Thursday in Gaza by Gerri Haynes
Children sing for the Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility delegation.
(For a few more days, I will be running a guest blog by Gerri Haynes, a former president of Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility. Gerri, a nurse from Kirkland, Wash., is in Gaza with 11 other people in an effort to help the people there and also to better understand the situation.)
Elliott Adams, a member of Veterans For Peace wrote this:
“Walking near the beaches of Gaza, dangling from the wires, are some sun bleached sticks, the remains of a kite. Once it caught the Mediterranean winds and darted across the sky in a streak of color playing in the blue. Then, caught by the wires, held fast, it flipped and flopped with flashes of the same colors, but no longer wild arcs across the sky. Its color growing weaker, tattered paper flapping, the sun bleaching the color even from the remaining sticks.
So, too, we watch as Gaza, caught by the inaction of the world, hangs on a wire, its color fading. Its people determined to fly free again, keep struggling to make it through just to morning or to have some piece of life just today. But the world stands by and watches as they are tattering and their colors are fading under the strangling force of the blockade – a blockade that is in violation of international law and moral principles.”
Tomorrow we will leave Gaza. We’ve taught, visited, served and learned. All of the physicians have been teaching and learning in clinical settings and in journal clubs. In the final class that I will teach during this visit, the women gave me more statements they would like the world to read. The words from one statement: “First, it was nice for us to meet you. We want from Israel and America: stopped war, stopped killing our children, stopped violence, stopped siege, stopped suffering. Yes for peace, yes for life. We haven’t anything except we want to protect our children. Thanks.”
The press of Gaza gathered with us for a conference at noon today. We read a statement of
gratitude and commitment – telling the people of Gaza that we will take to the world outside Gaza the message of their communal plight. This afternoon, Dr. David Hall and I visited a family in Beit Hanoun. Their home is close to the border with Israel and over the last five years, two sons of this family have been killed by fire from Israel. The destruction of Gaza near the northern border with Israel has left many dead and all traumatized.
We met briefly with the Samouni family – a clan of 400-plus people. Reports say 48 members of
this family were killed when Israel invaded Gaza last winter.
The Staff of Gaza Community Mental Health continues to provide services for this family – but there is much to do. The destroyed homes are difficult to replace – building materials are not allowed to be brought into Gaza. The lives of the surviving family members remain traumatized.
This evening we were treated to songs and traditional dances in the Cultural Center of Jabalyia Refugee Camp. One group of solemn-faced children sang this song – which was written as part of their therapy following the winter attacks:
Don’t cover the sunshine
We want to speak loudly
Don’t make childhood die
On behalf of children in the world
Who are crying, not sleeping, die
With the death of consciousness, desperate
to have independence and freedom.
War, strikes and sound of bullets
Where are you the world
Without Feeling, we are
Prevented to dream, no freedom
No peace
Children in the world have the right
To study, to read, to write and speak
But we have been prevented education and
Are suffering with pain
We are hungry, feeling cold, don’t eat
Can’t sleep
The Feast Day is coming
Nothing new
No playing
No sleeping
Tags: Gaza, Middle East, Mideast
Gerri Haynes, Israeli-Palestinian Conflict | admin October 29, 2009
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