What does security mean to Palestinian Salim Shawamreh?
Palestine, Politics, 10/21/1998

42 year old Palestinian Salim Shawamreh has just arrived in the USA on a one month tour to various US cities to speak about peace and what it means to him and other Palestinians who live under Israeli occupation.

Salim's house was demolished by the Israeli government recently. His house was rebuilt a second time with the help of sympathetic Israelis, but the Israeli government in its common practice, demolished the house again within 24 hours.

Salim said, "I am here to tell the Americans that with billions of dollars that they are giving to the Israelis in Palestine, they are making their settlements and destroying our houses with this money."

"I hope that the Americans will make some pressure on the Israeli people to enter the road of peace and make peace with the Palestinians to stop demolishing their houses, to stop expanding their settlements, to stop stealing the lands of Palestinians," Salim added. "We don't want to enter the road of terror, we want the peace, so we want their government to go with us in this road and this will not come until the Americans make some pressure on this government."

Asked about his financial condition and if he needed any help, he said, "As you know everyone in our country spends all his life to build a home. For me I make two homes and they were destroyed in one month, and I sold my car. I am also five thousand dollars in debt and I hope that the Arab people here will help not just me but all Palestinians who have their homes demolished and are living in a tent as the winter is coming."

Hala Maksoud, the head of the American - Arab Anti Discrimination Committee, which is sponsoring this trip, said about this practice of home demolishing, "It is not destroying a complete building, it is destroying a life." She added that the goal of the trip is "to make people aware of what is going on (Israeli practices) and to translate that into effecting policy, so that people can sign postcards and petitions" that can be sent to the president, state department and congress.

Salim, now living in a tent with his wife and six children, recalled trying to rebuild his demolished house and how Palestinians are portrayed. He said, "I would like to say that the Palestinians are not what the Israelis portray them to be. We are weak. We don't have the power which the Israelis have. They are talking about security all the time. Imagine 400 soldiers coming to a home and pulling six children to the street, push them to the street with their father and mother, who wants security? These six children or the 400 soldiers with their weapons?"

Asked about whether he wants President Arafat to do anything specific during the current negotiations with Israel, he said, "We hope, because there have been a lot of negotiations before, but without a result, I hope that there will be results to enter in a peace and feel the peace."

Previous Stories:
  Only a comprehensive Palestinian - Israeli agreement will be accepted   (10/21/1998)
  House demolished again, the saga continues   (8/4/1998)
  Rabbi speaks against immoral Israeli practice, other Israelis help   (8/3/1998)

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