Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, November 2007, page 52
Arab-American Activism
HCEF Director Provides Update on Crisis in Palestine
RATEB RABIE, DIRECTOR of the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation (HCEF), chaired an Aug. 24 meeting at his Bethesda, MD offices to report on his latest trip to Palestine/Israel and begin preparations for HCEF’s 9th international conference, which will take place Oct. 26 and 27.
Rabie spoke briefly about the latest developments regarding the assumption of power by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Fatah’s strengthening of its power in the West Bank. “On one hand, Palestinians see the resumption of salaries to government workers as a much needed relief,” Rabie reported. “On the other hand, they fear that the unbalanced international support to Fatah will further divide the Palestinian people.”
The HCEF director expressed concern for the continuing economic and social difficulties facing the Palestinian people. “Unemployment continues to be very high and lots of people have lost hope,” he noted. “Our program has focused on Bethlehem, but the problems facing Bethlehem are the problems facing every Palestinian town, and we are working on expanding our work to assist the people in other parts of Palestine.”
Because its funds come from private donations, HCEF is one of the few organizations able to continue running its programs.
“I met with the mayors of Beit Jala, Bethlehem, Beit Sahour, and Birzeit,” Rabie continued. “They expressed to me the difficulties they have in building such simple things as playgrounds for children. Once they start building, the Israelis come and tell them that they’re not allowed to continue. ”˜We’re living in big jails,’ the mayors said, ”˜but the Israelis don’t even let us do what we need to survive inside them.’”
Rabie also discussed with the mayors ways in which the Palestinian Diaspora can be of greater support. He went on to describe some of the projects that he hoped HCEF will be able to work on in the future. “We are talking with Habitat for Humanity about setting up micro-credit programs to address the housing needs of Palestinians,” he said. “We will also be publishing research surveying pastors representing the different Christian denominations in Palestine on the needs of the Palestinian Christian community.”
The second half of the meeting concerned planning for HCEF’s upcoming conference entitled “Walking the Path of Peace.” In addition to the keynote speaker, Marwan Mu’asher, senior vice president of external affairs at the World Bank and former Jordanian ambassador to Israel, some 20 ecumenical church leaders will address the conference.
—Basem Awad
