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Date: March 01, 2004 at 12:25:24
From: Voices for Peace, [user-0ccejq4.cable.mindspring.com]
Subject: Re: Stories that give hope - #4 - An "Animated" Discussion of Peace


An Animated Discussion of Peace

Lauren Gelfond

Source: Jerusalem Post, February 19, 2004.

http://www.jpost.com/

Distributed by the Common Ground News Service.
---------------------------------------------------------


With the help of Italian officials and artists, a group of Israeli and

Palestinian high school students is working to transform the landscape of

violence into a Technicolor fairy tale.



In an animated short film, written last week by sixteen male teenagers from

Ra'anana and Kalkilya, a goofy, loving camel – and not a diplomat or head

of state – is the unlikely superhero they chose to save the day.



The mutually agreed-upon story line came to light in Rome, where the teens

studied last week with experts from the Italian Animated Film Festival, I

Castelli Animati.



In the seven-minute film, with the working title "My Country in a World of

Peace," an Israeli boy and a Palestinian boy, shown simultaneously in their

respective sides of town, step out of their homes into a war zone before

the house behind them is destroyed. Fleeing toward a tall wall, each looks

up to the sun and asks, "Why?"



A clumsy, warmhearted camel makes his way toward them on the wall and bends

down, inviting each to step up. The two boys meet atop the so-called

supercamel, who takes the kids on journeys through scenes of terrorism and

war, while transforming each scene into one of joy and peace. In the fable,

soldiers turn their weapons into plant holders and a terrorist is hiding

nothing more under his coat than a flock of doves.



"We [encouraged the project because we] would like to give some hope to

people on both sides. People don't trust each other and there is no

communication, so we'd like to give children the chance to meet and

understand each other more," Kalkilya Mayor Ma'arouf Zahran told The

Jerusalem Post.



"I hope [the film] will affect people on the Israeli side to see they still

have partners. We still have people on our side who want peace and I'm sure

on the Israeli side as well. We have our own security [concerns], hopes,

and expectations, and for both sides it will be better if both sides make

compromises."



With support from the Peres Peace Center, Zahran has participated in the

last months in meetings with other Palestinian and Israeli mayors abroad,

including Ra'anana Mayor Ze'ev Bielski.



"I think it is one of the most important projects, especially in these

times," said Bielski. "If the leaders at the top can't make – never mind

peace, but negotiations – it's our obligation, we at the municipal level,

to bridge the gap – anything that will bring the children of the next

generation to be more tolerant and understanding. Maybe through them we'll

achieve peace."



The Rome Municipality, who paid all the students' expenses, has also

sponsored other similar projects through its Jerusalem Office of Peace,

including a cooperative photo exhibit and joint study for Palestinian and

Israeli teen musicians. Rome inaugurated the Office of Peace in 2002, with

help from ECOMED, an agency for sustainable development in the

Mediterranean, to reinvigorate dialogue.



A forty-minute documentary by Italian documentary-maker Gianluigi Destefano

is also under way, following the progress of the kids from their home

villages to their first meeting and the entire film-making process. He and

the artists who are animating the film are donating their services without

charge.



Still in development and production, the film is slated to debut at the

Venice and I Castelli Animati film festivals in the fall, and then to

travel across Europe and to Israeli and Palestinian schools. It will also

be shown on Italian TV.



"When we met the first time it was quiet and nobody talked. We just pressed

our hands together. But soon we started talking, playing, even teaching

each other songs in our languages," said Uri Nabarro, 17, of the Aviv

Senior High School in Ra'anana.



"We discovered that we can do anything we decide [to]. And now, when we

hear the word 'Arab,' the image of a terrorist won't enter our minds,

because we saw that they are very similar to Israeli kids. I don't see

myself living with them or studying in the same school, because of some

cultural differences – we are freer and have more interaction with girls –

but it could be very nice to meet sometimes."



There were a few awkward moments, a teacher said, like when the

Palestinians suggested having a Palestinian flag on the Palestinian home in

the film, to identify the Arabic-speaking child as belonging not to just

any village in any Arab country. Israelis vetoed the idea, saying they

didn't want the film to take any political positions, since a Palestinian

state has not yet been formally established.



"There were many small things about what to put in and what to take out,

but in the end they opened up and worked it out between themselves. They

agreed and that's the most important thing," said Iris Cohen, who teaches

Arabic at Aviv Senior High School.



Lack of a common language was also a problem, she said.



Liwa Assana, 17, of Kalkilya's Aisadia Secondary School, who had never

previously known a Jewish Israeli socially, said through his father, Abed,

that “there was cooperation between everyone and we proved what we can

accomplish even if the policies are negative at this time. When we reached

a difficulty we also reached a solution."



Though the students participated with the blessings and encouragement of

the Ra'anana and Kalkilya mayors, there were numerous logistical problems.



"Why Italy? Why France? Why London? Why can't Israelis and Palestinians

speak to each other inside Israel and Palestine?" asked Hussan al-din

Hantash, a teacher from Kalkilya.



The original plan was to have the students meet in Israel, but because of

the security situation it was decided to meet in Rome. Palestinians, who

planned to travel to Rome through Amman, were denied travel permits by

Jordanian authorities, since none of the students had first-degree

relatives in Jordan, a teacher said. Later, spokesmen said they had to

"move heaven and earth" to get the Palestinians travel permits to Israel so

they could fly from Ben-Gurion Airport.





###



Lauren Gelfond is the winner in the Israeli press category of the 2003

Eliav-Sartawi Awards for Middle Eastern Journalism, founded by the Zel

Lurie Journalism Fund.



Source: Jerusalem Post, February 19, 2004.



Visit the Jerusalem Post website at http://www.jpost.com/



Distributed by the Common Ground News Service.

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