It has been a long several hours, but every informative. Today, I and several other activists took part in Day One of training for ISM. Though this has been my second time, it is still very informative and worthwhile.
Our trainers include Israeli Jews, Palestinian Muslims, and internationals who have came from overseas and already spent some time in the West Bank. There is a lot being covered.
ISM's four key principles are Palestinian-led, consensus-based, non-violent, and non-discrimination.
Palestinian-led means that ISM takes part in actions that our Palestinian friends want us to take part in. They are the ones who are struggling for their freedom, not us. We don't tell them what to do, but support them in their struggle.
ISM's second core principle is non-violence. ISM members are not allowed to engage in violence. Violence includes physically assaulting soldiers and settlers, but it also includes verbal violence, such as swearing. While sometimes in the heat of the moment people may be in situations where they use "verbal violence", it is strongly discouraged. Swearing at soldiers or insulting them may make them more aggressive and make a hostile situation even more tense, but that is not all, An angry soldier, who can't do exactly what he wants to do to an international because of relations between our countries and Israel, may instead decide to take out his rage on the next Palestinian he comes across- who will have little to none protection. While shooting off one's mouth is not encouraged, any act of physical violence by ISMers results not only in immediate removal from the group, but also denial to legal help that is given to members who may have been arrested during actions.
The third principle is consensus-based. ISMers decide to take part in actions in groups, and in a group that is involved in an action, everyone must approve before it is undertaken. This may take a long time, or, in one of our trainer's words "be a real pain in the ass"... but it is done. Taking part in any action is also voluntary, no one can be forced into doing anything they do not want to.
The fourth principle is non-discrimination. Some time ago, some 100 prominent Palestinian activists got together and issued the statement that in their struggle for an end to the occupation, they do not want to work with any groups that discriminate against others. While there is a lot of anger towards Israel from many people, anti-Semitism is big no-no. Jews and Israelis are welcome members of ISM, live everybody else. People also cannot be discriminated against on the basis of their sexual orientation, age, gender, or beliefs.
In addition to the four principles, we learned today about Israeli law, and how separate rules apply to Israelis and internationals, and separate ones to Palestinians. For example, if an Israeli commits a crime in a Palestinian controlled part of the West Bank, even areas with Palestinian civil authority would have to hand him/her over to the Israeli military, where he or she will be tried by Israeli civil authority. If a Palestinian commits a crime in an Israeli controlled part of the West Bank, he or she will be arrested by the Israeli government.
Internationals can only be arrested by the Israeli police or Border Police (from my experience in the West Bank last year, they can be even more brutal than the Israeli Army). While the soldiers can get physically abusive with us at times, once in a police station, internationals who are arrested will be probably treated with some dignity. Palestinians who are arrested face military detention. ISMers who have been detained by soldiers have reported seeing Palestinians kneeling in the hot sun- blindfolded, handcuffed, without water. We learned about our rights if and when we are detained, including the right to remain silent. Our trainer who taught us this part, has been in prison in Israel many times. Although many in Israel support or don't care about their government's policies in the Palestinian Territories, there are other Israelis like her, who not only care but have been arrested many times and know very well what the inside of a jail cell looks like.
We learned some ways of preserving confidentiality, since ISM members are targeted for arrest and deportation by the Israeli government, more than even other human rights groups. It's important to be careful and not to give yourself away or others in your group.
We learned also some things about Palestinian culture, including generosity. When going to a Palestinian village and being treated to food, you will be fed a lot. Although the people are often very poor, they will treat their guests very generously. I can testify to this being true, last year being invited to a feast one evening after the Ramadan fast ended. We learned also some things about dress code- some areas are more conservative than others, so in Ramallah women can wear short sleeves, but in Hebron they can't.
We learned many more things, and tomorrow is a new day of training. On Friday, I am looking forward to going to Hebron.
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