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The Contribution of Women to Peace and Reconciliation

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the Naqba, the majority <strong>of</strong> the Palestinians became refugees. After the<br />

dispossession <strong>of</strong> all their property, both women <strong>and</strong> men had <strong>to</strong> go <strong>to</strong><br />

work. Education became the most important weapon for all men <strong>and</strong><br />

women. <strong>The</strong> role <strong>of</strong> women in the refugee camps became important.<br />

<strong>Women</strong> were responsible <strong>of</strong> obtaining the distributed aid <strong>to</strong> the “poor<br />

refugees”. Men started <strong>to</strong> emigrate <strong>to</strong> the surrounding countries for<br />

work, mainly <strong>to</strong> the Arab Gulf countries, leaving women solely responsible<br />

for the families in the refugee camps. <strong>The</strong> new situation gave<br />

women more freedom <strong>of</strong> movement, but never <strong>to</strong> the level <strong>of</strong> participation<br />

in the decision-making. <strong>The</strong> struggle for freedom started <strong>and</strong><br />

women participated in this struggle in different ways, but women were<br />

denied the struggle for their rights <strong>and</strong> equality in the society. <strong>The</strong> national<br />

agenda has always had priority over the social agenda in all Palestinian<br />

political organizations, left or right. Still, women played a big role<br />

in this struggle, whether in the occupied l<strong>and</strong> or in the diaspora <strong>and</strong> the<br />

refugee camps. <strong>The</strong> economic hardships <strong>and</strong> education allowed women<br />

<strong>to</strong> start being the breadwinners in the families <strong>and</strong> they also started <strong>to</strong><br />

leave the country <strong>and</strong> the refugee camps for work in the Arab Gulf countries.<br />

<strong>The</strong> General Union <strong>of</strong> Palestinian <strong>Women</strong> was one <strong>of</strong> the main organizations<br />

<strong>of</strong> the PLO. This union had its representation in the Pa lestinian<br />

National Council, which was the Palestinian parliament. All political<br />

groups had their women’s organizations. In the West Bank <strong>and</strong> Gaza<br />

Strip, women’s volunteer groups emerged, <strong>and</strong> concentrated on the national<br />

struggle against the occupation. Many women were jailed; others<br />

were wounded. <strong>The</strong> turning point that changed the role <strong>of</strong> women was<br />

the First Intifada, in which women had a particularly big role. <strong>Women</strong><br />

actively participated in the demonstrations <strong>and</strong> s<strong>to</strong>ne-throwing; women<br />

were beaten, arrested <strong>and</strong> killed by the Israeli army. <strong>The</strong> army started<br />

<strong>to</strong> invade the houses, searching for women as well as men. <strong>Women</strong> organized<br />

public education campaigns. In addition <strong>to</strong> their traditional role,<br />

women started <strong>to</strong> enter the political public arena. Yet they suffered from<br />

the loss <strong>of</strong> their sons, husb<strong>and</strong>s <strong>and</strong> brothers, who were being killed or<br />

arrested. This increased the burden on them. <strong>Women</strong>’s grassroots organizations<br />

formed before the Intifada became more visible, <strong>and</strong> as -<br />

sumed a role in the society. Some taboos started <strong>to</strong> be slackened, <strong>and</strong><br />

women started <strong>to</strong> ask for a reflection <strong>of</strong> their role in fighting the occu-<br />

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