Ali Abu Awwad
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Ali Abu Awwad (, born 1972) is a prominent
Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
peace activist A peace movement is a social movement which seeks to achieve ideals such as the ending of a particular war (or wars) or minimizing inter-human violence in a particular place or situation. They are often linked to the goal of achieving world p ...
and proponent of
nonviolence Nonviolence is the personal practice of not causing harm to others under any condition. It may come from the belief that hurting people, animals and/or the environment is unnecessary to achieve an outcome and it may refer to a general philosoph ...
. He is the founder of ''Taghyeer'' (Change), a Palestinian national movement promoting nonviolence to achieve and guarantee a nonviolent solution to the conflict. Awwad's story and efforts have been featured in over twelve documentaries including two award-winning films, '' Encounter Point'' and
Forbidden Childhood
'. Furthermore, he was honored by the global nonprofit thinktank Synergos as the Arab World Social Innovator in Palestine for "introducing non-violence,
reconciliation Reconciliation or reconcile may refer to: Accounting * Reconciliation (accounting) Arts, entertainment, and media Books * Reconciliation (Under the North Star), ''Reconciliation'' (''Under the North Star''), the third volume of the ''Under the ...
, and civic participation to Palestinians as a means of empowering citizens to seek social change and find a more equitable solution to conflict." Awwad is currently finishing his memoir called ''Painful Hope'', an account of his
experience Experience refers to Consciousness, conscious events in general, more specifically to perceptions, or to the practical knowledge and familiarity that is produced by these processes. Understood as a conscious event in the widest sense, experience i ...
s as well as his strategy and vision for the
Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
future. He lives in
Beit Ummar Beit Ummar () is a Palestinian town located eleven kilometers northwest of Hebron in the Hebron Governorate of the State of Palestine. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, in 2017, the town had a population of 16,977 inhabi ...
, near
Hebron Hebron (; , or ; , ) is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Hebron is capital of the Hebron Governorate, the largest Governorates of Palestine, governorate in the West Bank. With a population of 201,063 in ...
.


Biography

Refugees A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...
from Al-Qubayba near
Bayt Jibrin Bayt Jibrin or Beit Jibrin ( lit. 'House of the Powerful') was an Arab village in the Hebron Subdistrict of British Mandatory Palestine, in what is today the State of Israel, which was depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. It was ...
, Awwad's family was forced off their land in the
1948 Palestine war The 1948 Palestine war was fought in the territory of what had been, at the start of the war, British-ruled Mandatory Palestine. During the war, the British withdrew from Palestine, Zionist forces conquered territory and established the Stat ...
(The Nakba) and subsequently settled in Beit Ummar. Awwad, born in Halhoul in
Hebron Governorate The Hebron Governorate () is an administrative district of Palestine in the southern West Bank. The governorate's land area is and its population according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics in mid-year 2019 was 1,004,510. This ...
in the
West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
, was raised in a politically active family and at a young age, following in his mother's footsteps, became a member of
Fatah Fatah ( ; ), formally the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (), is a Palestinian nationalist and Arab socialist political party. It is the largest faction of the confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and ...
. (His mother was a close associate of
Yasser Arafat Yasser Arafat (4 or 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), also popularly known by his Kunya (Arabic), kunya Abu Ammar, was a Palestinian political leader. He was chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) from 1969 to 2004, Presid ...
and was a leader of Fatah in the region). Prior to becoming a nonviolent activist, he served two prison sentences in Israel. First arrested while studying for secondary exams (after an Israeli helicopter observer reported seeing him throw stones), Awwad refused to pay a 1,500
shekel A shekel or sheqel (; , , plural , ) is an ancient Mesopotamian coin, usually of silver. A shekel was first a unit of weight—very roughly 11 grams (0.35 ozt)—and became currency in ancient Tyre, Carthage and Hasmonean Judea. Name The wo ...
fine, stating later that, although a stone-thrower, he had not participated that day. Eight months later, he took part in the
First Intifada The First Intifada (), also known as the First Palestinian Intifada, was a sustained series of Nonviolent resistance, non-violent protests, acts of civil disobedience, Riot, riots, and Terrorism, terrorist attacks carried out by Palestinians ...
as a teenager, and was subsequently sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges of stone-throwing, throwing
Molotov cocktails A Molotov cocktail (among several other names – ''see '') is a hand-thrown incendiary weapon consisting of a frangible container filled with flammable substances and equipped with a fuse (typically a glass bottle filled with flammable l ...
, and being active in a military
cell Cell most often refers to: * Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life * Cellphone, a phone connected to a cellular network * Clandestine cell, a penetration-resistant form of a secret or outlawed organization * Electrochemical cell, a de ...
. According to Awwad, his major crime consisted in refusing to cooperate with his interrogators who wanted information concerning his mother's political activities. He served four years and was released after the signing of the
Oslo Accords The Oslo Accords are a pair of interim agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO): the Oslo I Accord, signed in Washington, D.C., in 1993; and the Oslo II Accord, signed in Taba, Egypt, in 1995. They marked the st ...
. Along with 280 released prisoners, he was confined to
Jericho Jericho ( ; , ) is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, and the capital of the Jericho Governorate. Jericho is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It had a population of 20,907 in 2017. F ...
for the remainder of his sentence. Awwad's story of transformation, from former militant to supporter and educator of nonviolence, began during his second stint in prison. In 1993, he coordinated a hunger strike with his mother, also in prison at the time, in order for them to see each other. After 17 days on strike, their confiners permitted the request. The success of the strike was a turning point: "When we succeeded, it transformed my political mind; I realised that another, non-violent, way to achieve my rights existed. I had been blinded by arguments – about blame, victimhood, punishment and justice. But now I realised that showing my humanity in a non-violent way was the best weapon to achieve my rights." On his release, he was recruited by the PA as a security officer, working for them until he resigned in 1997 out of disagreement and despair. On 20 October 2000, after the outbreak of the
Al Aqsa Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its Israeli-occupied territories, occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and October 2000 prot ...
, According to Awwad he was shot in the leg by an
Israeli settler Israeli settlements, also called Israeli colonies, are the civilian communities built by Israel throughout the Israeli-occupied territories. They are populated by Israeli citizens, almost exclusively of Jewish identity or ethnicity, and hav ...
. He was evacuated to
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
, where he received medical treatment. On returning, Awwad learned of his brother Yousef's death. Yousef was an employee of a company that worked with the
Jewish National Fund The Jewish National Fund (JNF; , ''Keren Kayemet LeYisrael''; previously , ''Ha Fund HaLeumi'') is a non-profit organizationProfessor Alon Tal, The Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, The Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben Gurion ...
, and, according to his brother, was not involved in militant activities. He was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier at a close distance. (In a further account, Awwad says the shooting arose from talking back to the soldier, a violation of a new regulation of which he was unaware). Yousef's tragedy marked another turn in Awwad's personal and political life: "My brother wasn't a criminal or a terrorist, he was my best friend, a beautiful man who had two kids who he wanted to raise," he recalls. "I spent sleepless nights with my suffering. I struggled with the concepts of justice and revenge. But taking revenge was not the answer for me. Not because there was a lack of pain or anger but because what I wanted was justice. Yet the only ''real'' justice – to have my brother back again – was impossible. When I realised that, I hated myself, my enemy and the whole world. I felt that I was the victim of everyone."


Becoming an activist

Awwad, together with his mother and brother Khalid, became a member of the Bereaved Families Forum, after its founder reached out to the family expressing condolences and support. A year after Yousef's death, Awwad's mother hosted a group of bereaved Israeli parents. At the forum, Awwad met and was befriended by Robi Damelin. Their connection resulted in a years-long world tour, the two activists arguing that peace can only occur if reconciliation takes place between the victims. Awwad's political consciousness changed as a result of these talks.
"I began a complex, painful journey in non-violence and reconciliation, touring almost 40 countries and speaking out in order to bring this message. But I also realised it was essential to create a national Palestinian non-violent movement that would ensure two things: that we could resist occupation non-violently, but lsothat we would stop being victims and begging others to help us. I believe this first step has to come from us. This doesn't mean Israel isn't guilty or that we are angels. But we have to create a place where we will no longer be prisoners of the anger that this situation creates every day. We must escape the prison of our narrative."
Along with other activists, ex-prisoners, and youth, Awwad created the Taghyeer movement with the aim "to show people that they can develop themselves without waiting for others." He adds, "We have visited communities and engaged community leaders in order to create the mass movement that will guarantee enough pressure nd supporton politicians of both sides."


Taghyeer and nonviolence

Awwad began reading into the nonviolent strategies and philosophies of Gandhi, Mandela, and Martin Luther King Jr. while imprisoned. Acting upon those principles first with the hunger strike and later by founding and organizing Taghyeer, Awwad sees nonviolence as manifesting a lifestyle of successfully defending one's rights. On 24 September 2016, Taghyeer organized a mass demonstration in support of "nonviolent transformation" for over 3,000 Palestinian men, women, and children hailing from areas throughout the West Bank. The movement also serves as a grassroots initiative incubator, organizing workshops and community actions to empower local Palestinians by identifying "community priorities" and by initiating "the appropriate projects throughout the West Bank." Taghyeer, the Metta Center for Nonviolence writes, is dedicated "to fostering Palestinian national nonviolent identity in action – through which communities, leaders, and organizations come together to address social development needs, and at the same time resist occupation and open a path to resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict." When peace negotiations have stalled and Palestinian suffering continues, Awwad points to nonviolence as a path for hope: "The Palestinians have been living in extreme despair for years and both the international community and Israeli society have given us no hope, no model of peaceful solution. The role of nonviolence is to speak to people's despair – not to tell them they are right, but to show them a way out." Nonviolence, as Awwad sees it, transforms those who embody its way of life: "I think nonviolence is the celebration of my existence. I used to wake up, and I wish that I was not born. Today I wake up and I celebrate this."


Reconciliation efforts

Awwad is a friend of Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger, a Jewish leader of
Roots A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusin ...
. They have been on several international tours together, speaking about their stories of personal transformation and building awareness of their efforts to forge reconciliation and understanding between Israelis and Palestinians. When met with criticism for these efforts, especially in regard to speaking with right wing Jews, Awwad responds that dialogue does not start with agreement, but rather is "the secure place for argument," adding, "If we don't dialogue with the people we disagree with how can we have any solutions." After meeting Awwad, among other Palestinians, Schlesinger underwent a reconfiguration of his political and spiritual self: "When you only live among your own and only know your own narrative, you are naturally very suspicious of the other who is just an intruder and just a thorn in your side and something that doesn't belong there," he says. "But when you open up your heart and you see the other, you begin to see the truth is complex – that my truth is true, but it's a partial truth and there's another truth that's also partial and I have to learn to put them together and make the larger truth. I believe we can do that."
David Shulman David Shulman (November 12, 1912 – October 30, 2004) was an American lexicographer and cryptographer. Shulman contributed many early usages to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' and is listed among "Readers and contributors from collections" for ...
, who describes him as one of the leaders of a new generation of nonviolent resisters in Palestine, quotes him as arguing: "The Jews are not my enemy; their fear is my enemy. We must help them to stop being so afraid – their whole history has terrified them – but I refuse to be a victim of Jewish fear anymore." 5 David Shulman has cited Awwad as one of three exponents of
satyagraha Satyāgraha (from ; ''satya'': "truth", ''āgraha'': "insistence" or "holding firmly to"), or "holding firmly to truth",' or "truth force", is a particular form of nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. Someone who practises satyagraha is ...
active on the West bank, together with Abdallah Abu Rahmah and the Israeli peace activist
Ezra Nawi Ezra Yitzhak Nawi (; 1951 – 9 January 2021) was an Israeli Jew, left-wing, human rights activist and pacifist. He was particularly active among the Bedouin herders and farmers of the South Hebron Hills and against the establishment of Israeli ...
6 "Some people think that satyagraha andhi's word for nonviolenceis weakness; they believe the angrier you are, the stronger you will be. This is a great mistake. ... You cannot practice nonviolence without listening to the other side's narrative. But first you have to give up being the victim. When you do that, no one will be able to victimize you again" 7 Yet even for Awwad, dialogue work merely scratches the surface of what is required to bring dignity, security, and peace to the Holy Land. Taghyeer, according to him, remains the path forward. "Our role is not to dialogue forever. Dialogue is only a carrier from truth to a bigger truth. The bigger truth is what we need to do ''for'' peace: not only building a non-violent identity, but creating a mass movement on the ground – where hundreds of thousands of people will come onto the street to force the political leadership to sit and find a solution that we will all benefit from," commenting that the bigger truth is having two truths fit in the land with dignity and freedom.


Political vision

Awwad's speeches often bring up a dichotomy between being right and being successful, his personal preference the latter—a reality he sees materializing through mass political and social pressure: a movement of hundreds of Palestinians that will stand up nonviolently for their rights, and an Israeli mirror to support the cause. According to his political vision, a national framework must be developed for peace: "It has to be a national movement on the ground. A national nonviolent movement because peace for us is not to dialogue with Israelis… Dialogue is not a goal for us." In the same Tedx Jerusalem speech, he continues, "Peace for us is not to go to five-star peace conferences, where these organizations take their members to feel good with themselves and they eat hummus and hug each other. Peace for us is not to continue a good life. Peace for us is to start living, because we are not alive. … Peace is engagement in normal life conditions," in which human and national rights are in harmony with people's lives."


See also

*
List of peace activists This list of peace activists includes people who have proactively advocated Diplomacy, diplomatic, philosophical, and non-military resolution of major territorial or ideological disputes through nonviolent means and methods. Peace activists usua ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Awwad, Ali Abu 1972 births Living people Palestinian nonviolence advocates People from Halhul Date of birth missing (living people)