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The Young Women Christian Association of Palestine (YWCA) a member of the World YWCA is holding its
international conference on Youth this
weekend based on UN Security Council Resolution 2250. The
resolution which was adopted on Dec. 9, 2015, emphasizes the importance of
youth as agents of change in the maintenance and promotion of peace and
security. So the slogan of the conference is “ Youth
participate, and Youth decide; Toward
Freedom and Justice. Youth from Gaza
were also able to attend through video conference linked with the YMCA of
Gaza. I was at the opening session
yesterday, and felt so proud of this organization which has been so close to my
heart and where I had spent many years of
my volunteer work. I wish I could
have stayed throughout the conference sessions, but physically I
cannot cope anymore. I could not even
attend the special reception in the evening marking 125 years on the establishment
of the YWCA of Palestine. Quite a long
and rich history.
Speaking at the opening session held at the Red Crescent Hall in Bireh-Ramallah, were
the President and National General Secretary of the YWCA of
Palestine, the World YWCA General Secretary,
the Palestinian Minister for Women’s Affairs, the general secretary of the
YM/YWCA of Norway, the Representative of the United Nations Population Fund and
Head of the United Nations Youth Group in Palestine. The representative of Sweden was not allowed
in at the airport, but another member of
the delegation spoke on her behalf. When
you live under occupation, no matter how well you plan a conference, there is
always a surprise waiting for you at the end of the day. Fortunately it was just one member out of all
those guests.
All the presentations were very good and most
pertinent. The local Palestinian
organizations were well represented and it was a pleasure having so many
internationals in the conference representing Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Japan,
Macedonia, India, Ukraine, Romania, Switzerland and the USA.
One of the first lessons I learned from the World General
Secretary, the late Elizabeth Palmer is that the YWCA must have antennas to sense the needs of its community
and be able to adapt its work and comply
with those needs. Indeed the history of
the YWCA of Palestine has been closely knitted to the history of
Palestine. I still recall the programs
we used to have at the YWCA of Jerusalem before 1948, and which also served as the premises for the YWCA of Palestine at the
time. It included leadership training
through a variety of programs like drama, sports, debates and handicrafts. We were also privileged to be able to make use
of the YMCA gym, swimming pool and
library. Things changed completely after
1948. But the
spirit of the YWCA did not change.
There were capable leaders to restart the organization in East Jerusalem,
Amman, and Jericho. Since the time when
the West Bank was annexed to Jordan, the YWCA became part of the National
movement of the YWCA of Jordan, and working with the Palestinian refugees
became a priority. In fact the
World YWCA was one of the first
international organizations that came to the rescue of refugees at Aqbat Jaber
in Jericho, one of the largest Palestinian refugee camps after 1948.
Another landmark in the history of Palestine, was the June 1967 war when over-night we found
ourselves under a new reality: an Israeli occupation. In
fact on Monday June 5, the morning of the war, we were supposed to go to Amman
for a National Council meeting. Well that was not possible for some time, but when
eventually we resumed our trips for the National Council meetings, they were
quite an ordeal because of the strenuous procedures of the bridge crossing. One
can actually write a whole book about those experiences.
Once again there was a new reality that the YWCA had to face and adapt programs to, in order to meet the needs of the whole
community which was quite at a loss.
With a committed General Secretary and her team of staff and board, the
YWCA of Jerusalem became a centre for the various sectors of the
community. Over and above its vocational
school, clubs for all ages, men and women were established to provide
leadership training, and to fulfill the needs of the community. Summer camps, art, music and folk dancing helped uplift the spirit of the
young people, and a mothers’ club helped to identify the needs of the children, and played
a role in the establishment of parent-teachers associations. The YWCA seemed like a centre of information for many
groups and especially the church groups that were guests at the new hotel in the Jerusalem YWCA building. Speaking to those groups to make them aware
of the grave injustice committed against the Palestinians was part of our purpose.
. The first human rights
committee started at the YWCA long before any of the official Palestinian NGOs on the subject started, and the World
YWCA helped us circulate Action Alerts.
In fact the YWCA has been avant garde on all levels, and never hesitated
to get involved in any forum that would help the community and the Palestinian
cause.
The youth have always
been a major focus of the YWCA, so it is
not surprising that the YWCA was avant garde once again in planning this
conference. The World YWCA has set a
model to its affiliated organization by its involvement ahead of anybody else in
so many world issues. I still remember
that the first time I heard of divestment was at one of the World YWCA council
meetings when a resolution was taken to divest from banks that supported the
apartheid regime in South Africa. Global
warming and disarmament were always some of the issues brought up at the
various world council meetings. The World
YWCA was the first international organization which recognized the YWCA of
Palestine as an independent organization. It affiliated as such to the World YWCA Association
in its Council meeting in Stavanger, Norway in 1991, although the state of
Palestine was not yet recognized . It
did much better than the Oslo agreements which took place two years later, and are
still marking time. However, we will continue to hope that with
the energy and commitment of the Youth we shall overcome someday. Yes indeed we cannot lose hope because we
have a just cause, and three cheers for the YWCA, its leadership, and its
members.
