Redress Information & Analysis, UK
Jan 1 2008
Palestinians – write your history
Secure the future by securing the past
By Christopher King
2 January 2009
Christopher King calls on Palestinians to `write their detailed
history not only to preserve the memory of sons, daughters, husbands,
wives, fathers and mothers murdered by the Jews in stealing their land
and property, but also to serve as a foundation for their claim to the
land and development of their state’.
‘Facts and truth are the weapons that will win because in the end, no
one can live with the men of lies and violence.’
I wish to tell you two true anecdotes:
About 35 years ago I had a dream that God’s people in Palestine were
in serious trouble. They were being shot and killed. The dream
instructed me to go there and see what was happening. When I awoke I
thought, `Well, the Jews are God’s people (I had been raised as a
Christian fundamentalist) and they are looking after themselves very
well against the terrorists. Anyway, what can I do?’ So I didn’t go
and dismissed the dream as merely an inexplicable dream.
About 10 years later I was on a management course with Issa, a very
witty young man from Palestine. We were talking one day and he told me
about his parents’ farm that they were trying to sell. `Farming has
become very difficult,’ he said. `The Israelis cut off water to the
farm when it is most needed so they can use it themselves. They forbid
transport of farm produce to the market on security grounds, but it is
so their own produce will get the best prices. Our melons have rotted
in the fields.’ I had in mind recent hijacks of aircraft by
Palestinian terrorists and thought, `Issa’s just trying to make
Palestinian propaganda against the Israelis.’ I expressed some doubts
because I thought at the time that Jews could not possibly be doing
the things attributed to them by Issa and others after their own
experiences at the hands of the Nazis. Issa assured me several times,
`It’s true!’ But I didn’t believe him.
Much later, I learned that what Issa had said was true. I hadn’t
thought much about the earlier dream either but then realized that it
wasn’t about the Jews. God’s people in Palestine were the
Palestinians. God, of course, supports what is right.
Thinking about this now, I would like to suggest a Palestinian
project.
There is a clever saying that in warfare, `History is written by the
victors.’ Like many such aphorisms it is wrong. History is written by
those who write it.
It is shocking, therefore, to see Israelis intentionally destroying
the history of the Palestinians with the destruction of the
Palestinian Authority’s records and those at the Nablus library. These
administrative records would include land tenure and other personal
details that would give legitimacy to future claims against Israel in
respect of right of return, land and water rights, etc. Without
supporting records a government can make no claims and individuals
cease to exist officially. Israel is attempting to erase the
Palestinians as a people.
Until the present time, the history of Palestine has been written by
non-Palestinians. The Palestinian people must write their own history
if they are to survive. This is something that is not the particular
responsibility of the Palestinian Authority, Hamas or even schools and
universities, although they might all have a part. It is something
that can be done by every individual Palestinian man, woman and child.
Writing history is very simple: Keep a diary of what you see every
day. History is what happened yesterday and without a record, it will
be forgotten. One day, whether in five, 10, or a 100 years, that
record will be valuable ` even if it only confirms that one lived in a
certain place on a certain date. It is 60 years since 1948 when Israel
was recognized; that generation is passing away and information is
being lost irretreivably.
The power of such a record is shown by the diary kept by a 13-year-old
Jewish schoolgirl, Anne Frank, who was hidden from the Nazis by a
German family. This is an immensely moving story that was made into a
film and, as a book, is widely bought and read at the present time. It
is a highly emotive fragment of the holocaust history, a pillar of the
Jewish claim to Palestine. Its power derives from this young girl’s
experiences every day of her hiding, the record of which has far
outlasted her own life, since she died in the death camps. There will
be thousands, even a hundred thousand stories like hers within the
Palestinian refugee camps and in Gaza. These are the heritage of the
Palestinian people and should be recorded.
The current Israeli attacks on, and siege of, Gaza present immediate
problems of survival for the population. They are also important
events not merely for the Palestinians but for world history and it is
important that they should be recorded in as much detail, by as many
persons as possible. More authentic accounts of this might be produced
for the future than that of Josephus’s account of the siege of
Jerusalem by the Romans, itself an extremely rare and valuable
record. Gaza’s inhabitants are immersed in this major episode in
Palestinian history and personal accounts of it are of great
value. Indeed, it is so important that if recording these events
becomes widespread, we may expect the Israelis to search for and
attempt to destroy such records. For the moment, it might well be
impossible to control events but the next best thing is to record
them. Every person who can write should write exactly what s/he has
seen. Those who cannot write should find someone who can write for them.
It is also important for older people to record their life stories:
where they have lived, who their parents were, their land tenure, who
their neighbours were, what they have seen and done. If they have seen
olive trees uprooted, record it. If they have seen someone killed or
injured, record it. Recording the names of friends and neighbours is
important as it gives the possibility of corroboration to an account
and to other accounts. In particular, the knowledge of those
individuals who have been dispossessed from the present territory of
Israel or by settlers should be recorded in as much detail as
possible. The knowledge of those inside Israel, the West Bank, Gaza,
in refugee camps and in other countries is all valuable. Record
everything. It is impossible to tell what details might be important
in 10, 50 or a 100 years time and if a dozen people record the same
fact, this gives corroboration.
Recorders and diarists should bear in mind that eyewitness accounts,
or `primary evidence’ is the rarest and most valuable material to
historians. It is given high credibility by courts and tribunals even
after the death of the writer. Secondary evidence is what has been
reported to the writer by other eyewitnesses; this is good but not of
the same quality. Information from other sources is also good but is
of lesser quality still. In any record, it is important to distinguish
accurately the type of information recorded and to be
accurate. Inaccuracies will discredit the record.
It is clear that the positions of Israel, the United States and United
Kingdom will continue in the immediate future as they have in the
past. In these circumstances, and given the asymmetry of forces, the
most useful skills are not how to use a rifle or make an anti-tank
device. They are writing and librarians’ skills. These skills can
secure the Palestinian people’s future. Keeping a diary and recording
personal history requires no great financial or material resources and
may be done by anyone who can write. If one cannot write, there will
surely be a friend who can and it is always possible to learn. Even a
very young child can provide a valuable eyewitness record of important
events such as the demolition of a house, what happened at a
checkpoint, family deaths and illnesses or the movement of a family to
another location. Once such a record is created, no matter by whom, it
immediately becomes part of Palestinian history and has historical
value. Imagine its existence in 500 years time. It should be kept
safe accordingly and for major events, such as the current military
strikes against Gaza, even copied and sent out of the country for safe
keeping. Community leaders might coordinate community-wide recording
programmes. These records should never be gathered to central
locations where they would become vulnerable to destruction. Their
security lies in their dispersion and retention by the writers.
Until now, emphasis has been on accessing the American/European press
about the Palestinians’ plight. Zionist money controls the press as it
does our corrupt politicians. Further, the American and European
publics are in denial of these terrible events, as if they do not
concern them. For the moment, these are not the most important
factors. What is important is the construction of a body of
evidence. Every single Palestinian has the ability to contribute to
this project, and if the Palestinian people are to have a future,
should do so. There are over five million Palestinians in Israel, Gaza
and the West Bank. This population might aim to keep one million
records. Means of using them will emerge in time. Mass recording
should begin immediately.
This strategy is not only legal and safe under international law but
is an essential and recognized procedure as a basis for future
representations to the United Nations, International Criminal Court,
European Union or other international bodies. It is very likely that
if a programme of mass recording should be undertaken, this in itself
will generate enormous interest in the rest of the world because
nothing like it has ever been done before. It cannot be ignored and it
cannot be prevented.
To illustrate the importance of such evidence, the Armenian people
allege that, under the Turkish/Ottoman empire, approximately 1.5
million Armenians were systematically murdered. This is denied by the
Turkish government. There is, however, very little detailed evidence
for the Armenian claim. Outside Turkey, it is accepted that what the
Armenians say is true. One of very few personal accounts of the
massacres is by a Turkish army officer and much of this is information
from others. There is a traveller’s report that the Turkish government
has recently had a programme of destroying Christian cemeteries,
memorials and churches in former Armenian areas in order to remove
evidence of Armenian communities. (Dalrymple W. From the Holy
Mountain) The absence of detailed accounts, together with destruction
of material evidence, enables the Turkish government to dispute the
massacres and repress discussion of them.
In the case of Palestine, which has a literacy level of about 80 per
cent, there is no reason whatever why the creation of a massive body
of eyewitness evidence should be a problem. All the events from the
foundation of Israel are currently within living memory and major
events are occurring daily. Palestinians should keep the Armenian case
in mind.
I should mention that the procedure of writing down one’s past
experiences and keeping a diary in Palestine’s present circumstances
has important psychological benefits to the individual. The creation
of a very large body of such accounts will also give wider emergent
benefits that are not at present obvious. One that I have mentioned is
external interest.
With regard to my dream, I do not consider it to be a message from
God, which would be an extraordinary claim. I think of it as a
perception of my own mind from below consciousness. In a certain
sense, these are the same thing.
This battle is truly not of money and weapons. It is firstly of hearts
and minds, which has been often said before, but must be
understood. Events occur in men’s minds before they are expressed in
violence, so it is there that one must fight. Facts and truth are the
weapons that will win because in the end, no one can live with the men
of lies and violence. The Palestinian people should write their
detailed history not only to preserve the memory of sons, daughters,
husbands, wives, fathers and mothers murdered by the Jews in stealing
their land and property, but also to serve as a foundation for their
claim to the land and development of their state.
Christopher King is a retired consultant and lecturer in management
and marketing. He lives in London, UK.