Visit of German Group to Senjel

 

The Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development hosted a group of German activists on Sunday April 3 2011. The group arrived at Al-Zowade Restaurant at 8:30, and was introduced to the organization's programs by the society's general director Mrs. Amal Khreishe. Mrs. Kheishe first introduced the historical background of the Palestinian feminist movement since the Nakbah of 1948 until today, and then she emphasized the organization's participation in the Palestinian society, the region and the Arab World. 

As an influential feminist grassroots organization, the Palestinian working woman society for development was among the firsts to join the Palestinian women's march for gender equality, independence and social justice. The organization along with other associations has pushed the Palestinian President Mr. Mahmoud Abbas to endorse CEDAW in presidential decrees. The feminist Palestinian movement which has crossed a long way has also encouraged the Palestinian Prime Minister Mr. Salam Fayad to facilitate a larger political participation for women, which resulted in the selection of five female ministers during his term.

Mrs. Amal also explained the main factors which contribute to the blatant discrimination against Palestinian women. Not only the Israeli occupation increases the gap between legislations and reality, also does the entrenched patriarchal structure which places women in an inferior status to men. Poverty is another major factor which results in women's marginalization and oppression, for it is considered one of the main reasons behind the phenomena of "early marriage" and "extremism".

After the meeting with Mrs. Amal Khreiche, the group visited a small Palestinian village in the north of Ramallah, Senjel. They met with the chief of the village's feminist cooperative center, Um Ibrahim, and afterwards enjoyed a traditional Palestinian lunch "Msakhan", and visited the soap factory in the village. By the end of the trip, two ladies from the village accompanied the group to the confiscated farmlands of Senjel, where they viewed a number of Israeli settlements that surround the village, and learned of the challenges Palestinian farmers face in order to reach their lands and harvest them.