- 29 تشرين أول 2017
- مقابلة خاصة
By: Walid Salem
In the previous article( Akhbaralbalad, 26/10/2017), I presented a brief analysis of my experience with Aid, specially over the last 30 years. In this one alternative path for Aid to Palestine is presented both in regard to the trends of funding, and the management of it.
In a context of annexationist policies, and creeping settler colonialism, it is time to look over Aid to Palestine.The key is to move beyond the post- conflict agenda, and its dependence on institutions and technocrats as if we in the stage of state building.
As Dr Khalil Nakhleh recommending Aid should be instead on in the service of an emancipatory development agenda initiated by the people( Nakhleh,2011). In other hand Dr Hadeel Al Qazzaz suggested that Aid to the Palestinians should be based on their human rights, rather than to pressure them to accept accept an unjust solution with Israel( Al Qazzaz, 2016, p.69).
I will add also the following:
- That Aid should be now on for building Palestinian facts in the ground in area C, East Jerusalem, and for the creation of the connection between West Bank and Gaza, and finally for insuring a just solution to the Palestinian Refugees problem.
- As such Aid will aim to the build up of the Palestinian productive base, and the Palestinian self reliance, rather than focusing on paying running costs.
- As holders to this developmental anti annexation approach towards Palestinian independence, Aid should target rebuilding the grassroots movements, the community based organizations( CBO’s), the social and the citizens movements, and support the Palestinian non violent struggle, the lobby for the Palestinian rights , the Palestinian research and education development.
- Volunteerism and voluntaristic spirit to be revived. In this regard volunteerism should target the creation of a productive base, and voluntarism to be included even in the paid salaries projects. In this sense the staff of the project will do what required regardless of the number of hours and the time needed beyond the paid time.
This approach will be a point of departure from depending on the technical experts, who should now leave their positions to the committed “ developers”, the organic intellectuals, and the grassroots responsible practitioners who are involved deeply in the development of Palestine, and the non violent struggle for its emancipation. The latter still need to run their work on the basis of the best quality possible, therefore they will need to be fully trained.
At the same time, the occasion came to say goodbye to the technical experts who work without a political commitment, count hours, and use the Palestinian plight in order to do business and become individually rich, or become dependent on their life salary on the continuation of the conflict.
As such a new kind of management is needed, on the basis of “ do no harm approach” presented by Mary Anderson( 1999). This approach identified the ethics of aid interventions based on the principle of “ Working with the people” instead of “ working for them”, “ on their behalf”, or “on tutelage over them”. The key word here is partnership, understood not as involving the underdog by the top dog, not as a partnership in a short term project, and not as joint ownership of a project in the underdog country. Alternatively partnership will mean a sustainable long term cooperation that is based on the universal respect of differences in one hand , and strengthening commons in the other between the people of the world, through equal participation in the decision making, mutual responsibilities, complimantary roles, reflexivity, and mutual accountability between the partners.
This concept of partnership will include mutual planning, agreed upon guidelines, and reciprocal reporting.
For Palestine, we need globally to strengthen the solidarity movements with us in one hand, and to build strong and effective partnership in the other. We need as well to struggle and protect ourselves against the ramifications of the technical apolitical based projects that aim to do business while the plight of our peoples continue, and deepens. Finally we need to ally with our partners in the West in order to pressure their governments to change their aid agenda to become directed to support the creation of Palestine in the ground besides Israel, as an alternative to just supporting peace with Israel.
The struggle to change the donors agenda, and its directions regarding Palestine need to start right away. It is not enough to continue getting funding' comloying with the donors agenda, priorities, guidelines and procedures, with this to be accompanied by a campaign to change all the funding terms of reference.
Locally we need to give a boost to the development and citizens based grassroots movements, and to get the NGO’s projects to become exposed to public accountability, with the hope that such a process will convince the artificial ones among them to close down, and those who enjoy strong community support to flourish and prevail.
