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3 November 1998, Vol.2, Issue 6
We've added a Political Parties section to the Complete Guide this month. Three Palestinian parties have set up their own websites - Fatah, Hamas and the Palestine People's Party. At the last count there were 26 different parties in the West Bank and Gaza so we still have a long way to go - but these sites are informative and a good start.
Also new this month is a homepage by a Palestine and Arabic Studies Student at Birzeit University, Hani Shakeel. He's been recording his experiences as he travels around the West Bank in a Palestine Daze
A couple of new resources for people looking for research and analysis on Palestine - we're quite proud of the new Birzeit site Our Voice - which publishes the work of students and staff of the university. Not so informative though is the Palestine Planning Center, which supposedly "advises President Arafat". A little worrying as there is only one article from a few years ago posted on the site.
For those interested in investment and construction in Palestine, the Palestine Real Estate Investment Company is now online.
The big news is Palestine's first internet radio station - Birzeit OutLoud. We've got a great response from this site which broadcasts an Arabic and English show each Saturday at 3pm Palestine time (1 pm GMT). We've also begun a project that is discussed below.
And of course no month would be complete without the Website of the Month. This time, congratulations to Shammout.com This website displays the work of two Palestinian artists - Ismail and Tammam Shammout. I like their work, but, even if you don't, this website really stands out for its history of art in Palestine.
Please visit the Complete Guide's What's New page at http://www.birzeit.edu/links/new.html for more details on the sites above.
NEW ON BIRZEIT'S WEBSITE
As mentioned above, we've added two new sections to the Birzeit website - Our Voice and OutLoud. Launching these two sites has kept the webteam very busy, but we've still had time to put some news on the web:
The work of Palestinian artist, Naji Ali, was on display last month at the university. We were there. http://www.birzeit.edu/bzunews/1998/sep/14.html
We've also seen Jerusalem Week - complete with lectures, exhibitions and performances. http://www.birzeit.edu/bzunews/1998/sep/29.html
Everyone at the university was very pleased when the new Institute of Law opened. We hope that next month we will be reviewing their new website! http://www.birzeit.edu/bzunews/1998/Oct/21.html
The Landscape Conference is coming up at Birzeit University - including such speakers as Edward Said and Mahmoud Darwish. http://www.birzeit.edu/bzunews/Nov/3.html
In last month's mailing for the Complete Guide, we discussed the use of the internet in Palestine as a tool for overcoming the difficulties of closure and isolation which face all Palestinians; whether living here in the West Bank, in Gaza, inside the 1948 borders, or in the diaspora.
Obviously the internet can't substitute for real justice, but what it can do is help re-connect a population that has been forcibly and purposefully divided.
In this week's BZU OutLoud English show, we interviewed Dr. Sharif Kanaana, Professor of Anthropology at Birzeit University. One sentence he said has been ringing in my ears ever since, "What matters most is the Palestinian people. The land will always be here, but if we lose the people we lose everything." Dr. Kanaana was referring to the process of division and separation amongst the Palestinian refugee population.
For this reason, we have begun a project which we hope will address this issue. Called the Across Borders Project, we want to speak to as many Palestinians as possible, ask them some simple questions, and record their answers on tape or by phone from the university.
Once we have the interviews recorded, we will be broadcasting them over the internet on BZU OutLoud. We will also be inviting different staff and student from the university to discuss the interviews on-line.
This is an exciting project which will bring together the different voices of the Palestinian community. People living in a camp in Lebanon can speak alongside Palestinians in the West Bank or inside the 1948 borders. Perhaps we will be able to interview families who have been separated from one another for 50 years?
To do this we need your help.
Firstly, we are looking for people to interview; this may be yourself or your family, Palestinian friends, or relatives. We want to speak to people about where they (or their family) are from in Palestine, how they arrived to be where they are today, their experiences over the last 50 years, the affects of Oslo on their situation, and any messages they may have for other Palestinians. If you, or anyone you know, falls into this category, contact us at webmaster@birzeit.edu and we will send you some questions. We can ring you from the university and record interviews over the phone. Secondly, we are looking for people to help conduct interviews and send us a taped recording. One of the aims of this project is to build up a network of people around the world who are willing to undertake projects of this kind.
We are looking for as many different people as possible, from as many different generations and locations. Interviews can be conducted in either Arabic or English.
For fifty years Israel has constructed borders which prevent the movement of the Palestinian population. Now - more than ever before - we need to reconnect. Help us.
Adam Hanieh
Birzeit Webmaster
Palestine Economic Forum: http://www.palecon.org/
The Palestine Economic Forum seeks to "promote prosperity and the peace process by bringing in the economic dimension on a broad set of issues that are at the cutting edge of Palestinian economic development."
On the website, you will find extensive information on the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute (MAS), publications including the excellent Palestine Economic Pulse, West Bank and Gaza Update, Peace Economics, articles and papers, and a discussion forum, which includes topics such as Public Sector Finances and Administration, International Trade, Investment, and Capital Flows, Private Sector Development, Human Resources, and Permanent Settlement Issues.
Ray Hanania, I'm glad I look like a terrorist: Growing up Arab in America:http://www.hanania.com/book.htm
Ray is a well established journalist, with a lot of very interesting writings on his website. He has begun putting his latest work about Deir Yassin online, chapter by chapter. Go check it out at http://www.hanania.com/
Hey! Advertise with the Complete Guide!. Did you know that each banner advert that runs for a year enables Birziet University to purchase a new computer? More information from http://www.birzeit.edu/links/advert.html
BP&TWWW will be back next month, around about the middle, with more sites and reviews. If you know of any websites which should be here, but aren't - let us know!
Adam Hanieh
Birzeit Webmaster
Previous issue: 16 September 1998, Vol. 2, Issue 5
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