Women's Role In The National Reconciliation Committees

Gaza- Monday, 25th Oct, 2010-  To empower the role of the Palestinian woman in the national reconciliation, PalThink for strategic studies in cooperation with Palestinian working woman society for development organized a workshop entitled,” The role of women and women associations in the Palestinian national reconciliation”.

Some of the social activists recommended empowering the role of the Palestinian woman in the national reconciliation through allowing her participate in the national reconciliation committees and join the political empowerment programs which are implemented by the civil society institutions.

During his intervention, Omar Shaban, head of PalThink for strategic studies, denoted to the internal division of the Palestinian people which affects them badly that it increases their pains and plights, hinders development and demolishes our efforts to establish an independent Palestinian state. He also recommended encouraging those women who are pioneers in woman work and political parties to play an influential role in the national reconciliation committee.

For his part, Ismael Al Nems, member in the reconciliation committees, pointed out that most of national reconciliation committees were working unilaterally which affects badly the efforts of achieving the national reconciliation. Moreover, he assured that these committees are about to form central reconciliation committee which gathers representatives from both sides( west bank and Gaza strip) in order to unify the efforts and reach a serious achievement of the reconciliation.

Hanan Siam talked about women institutions which activate woman role in the reconciliation through holding political empowerment programs and awareness programs about having the right of the political participation. She also appreciated those women who lead various positions in the civil society institutions and the governmental centers; those who achieved many prominent accomplishments for the Palestinian society despite of the hard political circumstances which they confronted such as the siege, the war and the internal violence.

The discussion ranged among the participants- graduates, housewives, activists and representatives of civil society institutions- that it referred to the mechanism of the women participation in the reconciliation committees and viewed the expertise of the Palestinian women in resisting the occupation. At the end, participants asked for using the media as an effective way to raise the awareness toward the role of the woman in the Palestinian national reconciliation.