Meeting my Neighborslbarhim-Ablr Araieh (Jerusalem)

During the Neighbors Seminar at the close

of 2004, it was such a wonderful experience

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At this seminar, we held a dialogue aboutour neighbors, and discussed how we definethis wo--rd. At the beginning I thought that

lhe word "neighbor" described alI thepeople^

with whom tie get in touch, regardless ofwhether they are close to us or not, and this

definition includes all the people aroundus, even if in a very small part. Soon Irealized that there is another definition forthe word. Neighbors are the people whoare close to us, the people that we trust and

love, the people that are involved clearlyin our life and can never be forgotten'Manv definitions can exist for one thing;they'all descriLre the same thing butfrom different viewPoints.

We did not only discuss what the word"neiehbors" means, but also how to interact

with-them. There are many people who are

involved in our life, either in all or part'and we should work to imProve these

relationships We should always try to make

the people around us feel that we are close

to tdem. This process coflrmences when wetrv to understand others. and when we use

ail the skills we have to communicate ourideas in the best possible way. To strengthen

these concepts, during the seminar we held

different discussions and played a numberof games, so that we could learn to trustand--become more understanding of people

that we wouldn't necessarily trust or beclose with - whether they are Israelis orPalestinians, younger or older.

After the seminar, Itealized that when we

work to improve our relationships withothers, then we will really have closeneighbors.

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f(!to live like we did at camp, and to meet

those people who clearly affected our ownlives and gave us something special.^It was

also amaZing to meet some older Seeds'

We continued what we had started at campand developed all what we had leamed. We

Darticipated in activities lhat brought us

iogethbr, to trust each other and haveproductive dialogue. I

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$eminals, seminars anil moro seminars! Palestinians, lsraeli$,tgyRtian$, fotilanians and llloroccan$ all Rartioilated in uariousworlrsho[s, semina]$ anil meetings to learn new sltills, discuss

burning issues and enioy tnemselues

beginning of April. In addition to the funand sports, the purpose was of the activitywas to gather Arab Israelis, Palestiniansand Israelis in one place to recreate somecamp sports memories and experiences.

As soon as we finished the awesome sportsday, I saw how energetic and enthusiasticthe Seeds were. It was a tremendous successto have brought Palestinians, Israelis andArab Israelis together to play sports andget back some of the camp spirit.During the sports day, people got to seeold friends and meet new Seeds. Over thecourse of the morning we played sportssuch as basketball, volleyball and soccer.Our rope pull was the activity that remindedme most of camp (see picture!)

Although Seeds made the preparations forthe activitv. I want to thank the SOP stafftremendously for helping us during thecourse ofthe day. Special thanks go to all

Seeds and SportsSoad Haj Yehia (Taybeh)

Since I love sports, I took responsibilityfor the Sports Day that was held at theWineate Institute in Netanya at the

the Seeds who participated and made thisunique day a successful one.

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An Overdue 2OO2 ReunionMirit Gorohovsky (Ashdod)

One moment I was at camp with all of my 2002 friends,and the next - three years later, I'm sitting at homewondering what happened to most of them?

So I decided I have to find out. Thoushts of a reunionflashed before my eyes.

I and my team - Lionel from Ashdod - had meetings,planned the activities, sent invitations and made thepreparations for our reunion.

Three months later, with great help of the staff, I foundmyself in Sde Boker, with l7 of my 2002 friends,talking about our past, present and future in SOP.

Diffuse the SmileCharaf al-Mansouri (Casablanca)

What an honor it was to attend the CivilRights Seminar, bringing together schoolsfrom Jordan, Egypt, and Morocco. I hada cultural shock when I first walked in thepacked streets of Cairo. I thoughtCasablanca was as big as it got - well, Iwas wrong. Cairo is a city of an estimated18 million, and compared to that,Casablanca is a small neighborhood. Whenit comes to language, I must say English

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saved my life, because I had a hard timeorderins in a restaurant in Arabic. Butlooking past this barrier, which can bepassed with just a little motivationanywhere in the world, I learned a lot inEgypt: a lot about Egypt, a lot about itspeople, about civil rights, and aboutmyself.

They were three long workshop days, andvery intensive too, but they were definitelyworth it, and were led by an exceptionalman, Steve Wessler, lbunder of the Centerfor the Prevention of Hate Violence. Fromthe workshops, this is what I learned:Words are the contemporary world'sweapons of mass dish'uction, or distraction.Think about it. and take a moment to thinkbefbre you let it slip off your tongue soeasily. Yeah, she's black, does that rnakeher inferior to you? Are you going to joinin to the senseless belief that the range ofdarkness of a oerson's skin determinesthe respect they should be getting? Lunacy!Also, is it not "cool" today to beoverweight, Arab, black, Muslim, workhard, have glasses, not have a 90-60-90body shape, or not wear "standard" teenageclothes? Sadly, as some push their waythrough to reach superficiai ideals, they

destroy everything that is in their way,unless someone is there to wake them up.

That's where Unity Teams come in.Established in many schools in the UnitedStates, these groups of students help withintervention and mediation. You can createone, and help prevent these types of thingsthat undermine the school spirit. If youdon't feel likejoining, then please, go sayhi to someone you have never said hi to,go have lunch with someone who alwayseats alone, "diffuse" your smile. Don't dothis because you are asked to, do thisbecause you want to.

In addition to this, we just had a greattime at the seminar. The improvisedkaraoke night was a blast, and althoughwe weren't great singers, we put the liferight back into that empty dining hall. Theboat ride on the Nile was really nice too,and we got to know each other more. Iwill never forget running fbr safety whenwe got close to the bridges.

To bring the message to you all who arereading: Dffise the Smile.

Givil Rights - for Seeds andnon'Seedslrit Shterenberg (Eilat)

The Seeds of Peace Civil Rights/UnityTeam seminar. held in Jerusalem at theend of February, was the first SOP activityI ever participated in. Even though I'veheard many positive personal opinions ofteenagers and adults who attended otherseminars, meetings and camps, it neveroccurred to me that the experience wouldbe so fascinating.

The lessons, subjects and ideas brought todiscussion in incredibly unique groupstruly equipped the participants - studentsand teachers as one * with tools and skills,enabling and encouraging the fight againstviolence and discrimination in schools allover Israel and Palestine. The seminar inTantur. Jerusalem made us realize thatprejudice, stereotypes and bias have a

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bigger eff'ect on people then we can trulyknow. We discussed how hurtful wordscan be. how we can stoD harassment fromhappening and how we can make thepeople who are different from us feel likea part of the group. What was mostefTective at the seminar was the open andhonest contact and communicationbetween people of completely different

backgrounds, who see the other side as

their enemies.

Basic empathy and respect, whichappeared to exist only out of politeness inthe beginning, turned into sympathy andappreciation - only in 3 days - which isa rather remarkable achievement, both forthe participants and the Seeds of Peaceorganization.

After the experience, and after seeing a

small part of Seeds of Peace's active,innovative and interesting program, I wasimpressed by the organization and theseminar. I can assure my future interestand involvement in other activities. and Ioersonallv am more than interested toiontribute, by persuading people of theimporlance of this open-minded approachtoward world problems. I thank Seeds ofPeace for the opportunity to learn how tomake a difference.

lUhat nre You?

People around the world struggle to define themselves. The color of our skin' passpoqt'relilion - all of these things contribute to our self-definition. Fgr many' however' !!tisprocess is more difficult. Seeds from three different countries discuss how they definethemselves, how their greater society defines them and the GonsequencesA Question of BoxesElizabeth Nguyen (Beavercreek)

With which ethnic group do you mostidentify with?

! Caucasian/White! Asian/Pacific Islander! African American! Hispanic/LatinoE Native American

Presented with these absolute racialcategories, my fist impulse is to kick andyell and scribble all over the impersonalform with my meticulously sharpenednumber 2 pencil, and whine that I happento occupy two of those boxes and squishingme into one is not only impossible, but alsomean. You are asking me to box up mycultural identity, categorize it, and name itby someone else's terms. To my little cousinErin, white is a color; Irish is who she is.To me, Asian or Caucasian is animpossibility. I am both.

I am proud of my parts, proud of my colors,my brown and my white. But the boxesforce me to choose one. So inevitably Ipick Asian because I know that, practically,Asian gets me free college visits, specialdinners, and "student of color" while whitesets me none of those affirmative actionperks. Each time I mark that box I get alittle bit madder. Usually I ignore themadness. It's just a stupid, stupid box. I getannoyed, complain, and try to get over it.

I first met another half-Vietnamese, half-white oerson last summer. I wasn'tsurorised. There are a lot of American-Asian kids out there, though most of themdon't live among the corn and soybeanfields in Dayton, OH like I do. We talkedfor a lons time about the conundrum of theboxes, a6out not being either or, but both,and about the 'where are you from' question(for me at least, 'what ethnicity are you' ismore clear and therefore less likely to makeme say Ohio and glare). We both felt thesame sense of not completely belonging toeither race. Surrounded by my cousins onmy dad's side, I often feel lost as they slipeasily between English slang and the liltingoitches of Vietnamese (mine is limited tomy favorite dishes and 'Happy New Year!').On my mother's side, I understand thelanguage perfectly but my deep brown hairand almond eyes make me stand out amongblues and blondes, gteens and pale brunettes.

I'11 never choose one part of me over theother. I can't and I won't, but the boxesdon't stop trying to make me.

The Druze:An All-Around GlanceShebil Mansour (Osafiya)

The Druze is an ethnic religion. Its membersusually acclimate and identify with the

country in which they live. They expect toget fair treatment, and since there is noDruze country yet, most of its members arespread over Syria, Israel and Lebanon; someeven claim that there is a fair percentageof Druze in Jordan. Druze have a strongcommunity feeling, where they identify

themselves as related even across bordersof countries, but they will never revolt orbetray the country in which they live. Thetotal number of Druze in the world isestimated to be around 2.5 million people.

Even though Druze are united, none of itsmembers are told what to do or what tothink in the political sphere. In Israel, about857o of Druze serve in the army. Druzehave many points of view about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the Druze in Israelare divided to into four ideological groups.

1) Druze who identify themselves as DruzeArab with an Israeli nationality bond: Thisis probably the biggest group of the fourmentioned. Members of this group identifythemselves as Arab Druze, with an Israelinationality bond. They serve in the armyand consider themselves lesitimate Israelicitizens.

2) Druze who identify themselves as onlyDruze with an Israeli Nationality bond:This is the second biggest group in theDruze IsraeLi community. They tend to havea very strong bond to their Israeli

nationality; therefore, most members ofthis group serve in the army, and many ofthem enter special combat units.

3) Druze who identify themselves as Druze,with no nationality bond: These are thecompletely ethnic Druze, who are loyal tothe country they live in. They do not suppofiany side and most of them serve in thearmy.

4) Druze who identify themselves as Druzewith a Palestinian nationality bond:Probably the group with the fewestmembers, these are Druze that identify withthe Palestinian cause more than the Israelicause. A large number prefer not to servein combat units, and a number of them donot serve in the IDF at all.

The Druze community in Israel generallyco-exists harmoniously with Israeli Jews.This does not mean, however, that Druzeas a minority are treated the same as theJewish majority. As a result, many youngDruze arc dissatisfied with this arangementand are discouraged by the lack of equality.

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Uhot nre You?

The Ethiopian Gommunity inNeve Yosef, Haifa, lsraelAklile Kebede (Haifa)

I came to live in the Neve Yosefneishborhood. which is located in easternHaifa, with my brother and parents in thesummer of 1993. My family was amongthe first few families in the neighborhood.When I was six years old, I started firstgrade at the local elementary school,Gavrieli. My brother and I were the firstEthiopian children ever to attend this school.We hardly knew any Hebrew, except for aone-month course for immigrants. Theschool director happily accepted us, butdidn't know how to handle us. My fatherwas warned that we should not cause anyviolence. During the first week; the childrenstarled calling us, "Kushi, Kushi" (literally"black." but in Hebrew it is understood tobe a derogatory term) At first we didn'tknow the meaning, but we understood thatit was an insult and came home crying. Myparents explained us that the word meansblack, and that is true that we are black,but that we should be proud ofour blackness

The next day they continued to call us,"Kushi, Kushi" so we answered back, "Surewe are black, so what?!" The childrenstopped calling us that, and I became friendswith the schoolchildren, and remain friendswith them to this day.

Ethiopian immigrants have a very strongJewish identity, and at the same time webelieve that we belong to this land, Israel,

although we are different in color, cultureand customs. Many immigrants are illiterateor have little education, because the majorirycame from the Ethiopian countryside.

Native Israelis have difficulty inunderstanding the Ethiopians and ourculture, and one of the main reasons forthis is the little interaction between Israelisand Ethiopians. Ethiopian families tend tolive in the same area and this limitsinteraction with other Israelis. Also. theunemployment rate of Ethiopian familiesis very high, and this also limits interactionsin the workplace. Many native Israelis areprejudiced and think that Ethiopians haveno capability to carry out tasks and arereluctant to hire them. even for manuallabor.

On the other hand, there is better interactionbetween Ethiopian youth and native Israeli

youth. As a resull, Ethiopian youth learnthe language and the culture. But thisinteraction has not been enough forsatisfactory integration between the groups.One of the main gaps is education. Formany Israelis, their parents or tutors canoffer their children academic help. But themajority of Ethiopian parents can't givethe necessary assistance themselves or hireprivate teachers as most Israelis do.Therefore, many Ethiopian students becomefrustrated by the time they reach high schooland drop out. As dropouts they can't getemployment. They vent their frustrationthrough negative behavior and onlypelpetuate the stereotypes that native Israelishave of the community as a whole.

Currently there are a number of programsthat aim to improve the interaction betweennative Israelii and Ethiooian families. as

well as educational problems. To improvefamily-to-family interactions there is aprogram called "Family Friendship" whichis sponsored by the Haifa-BostonConnection, a partnership between Haif'aand the Jewish community of Boston,Massachusetts. In this program, Ethiopianfamilies are connected with a native Israelifamily. There are also efforts to give afterschool help to elementary and high schoolstudents. The best examole of this is theNeve Yosel' Communill Center. Childrencome to the center and get individual andgroup assistance by professional andvolunteer teachers. Such an effort must bemade in all Israeli neighborhoods to preventthe deterioration of Ethiopian vouth.

The Muslim Experience in IndiaMehzabeen Palgharwala (Mumbai)

The oartition of India in 1941 was one ofthe great human "convulsions" of history.In a f-ew months. about twelve millionpeople had crossed the westem border thatdivided the state of Punjab. There wereMuslims traveling to the newly createdPakistan, Hindus and Sikhs east to India.The new truncated India came to be ademocratic, secular country, home to adiverse number of cultures and peoples.

Being a Muslim in lndia has its own positiveand negative aspects. Living in a

cosmopolitan city like Bombay (Mumbai),I have never faced the tofture and traumaticconditions that youth of my age and adults

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have had to face during communal tensions.These tensions have created a division inthe hearts and minds of Hindus andMuslims, like an invisible wall separatingus from one another. The Gujarat riots thattook olace irr2002 transmitted waves ofhatred and hostility all over India, conuptingthe innocent minds of even the youth. Eventhoush not evervone suffered the harshcondltions of the 6urfew. one could feel thepain and suffering, seeing so many peoplefleeing and abandoning their houses in orderto save themselves.

It is definitely tough to live in a world fullof prqudices and stereotypes. Once duringan India-Pakistan cricket match. I was takenaback when my classmate sarcasticallycommented that I would be supporting

Pakistan! It seemed so insulting to hearsuch a comment from a fiiend of mine. andof her being so stereotyped and narrow-minded to think that just because I am a

Muslim, it was 'obvious' that I wouldsupport Pakistan. Another incident thatflashes through my mind is hearing storiesof Muslim children being discriminatedwhile seeking admission to schools. Whatfault is it of innocent children seekingeducation, a universal requirement whicheveryone must fulfill, on the basis of sex,religion, caste, creed or status? Suchincidents focus and make one realize thenarrow-mindedness still existing in themidst of science and technology, of havinga negative feeling against religions that arenot one's own.

Uhat nre Vou?

Arab, lsraeli and Muslim:Dealing with RacismYara Owayyed (Jerusalem)

Once passing through the halls of my schoollast year, I was stared at and felt veryuncomfortable. As I approached some ofmy friends the whispering and gossipingstopped. I didn't understand what waswrong; it felt as though I had suddenlygrown another head.

When I entered my classroom, I understoodwhat it was all about. There were graffiticurses about Arabs and me on the walls."Death to Arabs." "A sood Arab is a deadArab." "There's a terrorist in this class,be careful!" and many other curses.Rumors spread quickly throughout theschool and many pupils showed up tosee what my reaction would be. I felt as

though I was being stabbed in my heart.Tears sprung to my eyes while manyIsraelis stood and hooted. Some beqancursing me to my face and others juststood and encouraged them. I wished thatIjust could disappear into thin air at thatmoment.

I felt so hooeless and hurt. I looked intothe faces oT the crowd, hoping to see afriendly face that would stand by me, butall I saw was hatred. I suddenly felt afraid,I was afraid of standing there alone. Atthat moment out of nowhere I saw a tablebeing shoved in my direction. It hit myarm and bruised it. The tears that werethreatening to fall fell. I stood there andcried. I was totally humiliated by their

behavior and by the fact that I had startedto cry. The tough Yara had suddenlydisappeared and I was left vulnerable. I wasashamed of being an Arab, all the pridethat I had disappeared. It was as though itwas wrong being who I am, it was wrongto be different from the maiority of thesociety.

That day I played hookey from school andstarted walking to my home. The walk fromRamat Eshkol to Pisgat Ze'ev took meabout an hour and a half, an hour and a halfthat I used to clear up my head, to think ofwhat had happened back there and why Iwas the one to feel very bad. I didn't doanything wrong, and yet I felt so horrible.I felt bad that kids my age were so closedminded and full of hate, that kids my ageweren't willing to accept someone differentfrom them. I asked myself why this washappening, why I needed to leave schoolbecause of the cruelty of others. Hatredtook over me. I hated those kids. I hatedIsraelis.

After getting back home, I opened my SOPpicture album, turned on the stereo andlistened to "Winds of Change." WheneverI feel angry, confused or hurl, memories ofcamp wash away my pain. I feel as thoughSOP connects me to reality, reminds methat hatred will get us nowhere. Only loveand understanding is the solution to a betterlife. Seeds ofPeace is the only place where

I feel secure to be me, the real me, a proudArab Israeli Muslim. A place where I'maccepted because ofwho I am and evaluatedbased on my personality and not on myreligion, nationality or beliefs.

The next day I went to school and wasn'tafraid to face those kids again. I didn't feelashamed or vulnerable. I was proud of whoI am. I felt pity for those kids ihat had actedthe way they had. It showed that theyweren't mature or level-headed people.After entering class I was called to theprincipal's office When I got there, threeof the boys that had led the attack on methe day before were sitting there. Theprincipal asked the boys to apologize fortheir violent behavior. The boys wouldn'tapologize, and I didn't want an apology justfor the sake of being apologized to. I wantedthose boys to understand how deeply theyhad hun me, emotionally and physically. Iwanted them to UNDERSTAND, tounderstand my side and to understand thatnot all Arabs are terorists, and that I'm notgoing to hurt them. I'm there for them tounderstand that it is possible to live side byside with Arabs and to be friends with them.I asked the principal to talk to them aloneand she agreed.

An awkward silence filled the air, I didn'tknow exactly what to say and they didn'texactly want to talk to me. It was very hardstarling, but I talked, I talked and explained.

The ice was broken: we went into a

deep conversation about politics,terrorism, rights and life in general.

Although this was one of the very worstexperiences in my life, it led tounexpe.cted results. I succeeded inconveying my message to these boys.I know that they might have notchanged much but one thing I knowfor sure, I had impacted their lives ina small way.

Out of this incident, people becamecurious about me and who I am. Manyapproached me with questions aboutpolitics, religion and ideology. Theywere curious to see how an Arab thinksand what he believes. Many came toknow me and appreciate me for whoI am. I formed numerous relationshipswith many students at school that Ibelieve will last for a long time sincethey are built on honesty and caring.

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The Difference Between YasserArafat and Abu MazenAmaniJaber (Taybeh)

Arafat was a heroic symbol for each andevery Palestinian. However, in his lifetimethe peace process didn't progress as it isnow. It is interesting that things seem mucheasier for Abu Mazen in achievingcompromises, agreements and otherpolitical improvement in the region. But,why didn't Arafat find it as easy?

My answer to this question would be thatwhatever happens in this region, whetherit is war, peace, or an agreement, it alldepends on whatever Israel and the UnitedStates favors.

I believe that Arafat was a much betterpolitical leader than Abu Mazen, becauseArafat was someone who lived the strugglein his own skin, roving in different countriesand fighting with his rifle. However, AbuMazen is too small to fill Arafat's shoes.I am not trying to say that Abu Mazendidn't achieve anything in the region, orthat he didn't bring a new era. What I amsaying is that Abu Mazen was able toaccomplish all of this just because Israeland United States favor him as a leader,and are ready to work with him. We all

know how toward the end of the smolderingIntifada we started to hear in the mediahow Israel and the U.S had already put anX on Arafat as a leader. They were theones who created every possible obstaclein his way to run his people and bringstability to the teritories. In contrast, AbuMazen came with a silver spoon in hismouth: the praise of Israel and the U.S.

The reason I am writing in this bitternessis not that I don't like the fact that theregion is becoming calmer. My rage comes

from the fact that Arafat could haveachieved whatever Abu Mazen did andeven more if he was given the chance. Sono one can claim that Arafat was a failurein any way. Actually, I bet you if Abu

Mazen would've been in Arafat's placeduring the Intifada. he wouldn't'havesurvived, because Arafat endured what noone can endure.

Looking at Arafat and Abu Mazen as twoleaders for a nation seeking freedom andindependence reminds me in a way ofEgyptian leaders Gamal Abdul Nasser andAnwar Sadat. Israel and the U.S didn'tfavor Nasser; therefore, they didn't see himas a partner for negotiations, and his deathwas a happy end and "freedom" to Egyptin the eyes of the West. The U.S saw inSadat someone who could bring a new erato the Arab-Israeli conflict and thereforeembraced him after signing the peace treatywith Israel. But one shouldn't forget thata leader without his people's love isn'treally a leader. Nasser was beloved by hispeople, unlike Sadat, who was assassinatedby a fellow Egyptian. Arafat was belovedby his people, unlike Abu Mazen; he is notpopular in the same way Sadat was not.

May peace prevail, and may every leaderget the chance to prove himself in hislifetime if he eets the chance to.

Choosing a New Leaderlbrahim Dakkak (Jerusalem)

Elections in Palestine took place, all thewhile people are suffering from the dailyhumiliation acts of the Israeli occupation,but the Palestinians proved that they werethe strongest in this mission. They stoodhand in hand while their heads up, to electtheir democratic president.

Most Palestinians knew who would bepresident. Some people supported AbuMazen and others supported Dr. MustafaBargouthi. I was hoping for MustafaBargouthi to take the presidency, since mygrandfather works with Dr. MustafaBarsouthi on the Palestinian nationalinitiative "Al Mobadarah." Our familyvaried in their choices of candidates. Myfather supported Bargouthi and my mothersupported Bassam Al Salhi.

The preparation for the elections took placein most of the West Bank cities and Gaza,but in Jerusalem it was different; peoplewho live in Jerusalem were threatenedagainst voter registration, and those whowere caught sticking posters for the

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candidates were put in jail. The Israeligovemment closed many of the registeringoffices in Jerusalem and that led to a verylow percentage of people who registeredin Jerusalem.

On the day of the elections, streets werefull of people. In Jerusalem the city lookedas if it was freed from Israeli occupation.Checkooints were removed and Israelisoldiers at the checkpoints were morefriendly and humane. We are used towalting for hours at checkpoints, but duringthe election it was smooth and easy. Peoplewere voting for their candidate without fear,standing side-by-side with democracy.

In my opinion, it is essential to havepresidential elections. It makes you feellike you are taking part in building acounffy, by practicing a basic and legitimateright.

The late President Yasser Arafat - MayGod Bless His Soul - taught us many thingsin life. He was a supporter of Seeds ofPeace, and he used to praise us when weused to visit him. He accomplished manygood things for the Palestinian case. He

fought for more than forty years for thePalestinian case, spending his time onnegotiations and meetings and travelingand even fighting in the mountains againstthe occupation. The Palestinians are veryproud of what he did, and the image of thatleader won't ever be erased from anyPalestinian mind and soul. In his image,future Palestinian presidents will work onaccomplishing the Palestinian dream: a freeindependent state where peace can takeolace between the nations. I am sure thatihe day that peace comes and Palestinianstate is established, peace will arrive in

other Darts of the world too.

Two Views of theDisengagementSagi Ganot (Holon)

Residents of Gush Qatif, the Israelisettlement bloc in the south of the GazaStrip, are absolutely certain that ArielSharon's plan to withdraw from the Strip,and their relocation to Israel proper, iswrong in all aspects. They say that the planinfringes upon Jews' inalienable rights inthe Holy Land, that it constitutes a violationof their human rights and of internationallaw, and that it would create a significantsecurity threat to major Israeli cities andserve as a morale boost for Palestinianmilitants in their attacks against Israelis.

These settlers and their sympathizers,though a minority according to opinionpolls, are leading an inspired public struggleto fight the plan. Their resolve stems fromtheir complete conviction in therighteousness of their cause. I wish I couldsay I had such a commitment to theprinciples I believe in. Though I disagree

with them, I cannot help but admire thefaith they have.

But the line between faith and blindfollowing is thin. I cannot say I fully believethat the olan would mean a better futurefor Israelis and Palestinians. I cannot predictthat my country will regret the move in oneyear, or five, or ten. But this ability to doubtdoesn't weaken my support of thewithdrawal process; for me, it is a sign thatthoush I have become convinced of itsneceisity, I still maintain the ability tocriticize my own views and the views ofmy government, and to sympathize withthe tragedy the settlers are about toexperience. And though I cannot speak forthe majonty of Israelis - those who supportSharon's move - I think many of them,faced with the same dilemma, prefer theuncertainty mingled with critical thinkingto the stern, perhaps blind faith thatcharacterizes opposition to the move.

For me, the plan signifies not only increasedsecurity and economic improvements, but

also an ease to the life of Palestinian Gazansand increased international understandingto the moves Israel must take in the future.It's not a "necessary evil," but a bravecourse of action that will prove vital in thelong run. for Israelis ancl Palestinians alike.

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is to sacrifice, and to sacrifice you have togive something that is really close to youor important. As a Seed, I think that thisstep was not only good for the Palestinianside, but also for the Israeli, because it willeventually reduce the violence rn GazaStrip, and build a new base for starting thePalestinian state. Having control over Gaza,the Palestinian Authority should startstrengthening its forces and police, to beable to control all the Palestinian cities afterthe Israelis withdraw from them. I hopethat this step will be the spark of the peaCe.

so that Israel and Palestine can livepeacefully together.

In January of 2005, Palestinians elected their first newleader in over a generation; this coming July, Israel will

withdraw settlers living in the Gaza Strip. Seeds offer theiropinions on these two momentous changes that will havea lasting impact on relationships between the two countries

and on the Middle East as a whole

Painful Decisions areNecessary on Both SidesNicola Kabar (Bethlehem)

Painful decisions are the major factors thatlead to oeace. The Israeli Prime Ministermade a bainful decision to withdraw fromGaza. and to evacuate all the settlementsinside it. This step was not expected fromIsrael, and was happy news for Palestinians,but for most Israelis it was painful andshocking.

I think that several oainful decisions shouldbe made by both iides in order to havepeace, because the main rule to have peace

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