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A RUMBLING OF COEXISTENCE AT THE ISRAELI / PALESTINIAN CROSSROADS: A
SCHOOL IN MUQEIBLE TEACHES A LESSON
This is a microscopic story about coexistence within a macrocosm of
repeated cycles of violence and peace agreements in the Middle East.
It is a story about a school, a principal, teachers and students
struggling to move forward in their lives amidst a firestorm of obstacles.
And, through their eyes, it is also a story presenting fresh perspectives
on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
Some of the themes that will be covered in the documentary will include:
- a more nuanced meaning of "coexistence," i.e., learning to live in a
situation of cultural in-betweenness
- the drive to inculcate the concept into the developing minds of young
people and the reasons underlying that drive, and
- the ways in which an education molded around the emphasis on
coexistence plays a role in the current-day changing realities of the
Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
The Green Valley School in the village of Muqeible is extremely
well-suited for a documentary for many reasons, some of which include:
- It sits in the Gilboa region, near Jenin, the city from where 85% of the
suicide bombers came. From 2000-2004, many of these bombers used Muqeible
as their traveling route on their missions, causing chaos within the
community. Israel retaliated to these suicide-homicide bombings with
bulldozers tearing down the homes and lives of the families of the
bombers, which were located only meters away from Muqeible. The village
was haunted for four years by the specter of bombers who self-exploded in
nearby Israeli cities.
- The security barrier has not been completed in many areas of Israel
where threats of violence continue to loom, but it has been standing in
the Gilboa region for over a year with a 100% success rate in keeping
terrorists out of Israel. The reality of its effectiveness has impacted
the views of the Israeli Jews and Arabs, for whom life has changed in a
positive way, altering the initial anti-barrier sentiment on the part of
many Israeli Arabs that is still felt by their Palestinian family members
and friends. The latter, living on the other side, do not reap the
benefits of living in Israel.
- Indeed, the barrier has been so effective that the Green Valley School,
which physically abuts this boundary line, became operational in December
2004 although the ground had been broken on its new construction prior to
the barrier's placement. Previously fearing that infiltrators would tramp
through the school grounds, the existence of the barrier has given the
school community a sense of security.
- About 30 of the 200 children who attend the school have one parent who
is an Israeli Arab and one parent who is a Palestinian Arab. Most of those
families live in Muqeible, but a handful live in Jalame, on the
Palestinian side of the barrier in the West Bank. The hardships these
families face are enormous, yet their choice to send their children to
Israeli schools is interesting.
- The director of the school, Sundos Battah, who will be a key thread
throughout the program, is by her own background symbolic of the cultural
and religious interweaving of life in that part of the world. She teaches
Hebrew at the Green Valley School to students and in after-school classes
to their parents, and she is deeply committed to emphasizing co-existence.
With one Jewish grandparent, one Christian grandparent, and two Muslim
grandparents, Sundos' very being represents the embodiment of the three
predominant religions in the region.
Well-respected journalist Matt Gutman will be co-producing the documentary
with director Curt Fissel and producer Ellen Friedland.
For more information about this program or to view a trailer, please
contact JEMGLO at 973.744.0570 or Inquiries@JEMGLO.org.
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