another, or planning attacks on Western Civilzation.👹👹

This is the result of another Google Image search : "scary muslim". God am I having fun !! 👍👍

There are actually some Christians and churches in Palestine, the skin tones come in all beautiful shades, and damn, the food is amazing ! 
The only type violence I have seen there, is not physical, but symbolic.  

🍊🍊🍗 ==>  For example having to consume mostly Israeli food, because Palestinians are not allowed or do not have the ressources to grow and manufacture a lot of things by themselves. Imagine helping yourself from a can in Hebrew, when your brother has been kept in an Israeli prison for the past two years. To me this is where true violence lies.

Jordanian visa 

✈✈ It is also extremely complicated for Palestinians to travel, or study abroad, especially if they are muslims.The closest airport, Ben Gurion, is located in Tel Aviv, Israel, a mere one-hour drive from Ramallah, the Palestinian capital. But Palestinians aren't allowed to fly from it. Instead, to leave their country – if they've been allowed a visa which sometimes takes months or years - traveling for them means embarking on a really long and tiring journey that takes them through Allenby Bridge, to Jordan. From there, they still have to hop on several busses or costly taxis, to reach Amman International Airport. But be warned : flights do not leave between 23:00 and 7 AM. So your arrival must be timed well, if you want to avoid the additional cost of staying Amman for a night. What's more, if you're taking a flight with stopovers, and you've forgotten to ask for a visa for one of those countries, like Turkey for example, you simply won't be allowed to embark at all.This happened to a friend, who luckily, was able to buy another ticket to London for a direct flight this time. Not only is the whole process utterly exhausting, it is also very pricey, and one is submitted to so many ID checks that it also ends up feeling quite frustrating. 
This is what I call symbolic violence, that Palestinians experience every day of their lives, and is a constant reminder that they live under the shadow of a very powerful and invasive neighbour.

Palestine : a very much alive and shining soul 

Outdoor yoga class by Farashe (butterfly in Arabic)

But still, when you finally get into the Palestinian Territories, the vitality and hope is mind-blowing : I cannot count the number of artistic, cultural or social projects which are flourishing there, like NOOR WEG the cooking school, or FARASHE, a yoga and meditation center ran by volunteers in Ramallah, and dedicated to bringing inner peace and balance to Palestinians. 
 

In spite of its negative international image, life in the West Bank at least  is actually peaceful, filled with laughter and beauty. Like Ramallah, where cafes and restaurants are filled with people smoking and drinking, dancing the night away, as soon as the evenings are warm enough. 

Garage coffee shop and bar, Ramallah

Go to Palestine. Open yourself to its People and its beauty. And you'll fall in love. That is a promise.