From: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu (Rich Winkel)
Subject: Palestinian Women: Empowerment and the Intifada
Followup-To: alt.activism.d
Originator: daemon@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
Organization: University of Missouri
Date: Sat, 11 Apr 1992 09:40:13 GMT

From: PENN@MITLNS.MIT.EDU (steve penn 26-567, 253-1521 Remember Our Humanity; Science is Not Neutral; MIT War Research Kills.)

Included below is an article from the New Liberation News Service
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NLNS  Packet 2.7b  -  24 March 1992
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Palestinian Women: Empowerment and the Intifada
Frederique Amrouni and Alia Toukan, The McGill Daily

	Palestinian women have played a crucial role in the national 
struggle for independence in the Occupied Territories. This role enabled a 
partial emancipation from the restrictions of their patriarchal society. But, 
deeply-rooted social norms, coupled with Israeli oppression, have created 
obstacles in their daily struggle for freedom.
	"The current Palestinian uprising was made possible and continues 
because it is sustained and supported by Palestinian women," said Lea 
Tsemel, an Israeli female lawyer. She defended Palestinians in the courts 
before the government prohibited her from working.
	With the defeat of the Arab powers in the 1967 war, the Palestinian 
struggle took a turn towards popular political activism. This shift in focus 
became most apparent in December 1987, with the launching of the Intifada 
(uprising) against the occupying forces in Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
	Increased popular resistance to the Israeli occupation, emphasized 
the need for more grass-roots organizations such as the already active 
women's unions. With thousands of men in prisons, women began to fill 
the vacuum which was created in many sectors of the community. 
Through their work, they challenged the traditional economic division of 
labor. 
	Alternative institutions provided services and community 
infrastructure to replace those imposed by the Israeli government's Civil 
Administration. As part of a boycott of Israeli goods, Palestinian women's 
cooperatives in the West Bank increased their output of certain food stuffs.  
The West Bank and Gaza Strip had been Israel's second largest export 
market after the United States.
	Increasingly, women were found in the front lines of demonstrations 
organized against the Israeli occupiers. In the first ten months of the 
Intifada, 20 to 25 per cent of the casualties were women. The United 
National Leadership of the Uprising remained flexible in order to avoid 
being dismantled by the Israeli army. This enabled women to assume 
leadership roles in political and communal committees.

The Current Struggle
	Today, Palestinian women are fighting the Israeli authorities and 
occupying forces, and the traditional patriarchal structure and male 
dominance. Israeli soldiers show no gender discrimination in their 
assaults on the Palestinian population. Unveiled Palestinian women are 
often harassed on the assumption that they are political activists. Some 
women refuse to overtly participate in demonstrations for fear of becoming 
a "known face" to the occupying authorities.
	A new representative of "Islamic fundamentalism," Hamas has 
appeared on the political scene and instigated some youths to harass 
unveiled Palestinian women. Controversy has arisen about these attacks. 
But Hamas leaders claim that the veil, particularly in the Occupied 
Territories, is a symbol of piety, integrity and honor. They argue the veil is a 
symbol of Palestinian national identity and their common struggle against 
the Israeli occupiers. Palestinian women argue that wearing a veil is a 
personal choice. They demand the liberation of their nation be preceded by 
the liberation of women.
	Confronted with these forms of aggression, women have not 
remained passive. Activists initiate demonstrations which bring them face 
to face with Israeli soldiers on a daily basis. They protect young Palestinian 
boys from soldiers' boots and rifle butts. Unveiled Palestinian female 
activists defy Hamas by seeking support and protection from their political 
organizations. The United National Leadership of the Uprising called for 
the attacks to end and for the valuable contributions of Palestinian women 
to be recognized.

Limits to Emancipation
	There are limits to such noble declarations. Palestinian society has 
experienced dramatic change with the resistance. Since the beginning of 
the Intifada, a great number of Palestinians, notably women and the rural 
population, have ben able to participate in the political struggle.
	The mobilization of women is no longer restricted to the urban 
middle-class. But it does not necessarily imply equal status and political 
power in comparison to men.
	"Our position in the political struggle has changed, but our position 
in social life has not," said Najwa, a women's committee activist.
	Women's involvement in P.L.O. committees and decision-making 
bodies is still limited. They remain noticeably underrepresented. Issues 
pertaining to women are rarely addressed and often only in order to 
guarantee broad popular support. Appeals for solidarity against the Zionist 
forces are sometimes used to sidetrack the legitimate demands of women.
	The decision-making process of the leadership of the Intifada is 
much less restrictive than prior organizations. Yet Palestinian feminists 
are uncertain as to how women's role in committees is valued. This 
indicates a real lack of due recognition. Many Palestinian women are eager 
to move away from traditional female functions, such as family support, 
day-cares and charitable organizations.
	Palestinian women must continue to fight for recognition of their 
equality and independence in the context of the political struggle in order to 
avoid the fate of their Algerian counterparts.
	"The point is that women have to change their ideas about 
themselves. We are struggling for independence but we don't want to 
compromise our role as women," said a women activist.
	Like other revolutions or struggles for national independence, 
whether in the West or in the East, women's rights remain largely 
unfulfilled. Palestinian feminists and activists are up against more than 
the Israeli army. But the occupying forces are still the main source of 
instability for Palestinian society.
	The empowerment of women is an obvious source of strength for the 
national Palestinian struggle for independence.

SIDEBAR: A Historical Perspective	
	Palestinian women have progressively acquired heightened political 
awareness. Originally, their liberation depended primarily on their social 
status and religious affiliation.
	Palestinian Christian women were often part of the middle-class 
and, consequently, education and political organizations were more readily 
accessible to them. Muslim women also became increasingly involved in 
community affairs and by 1903 a charitable women's organization was 
created.
	This organization was mostly apolitical and non-influential. In 
conjunction with other groups it set up nursing, relief and educational 
networks. It also became active in the Palestinian struggle for 
independence. Women emerged onto the political scene, as a result of the 
British mandate, by participating in the anti-Zionist demonstrations.
	In the aftermath of the 1948 war, a few women began to take up the 
armed struggle alongside their male counterparts.
	With the creation of the P.L.O. in 1964, women's organizations were 
established. The General Union for Palestinian Women was set up in 1965 
and proceeded to create centers for the children of the martyrs, literacy 
classes, hospitals, family support networks and various workshops.
	Women were very active in the Palestine Red Crescent Society, 
created in 1965 providing medical services. They also participated in the 
Palestinian Martyr's Work Society (PMWS), established in 1970, providing 
vocational training to families. In Lebanon, women accounted for more 
than half of the 5,000 PMWS employees.
	Later, these organizations were activated by women of the dispora 
living abroad, working in Palestinian communities. They now operate as a 
main source of support in an attempt to inform the host population of the 
Palestinian's plight.

The McGill Daily can be reached at 3840 McTavish, room B-03, Montreal, 
Quebec, Canada H3A 1X9; (514) 398-6784.

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