CHAIR: DR. MERAV MACK, THE VAN LEER JERUSALEM INSTITUET

DR. STUART HAMILTON, THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF LIBRARY ASSOCIATIONS

MR. QASEM ABU HARB,THE ARAB STUDIES SOCIETY

MRS. SAMIRA MAHAMID, THE PEACE LIBRARY, GIVAT HAVIVAH

MR. DAVID AMITAI, THE PEACE LIBRARY, GIVAT HAVIVAH

HISTORICAL PAELSTINIAN NEWSPAPERS

EVA/MINERVA 2009Jerusalem, 11 NOVEMBER 2009

“IFLA, the digitisation of Palestinian newspapers and the possible use of cultural preservation as a bridge between communities”

IFLA Senior Policy Advisor, Stuart Hamilton

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)

International NGO based in The Hague, Netherlands Active since 1927

Member based: IFLA is the leading international body representing the interests of library and information services and their users.

Purpose: Purpose: -Promote high standards of provision and delivery of library and information services

-Encourage widespread understanding of the value of

good library & information services

-Represent the interests of our members throughout the world

Committee on Free Access to Information and Freedom of

Expression (FAIFE)

FAIFE’s mandate is to:

• Publish reports, participate in conferences and organize workshops

• Monitor the state of intellectual freedom within the library community world-wide and publish newsletters and online news.

• Respond to violations of free access to information and freedom of expression and make press releases.

• Support IFLA policy development and co-operation with other international human rights organizations.

http://www.ifla.org/files/faife/publications/FAIFE-Mission-report-Aug2007.pdf

Preserving the Israeli Arabs’ Heritage

The Digitization of the Palestinian Press ArchiveAt the Peace Library, Givat Haviva

Givat Haviva November 2009

http://www.givathaviva.org.il/english/library

Old Wing (1954)New Wing (2001)

• Founded 60 years ago, Givat Haviva serves as the national education center of HaShomer HaTzair movement, promoting education for peace, democracy, coexistence and social solidarity through different centers and activities.

• The Peace Library (70,000+ titles, 400 journals) is considered to be the vastest repository of materials about the Israeli Arabs. It houses and maintains a number of unique collections in this regard including a one-of-a-kind Archive of Palestinian Press with publications dating back to the 1930’s.

•The inauguration of the library’s New Wing facilitated a more suitable storage space at the Old Wing for the heavily used collection of some 200,000 pages of newsprint (through 2009, and growing).

•Views of current location and shelves with the Peace Library’s director, Mrs. Samira Mahamid in the background.

•Once digitized, originals are scheduled to be moved for permanent storage at the climate-controlled and fire- protected repositories of the HaShomer HaTzair’s Central Archive at Givat Haviva (Yad Yaari)

What we face: “Al-Difah” 1935

What we face : “Al-Difah” 1935 (2)

What we face : “Al-Ittihad” 1945

What we face : “Palestine” 1958

Project title: Digitization of Givat Haviva’s Historic Collection of Palestinian Newspapers: A Collaborative Project

Project proposal authors and professional consultants: Dr. Merav Mack and Peter Jacobsen from Cambridge Research Technology

Project co-directors: Samira Mahammid and David Amitai, the Peace Library GH

Project process: photographing of materials onto microfilm (35 mm reels) and from microfilm digital scanning (300 DPI) to Tiff and PDF formats.The data would be stored on a server with another backup and made available online using Greenstone, UNESCO’s free software for digital libraries.

Project estimated cost: $183,000 for both stages of digitization process and feasibility study ($100,000 for the digitization stage).

Project Collaborators

• Givat Haviva’s Peace Library, Israel, owner of the collection.

• UNESCO, Israel

• Mr. George S. Blumenthal, New York

• Cambridge Research Technology (CRT), UK and Israel

• IFLA, the International Federation of Library Associations

Project in Brief

Where did we plan to be (2005): “Al-Difah” 1934

Where we are now (2008): Stage 1 “Falastin” website

Where we are now (2008): Stage 1 “Falastin” website

Where we are now (2009): Stage 2 UNESCO’s Greenstone site

Where we are now (2009): Stage 2 UNESCO’s Greenstone site

Where we are now (2009): Stage 2 UNESCO’s Greenstone site

Where we are now (2009): Stage 2 UNESCO’s Greenstone site

The next stages: More & Better• Continue with efforts to develop and improve the

project in terms of usage and searchability.• Upload more materials, as much as our (limited)

resources allow for.• Make Grennstone’s interface more user friendly.

In process (UNESCO)• Develop and test tools which enable users to

add content and information. Done (IFLA)• Conducting users survey and studies.• Enhance public access to such materials

through joint projects with other institutions.• Raise more funds :-)

Digitization project dilemmas: Time (1)

Digitize what is possible now ASAP versusallowing for more planning/preparation timeand the secure of funding toward comprehensiveproject, maybe in cooperation with otherinstitutions that hold similar/complementarycollections.

Digitization project dilemmas: Time (2)

Digitize now without OCR versus delayexecution until a mature OCR for Arabic isavailable

Digitization project dilemmas: Time & Budget (1)

Digitize less issues in higher resolution standards

versus digitize as many issues as possible using

the industry common standards.

8 bit Grayscale300 DPI28 MB Files?!!3,000 pages

1 bit 300 DPIBlack & White

2 MB Files…30,000 pages

Digitization project dilemmas: Time & Budget (2)

invest funds in commercial user-oriented software for online display and access versus using a less-friendly freeware and save the money for extending the scope of the digitization itself.

Digitization project dilemmas: Time (3)

Digitization of selected titles from the

collection in full versus digitize only the

earliest issues from all titles

Digitization project dilemmas: Time & Budget (3)

Accepting available private donations that

may decrease control over open access

and/or usage of the digitized items versus

limit the operation to slow hard-to-get

public/institutional funding only.

Digitization project dilemmas: Time &Ethics

Post all digitized issues online for public accessversus allowing for full clarification of Copyrightsstatus and acquiring of legal consent beforehand. ------------------------------------------------------

“The Peace Library has made every reasonable effort to locate, contact and acknowledge copyright owners and wishes to be informed by any copyright owners who are not properly identified and acknowledged on this website so that we may make any necessary corrections.”

In Conclusion:Inspired by the spirit and legacy of Givat

Haviva, this project deals not only

with the preservation of the Palestinian

heritage, but bears with it as well invaluable

assets for the future study and research of

the evolution of the State of Israel, and

Israeli Arab society in particular.