I'm on a beach! I'm on a beach! You are probably at your desk! I'm on a beach!

I finished in South Sudan just over a month ago and I retreated back to the Middle East for some much needed nostalgia, falafel, non-South Sudanese sun (and a break).

I only stayed one year in South Sudan. Outside of Juba is can be a tough environment, and I marvel at colleagues that can stick it out longer. More than a year at a time of pit latrines, nairobi eye, cold showers, flooding compounds, no AC in +45C heat, every bug imaginable and constant gunfire is a lot to handle.

I have written a couple posts on burning out, and wanted to make sure that I didn't get to the point of a) crawling at the walls to leave, b) loathing every moment of my life, and/or c) absolutely hating the country.

I did enjoy my time there. I learned so much from my colleagues and hopefully made a difference in some way, shape or form. I left quite sad, and questioning my decision. I even panicked 3 weeks before and offered my services to whatever or wherever I possibly could in the country program. After one week away though,  I knew I made a good decision and am enjoying sleeping, travelling, vacationing and visiting friends (not to mention eating... everything).

I'm making a decision on where to head next this week. At some point between next Sunday and the beginning of June I will be in a new place with new anecdotes. I'm excited! But I am sad to leave this:

Suad Amiry at TedXRamallah

I kept meaning to post this from TedXRamallah. Suad Amiry's closing speech. She is such an enthusiastic and brilliantly funny story teller. Her book "Sharon and My Mother and Law" was given to me to read before I moved to Ramallah - funnily enough into a house quite close to her mother-in-law's. It was helpful in preparing me for the absurdity of the day-to-day existence in the Occupied Territories.

Part 1

Part 2

... oh and there is this. Response to uprisings? Consolidating efforts? Kissing and making up for the greater good? Will be interesting to watch.

Palestinian Papers. Israel. Win.

The Palestinian Papers released gives insight into Middle East negotiations, and have been interpreted as a blow to the old guard of the PA. An article by Chatham House’s Kate Nevens and Jessica Forsythe sums up the fear of western stakeholders that this will increase support for Hamas, and also stoke violent resistance again against Israel from the West Bank, but also further a field in Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt. Much of this is agreed. There is already widespread disenchantment from Palestinians with Fatah, but also with the political situation in general. Many also do not see Hamas as a viable option wither… just worth a shot in the face limited options. More importantly, reports are ignoring the elephant in the room. The easy win the Israeli government has received from these accounts of historic concessions. With support for Fatah split, Hamas may gain more power, but less of a bargaining chip with western stakeholders. Palestinian political groups disenfranchised on a whole could very well revolt against both guards. What we could be faced with is in internal struggle in the West Bank between multiple power brokers, making oppression easier. Likely in the name of security. Hopefully, this is recognised early, and alternatives are presented. A good start would be for the PA to cycle in some new blood, and at risk of sounding like a broken record, give greater voice to younger party members. Additionally, moderate leaders in general need to embrace new methods of communication and news sources rather than attacking it, to allow for more democratic input into next steps as well as to monitor activity throughout the territories by all groups. (See a great OpEd by Naserine Malik in the Guardian on Al Jazeera). The more open and transparent Palestinian leaders can be right now, the better, in order to reduce the opportunity for violence and extremism.

In other news. Have you been watching Egypt? Oh. And how about Lebanon?

Last Resorts

The New York Times has a story and a video journal on self-immolation of women in Afghanistan. It is a contribution to raising awareness to the despair women face by the lack of options everywhere. Forced marriage, sexual, gender and domestic violence/abuse and little to no options to leave unsafe situations safely or to seek counselling because of cultural taboos – compounded with a strict sense of honour linked with the behaviour of female family members - leads women to suicide (sometimes pre-empting their own honour killing). Women identify their limitations on movement outside the home limiting their suicide options. Women also believe that burning is an instant death – an assumption that leaves many with extremely painful, disfiguring but non-fatal burns.

The authors speak to this phenomenon being highest in some areas of Afghanistan in close proximity to Iran (where the practice is also common). However it is not only common to this region. I have been exposed to this in Kurdistan, Jordan and the occupied Palestinian Territories, and know of its commonality across the Middle East (and further afield). Women choose this method because it can be attributed to a “cooking accident” saving face for family members. More alarmingly however is the practice of burning as a method of honour killings – much for the same reason and particularly where states have made judicial progress towards persecuting perpetrators of honour killings. It is easier to hide from investigation.

I think the most disturbing story I heard, while in the Jordan Valley, was of a woman who had gone to the toilet in an outhouse. While she was in there, her family members threw in kerosene and a lit match from a small vent into the confined space and burned her alive. The women I spoke with said that this was not the first time in their community this method had been used. These stories point to a greater need to integrate counselling into programs in women friendly spaces and to improve community liaison to lift taboos associated with talking about gender based violence and depression. Moreover, international development partners and states need to encourage a holistic approach to protection of women and girls – not only through judicial and security reform – but also through involvement in health, education programs and community/state building throughout the process. There needs to be recognition that as states progress to greater gender equality and to protecting the rights of women and girls the threats facing them may change.

A great person to follow on this is Rana Husseini and the team at the Jordan Times that have worked tirelessly to remove the leniency in Jordanian law towards honour killings and further afield. No Honour in Crime follows Honour Killings as well [primarily Arabic].

Oral histories and viewpoints

UNRWA has put together a beautiful campaign of video histories and viewpoints. Through 15 stories it chronicles the very different and similar experiences Palestinians have throughout the Middle East. The stories are moving but also inspiring, and provide an overview of the vast amount of assistance UNRWA gives to Palestinians. At a time when people question the relevance of this UN Agency - particularly those that assert that it prevents assimilation into a Palestinian state through perpetuating refugee status (which is ridiculous for a great number of reasons...) - promoting the rights of Palestinians and the hard work of this agency will hopefully increase support and understanding of the issues.



Go to the Peace Starts Here website

What's there to do for fun in a refugee camp?

May not be the first thing you'd ask when you get there. But for children and youth in refugee/displacement camps (or in locations affected by conflict or natural disaster) the opportunity to let loose is an important part of retaining some of the "normal" in their lives, and thus caring for their psycho-social well being.



There are a lot of fantastic programs that promote play for children and youth. One of my favourites is Right to Play, an organisation that started in Canada running sports programs in conflict affected areas. They have moved now to training physed teachers as well, so the concept of play pervades that curriculum, in addition to running sports programs for kids. They rely heavily on dedicated volunteers to carry out the projects, and occasionally get a few olympians along the way to give their time.

There are other fantastic initiatives that I have seen that have been wildly successful in popularity amongst kids. I have seen great work done by circus schools in the West Bank. One of my favourites is Capoeira programs which kids, both boys and girls, seem to take to like a fish to water. Oragnisations such as Capoera Arabe and Bidna Capoeira have been running programs for Palestinian and Iraqi refugee children and youth. The program teaches children to dance capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian dance style, as well as the songs and instrumental accompaniments. The basic moves mimic martial arts, but there is no contact. The dance is about creativity, and designed by oneself, giving the dancer the opportunity to choose what they do next - it's not dictated by choreography. It may seem trivial, but an outlet to vent frustration through dance driven by ones own creativity gives an important elemental of control to that kid when many other things seem out of their hands. What is more, the program to my knowledge has attracted both girls and boys (but I am unsure about young women).

Youth often get left behind in aid - particularly in fragile areas. When they are focused on, it's out of fear that young men left idle may turn into a source of instability (scary scary youth bulge). There are very few well documented initiatives of programs aimed at young women - often left out of the youth sphere. Culturally they may not even be considered youth at all, with the passage from childhood to woman hood marked by menstruation, or early marriage/pregnancy. More creative solutions are needed to address this. And more youth-led initiatives should be developed.

PS: Guardian has a new site on international development. It says it has "the best ideas on the biggest challenges". That may be a bold, premature statement. However. At least it exists.