Testimony: Ahmad Al'azzeh

My name is Ahmad Al’azzeh.  I was born in 1979 in the Al'azzeh Refugee Camp, which is located in northern Bethlehem.  My parents were displaced in 1948 from their village in Beit Jabrin in what is today Israel.  Like hundreds of thousands of refugees, they arrived in Bethlehem with almost nothing but what they could carry with them.
 
Our house in Al Al’azzeh camp has been built over a period of 30 years, with one stone collected at a time.  Living as a second-generation refugee, I’ve always felt that I had nowhere to run.  Even when opportunities have come along where I could have left the country and settled abroad, I’ve always known that I would just be even farther away from where I belong.

At an early age I saw education as a means to better myself.  I graduated from Bethlehem University with a major in Sociology and a minor in Psychology.  During my university days, I was an activist in nonviolence and popular resistance, becoming president of the students' senate and leading the students' movement for a year.  I continued my studies in Malta, where I received an MA in Human Rights and Democratization.  I’m sure people thought I was crazy not to stay in Malta, but I always knew I needed to get back to Palestine.

After I came back from abroad, I spent more than a year moving from one organization to another, trying to find someplace where I could really feel that I could use my skills and implement my principles of nonviolence resistance.

In 2003, I found what I was looking for when I joined Holy Land Trust.  Above all, I felt that the message of “Strengthening the Palestinian communities for the future” was something that really spoke to me.

From an Idea to a Reality

I have to admit that when I first heard of the philosophy of nonviolence, I doubted whether the idea would work.  Actually, my first thought was “What is this stuff?”  I’ve lived through both Intifadas, and there’s a tendency in my culture to consider “nonviolence” as equating to what we call “normalization” - meaning that we accept our position with the state of Israel as it is, and we get on with our lives.

Years later, I’ve learned that nonviolence is anything but “normalization.”  In fact, it is the greatest challenge I have ever faced.
 
For me, the main issue with the conflict in Palestine has always been to find a way for all to live with dignity and be free in a democratic state.  At Holy Land Trust, I feel we are working towards that goal every minute, of every hour, of every day.  My work is not about treating peace as an abstract concept, but about the way the notion of peace can be lived.

 I conduct workshops to help people to feel that they are an important figure in conflict situations and to show that the way they act can be a key for change.

I have provided training programs throughout the West Bank on the ways people living in conflict can think, act and get a new view of the situation.  I stress the importance of raising awareness and to recognize the need to plan advocacy campaigns so that our people can improve and strengthen their skills.

I search for possibilities and make a decision as to what is most effective and safe.  I recommend thinking about what is the ‘least we can use and the most we can achieve’ when working out what plan to adopt.

Most importantly, perhaps, I challenge the sense of hopelessness and helplessness that my people have lived with every day for as long as anyone can remember.

How do I give someone hope?  I raise awareness that this life is something to live for, that all people need to have a dream.

My dream has always been to go back to my parent’s village.  I love Bethlehem, but I will always just be a guest here.  I want to go back to Beit Jabrin, where I dream of rebuilding my family’s home, and the community they come from.  I believe that there is enough room in the Holy Land for this to happen.  And above all, I believe the quickest way to make that dream a reality is through the work I am doing here.