A R C H I V E S
Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| going to palestine~! |
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| Anonymous |
| 05/01/02 at 02:44:41 |
| [not sure where this belongs - ummah? bebzi?] was all set to register :P , but don't have time right now - have to finish some work before tomorrow. i'm anonymous atheist/scientist/chemist/"nutritionist". i just received my acceptance to the american muslims for jerusalem solidarity delegation to palestine this june! have written to some muslim and non-muslim friends to tell them, but most people i know don't care about this at all, or will say to me "are you CRAZY??" when they find out. i realized people here would be better able to appreciate why i want to do this, but mostly i wanted to let you all know that we are going, 50 of us! (i might be the only non-muslim going - don't know yet. they told me they received over 150 applications!) i'm so excited :-/ i almost - not quite, but almost - don't care about figuring out this dratted correlation between plant defense toxin and scorpion neurotoxin ion channel recognition residues - can you imagine?! (hee hee - don't think my advisor would be able to appreciate my lack of focus!) have to get back to work. bro haaris, you'll hear from me. thanks for being so open in telling your story. bro kashif, i'll answer your vitamin ingredient questions. but you'll both have to give me a day or so to get back to you... (and, um, sorry for taking the chocolate discussion so far off track…..) mwishka ----------------------------------------- mwi vsye mwishkii (we are all mice) "I have seen children shot in El Salvador, Algeria, Guatemala, Sarajevo, but I have NEVER before watched soldiers (Israeli) entice children like mice into a trap and murder them for SPORT". (Seven Days in a Palestinian Refugee Camp). |
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| Kashif |
| 05/01/02 at 03:46:18 |
| Wow - thats really great news. So you're going in June? Thats .. one month's time. We'll probably hear from you before then, but i wish for you and your group success and security on your jouney. *smile* Kashif Wa Salaam |
| NS |
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| jannah |
| 05/01/02 at 04:22:58 |
| Anonymous!!! Please do me a favor and go out right now to the store and buy a journal!!! :) Write in it every day and when you get back transcribe your notes for us! We would love to read what your journey was like and everything you saw. It would be *almost* as good as being there right ;) so think about it, take care and have a safe journey God willing |
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| muqaddar |
| 05/01/02 at 11:07:14 |
| [slm] make sure you don't have a beard when you go! some friends of mine went on the pilgrimage to Al-aqsa and everywhere they went they said they could see the camera's doing a about-turn to face them ! ;D |
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| BroHanif |
| 05/01/02 at 17:58:03 |
| [slm] [quote]make sure you don't have a beard when you go! [/quote] Sorry ???? Are you out of your mind or something to say this ....??? Where are the real muslism gone, the ones who had courage like lions, where are the muslims who will adhere to the sunnah even if they are slain. If you want a change in Palestine or in the muslim world it starts from us and removing the beard is not one of them. Jihads have been won by practicing the sunnah, Jihads have been lost by going against Allah and the noble prophet [saw] . Who gives a damn what the enemy does, its better to die as a muslim with a beard and to be raised in that condition rather than looking like a mushrik. Salaams Hanif |
| 05/01/02 at 17:58:58 |
| BroHanif |
| Re: going to palestine~! |
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| Anonymous |
| 05/02/02 at 03:46:54 |
| um, muqaddar that's, um, sis scientist.......... i think i'll pass on the beard... :) |
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| Shahida |
| 05/02/02 at 08:07:52 |
| [quote author=Anonymous link=board=bebzi;num=1020235481;start=0#5 date=05/02/02 at 03:46:54]um, muqaddar that's, um, sis scientist.......... i think i'll pass on the beard... :) [/quote] Am really excited for you Anonymous!!! wish i was going too, God willing, soon! If you need any practical tips, feel free to email me! As Jannah said, keep a diary, and pls pls let us read it when you get back! It is great that you have seized this opportunity, grown men would shy away from going there, so [] to this brave sis Anonymous! My email is shahida_moosa@yahoo.com Keep in touch, and let us know how your travel plans are progressing! Bye Shahida :-) |
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| hayal |
| 05/06/02 at 20:18:17 |
| [slm] Wow I am really excited too. I'd also love to read a diary about that. So please please write it and let us read it!! May Got be with you and your Team! My heart is with you and my sisters and brothers in Palestine. :-) |
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| mwishka |
| 05/07/02 at 20:36:30 |
| madinans, sis shahida has been really great giving me all sorts of good advice for my trip. if anyone else here has been to palestine, or has any knowledgable cautions, warnings, admonitions - or just plain great ideas - to share with me, i'd love to hear them. jannah and others: about a journal - you know those college lined bound tablets, um, notebooks (?everyone calls them something different), um "composition notebooks" maybe? anyway, those 80 or 100 page college ruled tablets.. i'm one of those people who has a whole bottom drawer full of filled ones! my friends have warned me that i have to warn them before i publish ANYTHING... but, really, the most useful role those notebooks play in my life is to make me laugh at myself! sometimes it's very, very funny to read something you wrote even a year or two ago and see how silly you were when you thought you were being so serious. but sometimes there's a surprise to be found in them, like when you come across something that you wrote so clearly that you doubt you could ever write so well again. i have one notebook that's just for things that surprise me, things that affect me in strong or unusual ways. like when amazingly good things happen to me or i see something truly amazing, or like when one of my favorite science fiction authors killed herself after killing her husband because they agreed she should because he had alzheimer's in its later stages..... so, not to worry on the journal count - i still have a stack of empty ones. they go on sale for a dollar each at the beginning of every school year, so i try not to run out. i'm ahead in my supply right now - since i've been in graduate school i haven't written in three years! (gee, i wonder why....?) and i'm hoping to - and shahida thinks i will be able to - get to a computer at some point while i'm over there, and you all will be very near the top of my list of people i NEED to write to! mwishka |
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| Shahida |
| 05/08/02 at 06:57:39 |
| Mwishka Loool sis, I have stacks of journals too, but mmm instead of being in a drawer somewhere, mine are stashed under my bed!! Easiest reference, even late at night, hehe...and yeah, when i need to cheer myself up, I just pick one at random, there is BOUND to be something awfully silly written in there somewhere... ;) Will think of more things to tell you about Palestine inshaAllah. Anyone else got some advice for Mwishka? I have been *terrible*, donno why she puts up with me :( :-)Shahida |
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| muqaddar |
| 05/08/02 at 13:00:16 |
| [quote author=BroHanif link=board=bebzi;num=1020235481;start=0#4 date=05/01/02 at 17:58:03] [slm] Sorry ???? Are you out of your mind or something to say this ....??? Where are the real muslism gone, the ones who had courage like lions, where are the muslims who will adhere to the sunnah even if they are slain. If you want a change in Palestine or in the muslim world it starts from us and removing the beard is not one of them. Jihads have been won by practicing the sunnah, Jihads have been lost by going against Allah and the noble prophet [saw] . Who gives a damn what the enemy does, its better to die as a muslim with a beard and to be raised in that condition rather than looking like a mushrik. Salaams Hanif [/quote] hmm she said she was an atheist in case you missed it... :( |
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| nur-ul-aain |
| 05/20/02 at 11:22:56 |
| [slm] A friend of mine is on her way to Al-Quds with AMJ as well, the journal suggestion is a great idea, i sent it her way. Just remember, whether you're religious or not, you get to meet the strongest, bravest and warmest people in one of the best places who have suffered so much and continue to do so YET still have hope. Hopefully, all those who go will come back having a different outlook on life and will demonstrate a more vigorous solidarity with our Filisteeni Bros and Sistas. I can honestly say that those who go come back different, Insha'allah the change will be for the better. A friend of mine was a peace activist for ISM and through communication with this brother I know that I have changed for the better. Subhan'allah I'm not even there yet I stand tall and gain strength from the strength of the ppl there. Have a great trip and keep us updated. [wlm] Nur-ul-aain :-) |
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| mwishka |
| 05/21/02 at 08:40:15 |
| sister nur, is your friend going on the SAME trip i'm going on in june?? if so, please put me in touch with her, or send her my e-mail address and she can get in touch with me. i've only seen a list of e-mail addresses for the other participants, not even names - looks like they're from all over the US. (still don't know if i'm the only non-muslim or not...) shahida, contrary to what she said, HAS been very helpful in giving me good advice. but i'm still open to any other advice. and i do have a very practical question maybe someone here can answer. (see shahida, how helpful you were?? ;) ) since i never wear anything but jeans, and i think i'll scald there in them, i've been looking - unsuccessfully - for some practical COTTON clothes of a certain style, which shahida has told me are called shalwar khamees. does ANYONE here know where i can find them? they have to be cotton - no synthetics (i'm in that 10% of the population who reacts to synthetics - itching, sweating, um make that "unpleasant sweating" for those around me..) i've looked on-line for as many hours as i'm willing to spend, and found only one place, but they weren't simple enough or cotton. plus expensive. i want plain colored fabric, long narrow full-length sleeves. and yep, if i'd thought of this sooner i should have looked instead for a seamstress..... mwishka |
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| nur-ul-aain |
| 05/21/02 at 10:44:20 |
| mwishka [slm] good to hear that u're excited about going and also concerned as well. Here's the deal, you're going with the delegation that leaves on the 14th right? okay so i'll get in touch with the sister who is going and get permission if i can give her info to u..it shouldnt be an issue. about what to wear there... shalwar kameez isnt a bad idea but you can always wear long skirts and wutnot. B/c unlike ISM, you wont be involved in any direct action situations, i believe this is an educational trip. Let me know if i'm wrong. I mean it's up to u whatever u're comfortable in, but know that it's gonna be hot ;) anyhow, i'll get back to ya soon ok. In the mean time see what others are saying. in solidarity, nur ul aain :-) |
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| mwishka |
| 05/25/02 at 23:52:43 |
| a little bit of an update on the trip: my friend soumeya spoke to khalid (ex. dir. of AMJ), and he's going to be going with us. originally he wasn't - i think there is a little more concern now about how the israelis are treating people they don't "like". (at the window on islam site you can hear the talk on palestine-israel that khalid gave at our school - well, i didn't check before i wrote that, but i think it's still there. he's palestinian, grew up in a refugee camp.) the group is smaller than it was going to be - not sure of why yet, talked to the office but didn't ask that particular question. i'm not the only non-muslim, there are two or three christian arabs going, too. we won't be staying in any homes - things got so bad it would be more of an imposition now.... and they've suggested we not bring goods to give (i.e., medical supplies, school supplies, etc.) just since we can't bring enough to make any kind of a dent, and would run into the question of fair distribution. but if any of you want to send donations for us to deliver, you can - i guess you could send them to the office (american muslims for jerusalem). hmmm...hadn't thought about that before i said it...maybe i should ask them. sis nur, i didn't reply to you earlier, but actually this trip was planned to be for olive tree re-planting and house repair as well as talking and visiting and collecting stories. though i don't know how things will turn out when we really get there, considering how things have changed for the worse. (bro kashif, i just read what you wrote at the beginning of this: expecting you'd hear from me here before i go --- :D never could have guessed how MUCH you'd hear, i bet....) my arabic lessons have been delayed - only get to start this week. my, um, meat-eating intensive self-inflicted re-training program has, um, fallen by the way. (yep, enzymes - no other way.) my pursuit of shalwar khamees has failed. < none of that sounds good..but i still have time... :) mwishka |
| 05/26/02 at 08:29:27 |
| mwishka |
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| mwishka |
| 06/08/02 at 11:10:35 |
| ok, less than a week now..... sis shahida asked me to give another update........ um, we're leaving on the 15th, returning on the 25th. there are 30 people going, from all over the US. yes, we have to fly in to and out from israel. we'll get a training session at the airport before we leave. you know how jannah warned that participants in mission madina might have to eat their posts? well, we finally got our information packets, and i don't know which would be harder, trying to eat a virtual post or this big stack of stuff we got. :D ....since our instructions include "familiarize yourself with everything contained here, but DO NOT BRING THESE MATERIALS WITH YOU!" (slight variation on their wording...) so, um, i can't tell you our itinerary or much detail about the trip, except to say that we will meet with the palestinian government ("bring business casual" clothing) and we will go to, um, all of palestine, and we will go to al-aqsa. we were originally going to have a "central" hotel where maybe we could leave stuff, but that was before not the most recent bad stuff, but the terrible incursion into jenin - now we're instructed to bring no more than we can carry for a distance, and to keep with us at all times a small pack of all essentials which we can grab at a moment's notice. i'm really not sure at this point that we'll be able to do any repair work - i think the scope of it is now beyond the reach of an assortment of mostly students with little or no skill in such work as is needed now. i was able to arrange a "support team" here, finally!, from deeply concerned people from our "after 9-11 open response committee" at my school. i wasn't having much luck in that regard until yesterday.... they're faculty, and will help here with communication to media, etc., maybe even working through the school's media people.. and, as for the mundane details -- my "expert on islamic clothing from regular stores" shopping guide soumeya and i have to make one more trip to albany (the big city! hee heee heeee) tomorrow. little success so far, until yesterday my expert found, just as we were about to give up in yet another store, a beautiful long black tunic - being sold as an "indian style" dress! it's almost perfect, but only 3/4 length sleeves... can't find pants - they're all too short! (yeah, why do i wear only jeans? they come in long lengths....) have enough clothes for, um two days now... hee heee only 6 to go! my meat-training has fallen by the way completely. this is actually something i have to seriously get back to - is not optional, and now is going to have to be even more intensive. i feel so comfortable about going, with no qualms or hesitancy, that i am STILL being surprised by the way people are reacting to finding out i'm going. people mostly look very scared, and say it's really really not safe so why would i go there at all?? depending on who it is, i usually say just simply, yes, it's not safe for the people who live there. sometimes i talk about it more. some people still get sudden anger when they hear - it's kind of amazing to see such a change in a person, to see their face go instant red, their nostrils flare, their hands tighten into balls, their breathing become sudden and quick. WHAT is their anger? it's misplaced. that should be their reaction every time thoughts enter their head about what's been going on there, with impunity, for the last 50+ years. (actually, as people who "know" me here know, i don't think anger will solve anything, and that unless we can function on this issue without anger it won't get solved....) ok, that's it for now... would be happy to answer questions... oh, i HAVE a question... it's kind of troubling me, but i was, well, just waiting to see how things went for me personally before i knew if it was going to be even a question, much less a potential problem...... ;) al-aqsa......i can't go in, right? do you think anyone will invite me in, or will they ask me, in good conscience, to stay outside?? i have to do what is honest and right... what do you all think? it feels very sad to me to even think of being there and being stuck outside..... :( mwishka |
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| eleanor |
| 06/08/02 at 13:43:01 |
| [slm] as far as I know [i]and I'm open to correction[/i] you can go in... it's just Mekkah and Madina which are off limits to non-Muslims. Or is it just Mekkah? Anyway, you can go into any Masjid (mosque) as long as you are not menstruating. Just have a shower before you go and bring a scarf (for respect, not obligatory) and you'll be let in Insha Allah If I made a mistake please forgive me. wasalaam eleanor PS Oh and in case I don't get to say it before you go - Have a GREAT time, soak up as much of everything as you can and Insha Allah maybe there you will see/experience a "sign" INSHA ALLAH ;) |
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| mwishka |
| 06/08/02 at 13:51:10 |
| sis eleanor, just popped back in here - maybe you're still on-line? thanks for the good wishes. my question on al-aqsa is that i thought i read that only people of the god of abraham are allowed in any masjid, and us kuffar (form?) just aren't........ that's why i was wondering if i might get special consideration in this instance...... mwishka :( |
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| 06/08/02 at 20:32:48 |
| [slm] Mind if I ask why you're taking a trip to palestine? What do you wish to acheive by visiting palestine? I might sound discouraging but believe me I'm not. Just wish to know. And as far as entering a mosque is concerned there are no restrictions for anyone. By the way the famous Dome structure(Dome of rock) is not a mosque. Mosque is the large compound outside the Dome of rock. The inside of the dome structure is not considered a mosque and a muslim is not even supposed to pray inside of it. If there are any palestinians on the board you might want to make things clearer. Anyway Good luck on your journey. |
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| mwishka |
| 06/08/02 at 22:03:32 |
| peaceseeker! hi! THAT was your question that you had sent that i couldn't read for so long - i finally got the mail open, quick copied it all into word and emptied my madina mail, to "help" it work better -- and promptly forgot about your question.......sorry. :( why am i going? (this is good "practice' for me to answer.... ;) ) i can give you short terse answers, or long ones... hmmm....maybe something inbetween? i've talked and worked on a personal level for the well-being of the people of palestine for years. have done some,um, what some people call "activist" work for palestine..... have mostly felt that nothing anyone was doing here in the US was helping at all. went into more of a state of grief about it, and about most issues. stopped doing political work except constantly, daily, very personally - in all of my words and conversations, as much as possible. a bit later, i got "mixed up" in a nice way, mind you, with muslims, came here -saw the notice of the trip - and marvelled that such a thing could now be possible - that ANYONE in the US would organize and take to palestine 50 people to do physical work to help out people whose lives are surrounded by hell and torment, and to serve the larger purpose of listening to them and just using eyes ears hearts and all other faculties to take in what is real there and what is false and what is myth. it said the trip was expensive. it was for muslims. it didn't seem to be for me, just something for me to know about. i thought a lot about those people who would get to go there. a couple of weeks later, early one morning i got a "highest priority" type message from my friend soumeya. she was in washington for a conference, so i was really surprised to get it. she said "apply for this trip today". i wrote back told her i'd read of it here, thought it was only for muslims. she said "no. khalid said you should apply. (exec. dir. of amj - he spoke at our school, our group had dinner with him. i got to talk to him some.) they wanted me to apply - i can't. i told them you were the one they should send. khalid said yes, tell you to apply." um, uh oh - turning into "long story option".... typical for me... to shorten it again, i did apply, there were over 200 applications, 30 people were selected. i don't know the criteria by which the selections were made. i feel a deep deep pull to go there. i want to go there for some reasons i don't even understand. when i was trying to write out the application, answering a bunch of questions, all i could think of was how clean and nice my lab is, how i get to go to school, and have a whole apartment to live in, and how it was such chance in the universe that i was here in troy and not there. it's all chance of birth. i'm no different than any individual living there - or in israel for that matter or any other place around the world - or any place any person writing at this board is from... i suppose that for muslims you don't think it's chance, that it's all part of a plan for each of us. well, if that's true, then my plan just went into good mode to send me on this trip. um, as practice, that was a very very bad answer.... :D that's ok, if i weren't digressing, i wouldn't be mwishka! (when i'm not in here, i'm not, so maybe i'll digress less when i talk to, um, "the public"........ ;) ) |
| 06/09/02 at 13:10:06 |
| mwishka |
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| Shahida |
| 06/11/02 at 04:03:08 |
| Mwishka:) Ok, I know I'm thousands of miles away, but man, I'm getting so excited for you!! :) Wish I could join you, inshaAllah, next time! I just wanted to answer the question about going into Al Aqsa. You ARE allowed in, and should have no trouble getting in UNLESS it is prayer time. This is usually when non-Muslims are not allowed inside the sanctuary. I have seen the jewish guards even stop Muslims, who by their definition did not *fit* the description of a Muslim, and they were asked to recite either the article of Faith or the Surah FatiHa (first chapter of the Holy Quraan)... So, mm, it would be awkward to go during prayer time, which is obviously when the Muslims in your group would LOVE to be there. If they don't allow you in, dont sweat it, there are a number of Souqs (markets) around the mosque that you can visit in the meantime. I have 1 note of sneaky advise for you though. The guards dont usually bother Muslim women trying to enter (unless you have loads of bags, filled with things, lol, like ME!) , so to avoid "detection", just look as Muslim as possible, and it should not be a problem. As for what you can and cannot do once you're inside the Sanctuary (The whole AREA surrounded by 4 walls is known as the Noble Sanctuary, encompassing the building of Masjid Al Aqsa, the Masjid of the Dome of the Rock, several museums, schools, orchards, and open ground etc)...so as long as you dont enter any of the mosque buildings while you are menstruating, everything should be fine!! There are trees you can sit under and contemplate Allah's signs, while the rest of your group is praying, inshaAllah ;) Oh, I [color=Red]HAVE[/color] to make a comment abour PeaceSeeker's post: The Dome of the Rock is in fact a mosque! People pray there 2 out of the 5 prayers of the day, the rest fo the time it is locked. We get the same reward for praying in the DoR, as we do in the actual building of Masjid Al Aqsa, or anywhere else in the Noble Sanctuary, even under those trees Mwishka is gonna be sitting under! (lucky her:) ) Ok, thats all from me for now...any other questions, please feel free to post, my little mouse:) |
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| Shahida |
| 06/11/02 at 04:10:41 |
| hehe, I knew I wouldnt be able to leave this alone... Just wanted to add that probably the "shops" in the markets would mostly be closed (the owners are at the mosque, unles they're Christian)...but it is still very interesting to be able to walk in the old city surrounding the mosque. Try not to get toooo lost though, I once ended up in the jewish quarter, and lets just say, mmm, it was NOT pleasant...the second time I was wandering that way, a little boy stopped me and asked if I *really* wanted to go in there, lol ;) I learnt my way around very very fast:) Everyone knows "Masjid a Aqsa" so if you ask, they will point you in the right direction, inshaAllah... If I think of anything else, I'll be sure to post...bye |
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| mwishka |
| 06/14/02 at 00:45:29 |
| almost time! well, tomorrow i leave troy to drive my cats to their vacation villa -- otherwise known as house in the woods where i used to live before graduate school required my, um, full-time presence in troy. they'll have a life of cat luxury - turkeys to visit, deer to stalk (yes, cats do sometimes do this as a fun game..), foxes and raccoons to avoid, possums to follow around, and a near limitless supply of voles and mice, some of whom will end up as, um, snacks... so, while they're basking in the real world not in the city, i'll be miles high in the sky, on my way to my own kind of paradise. i'm still having trouble believing that i get to go on this astounding journey! i don't even think it's going to seem real until i've been there for a day or so. am i packed? nope. ready to go in any way? nope. have been on overload and super busy for about five days, way too much to get done, and literally not enough time for it all. this is pretty unusual for me, not to already have every piece of clothes at least stacked waiting to be packed. instead, my friends soumeya and nassiba and i went out for a goodbye dinner, and decided to make one last rushed trip to the store - yep, still hadn't found light clothes. but tonight i did! old reliable burlington coat factory, 3 pair of exactly right light pants, $4 each. finally! and luckily soumeya remembered that i needed a hat. when i dropped them off their mother had hunted up two cotton scarves for me - they gave me a quick lesson on variations... still have to stop at my lab in the morning to train somebody to do something. :( had arranged three different rides to the airport, all of which fell through for strange reasons - THAT was a little scary, like........um, am i not supposed to go?? now i'll be "delivered" to the airport by some service. a little sad, the first time i ever leave the country, and to go on such a trip, but, at least it's a reliable ride.... and anyway, there will be LOTS of friendly people waiting for me at the airport! i'll write to shahida when i can from over there, and she can pass it along to you all. you can send any messages for me to her...... i'm pretty sure this will be my last post before i leave...... mwishka |
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| Kathy |
| 06/14/02 at 05:53:58 |
| There is a difference between Al-Aqsa and Al-Sakhrah Mosque. Keep in mind the gold dome one is Al-Sakhrah. Al-Aqsa is the Masjid where Prophet Muhammmad pbuh led prayers with the other Prophets pbut. |
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| mwishka |
| 06/17/02 at 15:48:22 |
| so far made it back to clintondale about an hour ago, where i will now sleep for an indeterminate amount of time. tomorrow me and them cats will go home i guess... left newark saturday ~11pm, after going through ISRAELI security there, left tel aviv sunday evening and got to newark about 4am today. all time in between was in being detained by israeli army (masquerading as airport "security" and "police") in airport in tel aviv. too incoherent with exhaustion to tell stories now. some of us went home, a lot of those who were far from home anyway went to washington for a press conference.. holding us, of course, has no comparison to what any palestinian would experience in "detention", but we were given an inside look at how them israeli "security" people have something wrong with their minds -- they are not very "nice" people.... details at 11...or tomorrow.... mwishka (we didn't see anything but the airport security rooms and offices.... :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( ) |
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| Shahida |
| 06/18/02 at 01:51:18 |
| Oh my GOD! I just came to the computer now, to check if I got mail from you Mwishka! SubhanAllah, am so sad about this! :'( :'( :'( I will email you later, I cannot believe that they did that! Did your group recieve NO HELP from the US embassy? Did you even get a chance to speak to a representative? I can't even imagine your dissappointment! But alhamdulillah, at least they didnt *do* anything to you or the others. Till later my little mouse, am so sorry again Peace Shahida |
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| zomorrud |
| 06/18/02 at 16:35:14 |
| mwishka, sorry to hear about not being able to enter Palestine :(. you were sooo psycked about going. insha'Allah that was for the best ... try to spend the time originally planned for this trip by relaxing and chilling with [] actually i just heard from a friend who is planning on going in august as part of a women observer team, and said that she has to take training in political conflict resolution before going. i wonder now if she will be able to go or not ... sigh.. |
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| nur-ul-aain |
| 06/18/02 at 16:53:18 |
| [slm] mwishka and the rest...i couldnt believe what happend when i was reading the story on iap.org. I remember how excited both mwishka and my friend mehreen were about going. But it was prolly for the best, though the ordeal you all had to face was extremely wrong! All i can say is that you should talk, write and raise awareness about your delegation and issues no matter how small they might seem. Mehreen appeared on the news the same day she got back, masha'allah she called up CH 12 News (for those in Jersey) and was interviewed. So say what you gotta say and do what you gotta do..no deed is too small and remember the reward is manifold... in solidarity, nur ul aain :-) |
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| mwishka |
| 06/19/02 at 00:15:57 |
| i know that a lot of people feel that our trip was aborted for some good reason that perhaps we just don't know of.... here's another take on the idea of it being god's will, from an undergraduate in my lab whom i had just trained on 2 techniques in the last few days before i left: --------------------------------- Well, at least I'm happy that you made it back safe and sound. ^^ Besides, I was in a dire need of your help. :) (I've told everyone in the lab that I need you, and there you are!!! Perhaps it was God's arrangement to have you back so that you could help me with amyloid studies hehehehehe) Take care of yourself at home and I'll see you in a few days. -Fred ---------------------------------- i can only say that i hope we were not sent back for this particular reason..... ;) i've been looking through my notes, and am going to have to carefully consider what to post here. so you'll have to wait to hear more... mwishka p.s. zomorrud, what group is this group of women observers? bro hanif, what was the group or organization from lancashire? (ok, ok, that was the other topic, but i don't feel like going back and forth... i'll hope my questions get answered here... :) ) |
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| Shahida |
| 06/19/02 at 09:57:25 |
| [slm] Thinking about Mwishka's ordeal, made me remember an article I read just a little while ago in the Palestine Times newspaper (http://www.ptimes.org). The article was beautifully written by Ramzy Baroud; I feel like I know him from his writing, although we have only ever "met" in cyberspace... Read it, inshaAllah, and think about ALL the thousands of people this happens to on a daily basis...:( Yes, I am a Palestinian from Gaza Ramzy Baroud* Is this the end of a journey? Samih Shaqir sings, a lonely voice in my small room: “My yearning to the homeland, oh mother is asking me where are your loved ones?” I join in. My crude singing voice, however, interferes with the flow of the song, especially as an expected presence of tears roughens my voice even further. Yes, it must be the end of the journey. When I hauled my bags and headed to Palestine a month ago, I was hoping to find Jenin, to be reunited with my refugee camp and my beloved country, to embrace my father, to pray near my mother’s grave, to share simple gifts with my nieces and nephews. But I came back daunted by the fact that even such simple wishes are too much to desire, for a Palestinian. I am one. I headed to Palestine with numerous documents, passports, IDs—some issued by the Palestinians, others by the Egyptians, the Americans, even the Israelis when they ruled Gaza. But not once throughout my journey was my existence as a Palestinian acknowledged. I carried the burden of four nations in my bag, and yet I belonged to none. “I begged like I never begged before,” was the first thing I told my wife who received me at the airport with my two daughters. I begged them to let me into Palestine. I acted so dignified when I first attempted to enter into the West Bank. Perhaps I was empowered by the fact that I held an American passport, or by the assumption that one’s right to visit his family after eight years is not much to wish for. I was wrong. I knew that one day I would regret pleading to a disinterested Israeli solider, one among many who took over the border point between Jordan and the West Bank: “You’ve got to let me in; you can’t do this to me. It’s my family; you know what a family is? My father is dying. I’ve got to visit my home.” He looked at me and failed to hide a canny smile: “I cannot help you, you have to go back home to Washington.” It’s the same statement that I heard over and over again from most of those from which I sought help. Even sympathetic Palestinians urged me to “go back,” that there was no hope. Israel would not let me in. But who is able to define “returning?” What if “returning home” for me means Gaza, not Washington? Will Washington open its arms to embrace me when I “come back?” I was singled out at every airport I entered. Even in Amsterdam, on my way back, a long interrogation left me to be the last passenger to be admitted on the airplane, although I arrived hours before anyone else. My American passport indicates that my birthplace is Gaza. The suspicious eyes which that simple four letter word, “Gaza” generated was enough to make me feel like a criminal, making a run from the law, from Amman, across Europe, and back to the U.S. “So, you’re from Gaza?” I was asked that same accusing question in various languages in many airports. Each time I proved my innocence and found my seat on an airplane, I carried the feeling of guilt all the way to the next destination, where once again I was singled out, cornered, and asked, with mounting suspicion as a mouse who fell into a trap: “So, you’re from Gaza?” On my way back, I carried my sadness and kept to myself in a long flight from Amsterdam. I was determined to keep my crime a secret from all of those on the airplane. But my wound was opened by the story of an Italian American from Sicily who had just visited his birthplace in Italy after 53 years of separation. “Did you honestly feel a sense of belonging to Sicily after all of these years, although you left your home while you were just a child?” I asked the man with the handsome beard and heart full of joy. “You know,” he replied as his eyes wandered in the limited space of the crowded airplane, “if your mother gave birth to you, and if you were forced to part immediately after your birth, she’ll remain your mother, even 53 years later. Sicily for me was like a mother. I cannot describe to you how incredible it was to finally meet her, to hug her and to kiss her. How about you, how was your visit?” “I, too, was looking for my mother,” I replied, this time with the same unwanted tears gathering in my weary eyes. “Unfortunately, I neither met her, nor hugged her, nor kissed her.” The man understood my story and I spent hours answering his many questions about my lost mother. He commented, cleverly and with much sympathy: “No matter what they do, they cannot deny you the love of a mother.” My two girls ran to me as I arrived, worn and tired. “Daddy, daddy,” they screamed. “Did you get me a dress from Palestine with all the colors of the rainbow on it?” my three-year-old Zarefah asked excitedly. “Yes I did, sweetheart.” Zarefah no longer goes to sleep without a “special story about Palestine.” I made up many stories about my imaginary journey to Gaza, about the sandy beaches and how her grandfather was so angry that I did not bring her along. The little angel believed every word. How I wish those imaginary stories were true. *The managing editor of Middle East News Online (http://middleeastwire.com/) |
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| zomorrud |
| 06/19/02 at 12:14:01 |
| mwishka, The organization is the International Women's Peace Service(IWPS), is based in the UK. The friend who is going is involved with a muslim women's group here in toronto, Canada. I heard from her today that the project will aim at sending teams of women to establish and live in a house in the Governate of Salfit for three years in order to monitor, document and report violations of human rights. Each member of the team is committed to spend three months per year for the next three years. The training that I will be attending is in preparation for this work. The first team should be ready to move there in August 1, 2002. Well, studying amyloid proteins is not as exciting I guess, but at least it is safer! The misbehaviour of my protein sometimes makes me doubt even that, mind you! :P I hope your protein treats you well. take care BTW, I am not working on amyloid proteins, just another protein that loves to aggregate at the concentrations I want to work at. |
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| BroHanif |
| 06/19/02 at 18:12:06 |
| Hi mwishka, As far as I know the group from the UK also got refused entry on waht grounds really I don't know. The group was called Preston Friends of Al-Aqsa. A number of brothers went over, to assits the locals in wahtever way they could. I think the aim was to great greater awareness and perhaps generate more love for Al-Quds, in fact the've carried out quite a lot in the U.K. From lobbying the supermarkets to stop selling Israeli goods to educating the people on the plight of the Palestinians and the role of Al-Quds. I'm sure the bros won't stop but in fact I'm sure the've become stronger in their quest for liberating the people of Al-Quds from the terror machine of the zionists. Hanif |
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| mwishka |
| 06/19/02 at 20:25:55 |
| ok, do people here really still want to read a long account of our mortifying ordeal, or a summary? it's not going to be the story it was intended to be......which i know would have been extremely interesting to everyone, so i don't know how to proceed... this could turn into a very long series of posts, for a not very long escapade..... you know, mwishka-esque.... |
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| nur-ul-aain |
| 06/19/02 at 20:43:02 |
| peace mwishka, i'm planning on writing an article, God willing, about what happened to you and mehreen along with the others who were brave enough to go..if possible a detailed account of what took place would be excellent..you dont have to post it here if u dont want to..you can always email me or ask shahida to in case you dont got my email..either way i really wanna write about this incident >:( anywayz..i pray you are well..i heard you were sick at the airport there and unfortunately weren't being taken care of..i hope u've regained your health..that's about it from my side..i gtg study for an exam now :( in solidarity, nur ul aain |
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| eleanor |
| 06/20/02 at 06:24:02 |
| [slm] I'd like to read a mwishka-esque version :) Just remember to hit the return key now and again between paragraphs (paragraphs?says mwishka ;D) and Insha Allah we will all benefit from the experience. wasalaam eleanor :-* |
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| Shahida |
| 06/21/02 at 02:20:47 |
| [slm] Since Mwishka came home, I have also heard several stories about friends of mine being turned away at the border into Palestine...a few lucky ones got through, but 2 of them were kept for over 3 days, then sent back to Jordan, only to be interrogated by the Jordanians again!!! :( This situation is intolerable. Mwishki, please write whichever version of yuor story you are comfortable in telling, inshaAllah. We wait with baited breath! It is important especially for those brothers and sisters, who have never had the "pleasure" of interacting with Israelis... Peace and love Shahida :-) |
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