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August 2006

Olive Co-operative’s fair trade partners are situated in the West Bank, Gaza and Israel. As such, the last few weeks have been a very difficult time for all of them, and as well as trying to support their economic wellbeing through fair trade, we have been worrying about the effects of conditions of war on them. It seemed to me in writing this newsletter that I could do no better than let their own words describe their experiences.

Olive’s main supplier in Gaza is Atfaluna, an organisation which provides education for deaf children and created job opportunities for them and their families, especially women caring for young children at home. Goods we purchase from Atfaluna include ceramics, carved wood, textiles and bags. Ghada, our main contact at Atfaluna, sent us this message in mid-July:

“Dear Olive Co-op,

“Thank you so much for asking about us and for your support to Atfaluna. The situation here is extremely nerve-racking. Coming to work is difficult for some of our employees where an Israeli army incursion in their area of residence keeps them stranded in their homes for several days, praying that missile shrapnel does not tear through their home or injure family.

When the Israeli military force decided that they wanted to retrieve the kidnapped Israeli soldier from somewhere in the Gaza Strip the first thing they did was make with sonic booms. F16 war planes fly at high speeds and low altitude, breaking the sound barrier over the city. Windows are broken, buildings are shaken and people are almost scared to death by the thunder-like sound it makes. Many people suffer from ear-aches. Small children are not only traumatised by all that is happening around them, they are often shaken awake by the sound of explosions. Parents are too scared to send their children to summer camps, therefore fun summer activities for the children have been put off till next year.
The Palestinian Authority Foreign Ministry is less than 2 minute walk from my home. Located in the middle of a highly populated area, the attack took place at 2am. Of course the air raid completely destroyed the Ministry. Many of the homes, supermarkets and other buildings around it were ruined; there were broken windows, torn furniture, knocked down walls and doors. The dust was so dense that it seemed like fog.
Two weeks ago a war plane attacked the Gaza station power plant at Khan Younis in the middle of the Gaza Strip. More than 90% of the city lost its power supply and everyone except people with power generators in their homes were kept in complete darkness. No lighting, no boilers, no refrigerators, no lifts for people living in apartments. Part of the electricity is supplied to the Gaza Strip from Israel which is now the only source of electricity for the entire City.
A rigid schedule has been made to supply electricity to different areas. Electricity supposedly comes to neighbourhoods at 8 hour intervals, then it is cut off and another area is supplied. In many cases an air raid will again terminate electricity from an area. Food in freezers starts to melt and a lot of it is thrown away. The most difficult time is night time, with no lighting and only a torch or candle to make your way around the house.
Many homes have water shortages or no water at all since some of the main water supplies have been bombed or electricity is not available to pump water. It is a true shame that so many people are living in such poor conditions and no one has a solution near. Let’s hope that soon this will all end before more people are killed and everyone loses any hope of a brighter tomorrow.”

Another of Olive’s important suppliers is Sindyanna, a co-operative of women from both the Jewish and Palestinian communities in Israel which supplies Olive with olive oil, soap and other gifts items. It is based at Kufr Kana, believed by some to be the Cana of the Bible where Jesus turned water into wine.

Kufr Kana is in the Galilee, in the north of Israel, the region which has faced Katyusha rocket attacks by Hezbollah. It’s not far from the largely Palestinian city of Nazareth, where two Palestinian-Israeli children were killed by one of the rockets.

Roni ben Efrat is a Jewish Israeli woman who is part of a network of organisations which bring together Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel to work together on fair trade projects and to campaign for a just peace. In early August she sent this message, which reinforces the importance that fair trade is a vital way to combat poverty, violence and misunderstanding in her own country and beyond:

“A very deep change has to take place in our region. This change must combine new political and social priorities. A super advanced economy embedded in a poor fundamentalist region can only lead to explosions. What we are doing on a daily basis is trying to create modes of a new society while struggling for the changing of political priorities. This cannot be done in our region only. It has to involve rich and poor states alike. We live in a global world, and we need a global alternative.”

More information can be found about the organisations at www.atfaluna.net and www.sindyanna.com. Items from both can be bought from www.olivecoop.com.