After the recharging Christmas break, IPAM has continued marching on with its usual busy pace. Apart from editing the IPAM newsletter and the preparation for FAME 2012, one of the main events at IPAM in January 2012 was the “Meet with the Palestine” event hosted by AMORCES and Foundation Un Monde par Tous (a French foundation that supports projects themed on intercultural dialogues and seminars).

AMORCES and Foundation Un Monde Par Tous have been in partnerships since 2006. With the recent development in the Arabic world, it is thus natural to identify the theme of 2012’s seminar on the solidarity of Palestine and what lessons the Arab Spring can bring for Palestine. More than 15 French civil associations and movements, including Plateforme des ONG Française pour la Palestine, Génération Palestine, ATL Jénine , Institut des cultures d’Islam and so on, have participated in this seminar.

IPAM has long placed its focus on the reflections of the decolonization process and the democracy process of the former colonies since 1967, with the particular focus on that in Vietnam, Algeria and Palestine. Ironically, the fate of Palestine has never been left to be decided by its people. Since the UN resolution in 1947, Palestine and Israel has been in constant conflicts. In 2011, Palestine had officially applied to become a legitimate UN member ; ironically, such action created some chaotic differences among the UN members.

Phoenix from the Gaza Strip
Naji, the director of the Phoenix Center in the Dheisheh Refugee Camp was invited to share the Palestinian situation on the “Meet with the Palestine” event. The Dheisheh Refugee Camp is one of the 59 refugee camps which scattered along the left bank of Jordan River, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria ; with more than 11000 inhabitants living in less than 1 square kilometer’s surface, only 2 under resourced schools provide the education in the refugee camp. More than half of the populations in the Dheisheh Refugee Camp are children, who suffer from worsening poverty gap, armed conflicts and the political instability ; almost all the children have experienced the loss of their family, neighbors or friends due to violence or imprisonment.

The Phoenix Center was named in symbolization of the mythical meaning of “rebirth” of the phoenix, in hope that the Palestinians can thrive for their dignity and seek for the meaning of living through their struggles. Thus, the launch and function of the Phoenix Center was to encourage its inhabitants in the Dheisheh Refugee Camp to live independently and dedicate themselves to the promotion of peace and democratic education and culture, the building of a supportive network for the youth and women in the camp and empower them. For the moment there are 17 alternative education projects at the Phoenix Center. As Naji had indicated during the seminar, “Education is the future for the Palestinian youth, and we will rely on them to change our future one day.“

Where are We Going Next ?
In a 2011 interview, Pascal Boniface, the Director of the Institute for International Relations and Strategies (IRIS) indicated that the Palestine- Israel conflicts would become one of the major issues in foreign policies for the 2012 French Presidential Election, as Israel is no longer the only “democratic” country in the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region after the Arabic Spring. On the other hand, the court of Mulhouse has cancelled its accusation on the BDS France members on “discrimination and the spread of hatred against Israel” in December, 2011. Such events have demonstrated shreds of hope on promoting a new perspective on the Palestinian situations.

In this seminar, the participants have exchanged strategies on the Palestinian struggles, discussed issues ranging from the unification of PLO and Hamas, the foreign relationship between France and Palestine since 1948, and the challenges in the foreign policies and so forth. After an exciting year composed by the social changes around the world, the civic voices and the urgent request for a changing world has also altered the politics and society around the world, coercing the world to reconsider their diplomatic and internal policies and re- hear what the citizens have to say.

The Arab Spring not only challenged the political regimes in the MENA region, challenging the politicians to reconsider their strategies towards the Islamic traditions and the liberal democracy, and brought new chances for the future of Palestine. According to Gustave Massiah’s viewpoints, some lessons from the Arab Spring include:

  • Arab Spring has isolated the Israeli foreign policy ;
  • Arab Spring has brought changes to the geopolitics in the MENA region, changing their perspectives on the Palestinian situations ;
  • Arab Spring has challenged the influences of the world’s great powers (e.g. the US, EU, Russia and China) in the MENA region ;
  • Arab Spring has reunited the people in the MENA region with brand-new perspectives ; and,
  • Arab Spring intensified the “proof” of the struggles the Palestinians have experiences.

In France, the BDS movement and “A Boat for Gaza” campaign have demonstrated memorable capacity in civil mobilization. Despite the situation and the reality is still as hard as it can be, more supports for the Palestinians are still gradually increasing, continuously challenging the “values” within the French society. It is evident that more solidarity from the civil society is still needed for strengthening the support for Palestine. With the coming French presidential election, it is hoped that France’s foreign policies towards the Palestine- Israel relationships will evolve more clearly.