Voice for Middle East Peace
Written by Jan Jaben-Eilon Wednesday, July 20 2011
Snapshot Hanan Ashrawi
Hanan Ashrawi gained notoriety in the United States when Yasser Arafat appointed her as official spokesperson of the Palestinian delegation to the Middle East peace process that started in Madrid in 1991. Ashrawi was born in Nablus, a Palestinian city in the West Bank, to Palestinian Christian parents in 1946 and grew up in Ramallah. Her father, Daoud Mikhail, was one of the founders of the Palestine Liberation Organization.
She received her bachelor's and master's degrees in literature in the department of English at the American University of Beirut. While studying for her Ph.D. in medieval and comparative literature from the University of Virginia, she gained part of her education in dissent and activism from the growing women's movement.
Later, she became chair of the department of English at Birzeit University, an old Anglican teacher's college between Jerusalem and Ramallah. Ashrawi is the recipient of numerous international peace, human rights, and democracy awards, such as the Olof Palme Award, the Defender of Democracy Award, the Jane Addams International Women's Leadership Award, the Distinguished Alumna Award of the University of Virginia Women's Center, the Distinguished Lifetime Achievements AUB Alumni Award, and the Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Peace and Reconciliation.
She’s written several books, including This Side of Peace: A Personal Account. The mother of two daughters and three young grandsons, she lives with her husband in Ramallah in the West Bank.
Womenetics: You are probably the most well-known Palestinian female (other than perhaps the wife of King Abdullah in Jordan). How much are women playing a role in Palestinian civil society?
Hanan Ashrawi: The problem is that Palestinian women’s energies have been focused on work within the civil society. We have various women’s groups, think tanks, and organizations for good governance and democracy. Women are at the forefront of civil society. The issue is, how far can we challenge traditional stereotypes? Our women are quite strong. We have an active women’s movement, which has made many inroads in challenging traditional attitudes and patriarchal society. I was the first woman to be elected to the Palestine Liberation Organization. But we are fighting against the super-woman syndrome in which super exceptional women are chosen (as tokens) to the exclusion of others.
Womenetics: You’ve been touted as someone who is masterful at handling the press. How come we haven’t seen you on the news much in recent years?
Ashrawi: There are several reasons. The fact is we haven’t been front-page news, particularly in the United States. Second, I’m not the spokesperson anymore and third, I try to stay out of the media. I’m doing other things, and the press is looking for more sensational types. But now I am speaking out again and addressing the issues.
The idea to ask the U.N. in September to recognize Palestine is part of an overall strategy. In 1988, the Palestinian National Council accepted the two-state solution and a negotiated settlement. We accepted U.N. Resolutions 181, 242, and 338. In 1991, we went to the Madrid peace talks to end the occupation and gain our independence. For two decades we have been negotiating, and this is an unfair situation.
Israel has been given the time and space and immunity to take more land and build more settlements. It’s a very prejudicial situation, and now a two-state solution is in jeopardy. Now the “process” is a threat to peace. This mechanism is clearly flawed, so we are going to the U.N. to address this multilaterally. We want our territory to be defined; we want to abide by international laws.
Womenetics: What do you think American women most need to know about the Palestinian people?
Ashrawi: American women need to know us as we are rather than through preconceived notions or convenient labels. They need to see us in our fullness of humanity. We are an ancient people, highly educated, and inclusive of Christians, Moslems, and Jews. We need justice. We are a nation that became refugees, yet we are willing to accept 22 percent of historical Palestine. We want to be a nation among nations.
Womenetics: In 1998, you founded Miftah – the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy – to foster the principles of democracy and effective dialogue based on the free and candid exchange of information and ideas. What kind of progress have you seen in the last 13 years?
Ashrawi: I have actually created three civil organizations. In 1994, I established the first Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens’ Rights, which is still functioning, and I’m still on the board. In 1998, I founded Miftah and focused on the empowerment of women and youth and real dialogue within the Palestinian people and externally. We have a good website. And third, I started in 1999 and we opened in 2000, the Palestinian National Coalition for Accountability and Integrity, which is an anti-corruption institution. We are the Palestinian chapter of Transparency International.
Womenetics: Are there any joint Israeli-Palestinian women’s groups working for peace?
Ashrawi: Since the 1980s, there have been several dialogue groups, but institutionally it’s difficult because it’s hard for Israelis to come to us and for Palestinians to go to Israel, even East Jerusalem. So it’s hard to communicate; discourse has regressed a bit. And in Israel there are now laws that target civil society and peace groups, and many of them feel intimidated.
Womenetics: Do you ever get frustrated with the lack of progress in the peace process?
Ashrawi: I get absolutely exhausted. It’s like in Greek mythology: Sisyphus keeps rolling the rock up the hill only to watch it roll back down. It’s exasperating, but I can’t afford to give up. We have to keep educating the American public. We must re-explain and rescue the objective, which is peace, and peace is a noble objective. The process is flawed, and we’re trying to fix the mechanism. Hopefully by going international and changing the dynamics, we can inject new energy and a new sense of justice.
Womenetics: Why do you think polls show more support for Israel among Americans than for the Palestinian people?
Ashrawi: The mainstream media created prejudices against Palestinians. Now we have social media and more conversation. Gradually, once people know the truth, they will think in terms of values and the universality of human rights. It’s time to address this.
Womenetics: Who has had the biggest, positive influence on your life?
Ashrawi: I cannot single out one person – my daughters as well as my husband. Books I’ve read as well as poetry, and people who have had courage. I think of a little boy who stood before a tank. It’s that kind of anonymous courage that positively influences me.
Jan Jaben-Eilon was a founding staff writer of the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Since then, she has been the international editor of Advertising Age magazine and has written for such publications as The New York Times, International Herald Tribune, Washington Journalism Review, and Consumer Reports. She is the author of soon-to-be-published (There is) Life After Cancer. Jan and her husband have homes in Atlanta and Jerusalem.
