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The problems we are facing are attributed mostly to the Jews.
We fish for the livelihood of our children. This is what we know. They imprisoned us just because of fishing, just
because we work to feed our children.
Perhaps the Jews have been controlling us for many years. We
may spend all our lives and die, while the Jews are still
occupying our country [music]
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Sailors in Gaza are facing many problems in their work as a
result of the siege imposed by the Israeli occupation
forces, which led them to the brink of poverty. I am here on
a special mission to identify these problems they are facing
and their life circumstances.
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The fishers' life
in the Gaza Strip, the life of all people in the Strip reflects what they are experiencing of a complex suffer
attributed to the internal division and the siege imposed by the Israeli occupation forces on the Strip for several
years. However, the lives of fishers are challenged by much
more difficulties.
The most prominent problems here is of course attributed to people's distress from the Jews.
For example, they allow only three miles for fishing. Do you know what three miles in sea mean for fishers?
Three miles in sea actually represent a too small space for fishing. They do not allow any no room for fishing...
Even if such three miles are rich in a certain season , do you know that we are three thousand fishers in " Maylat " Gaza
only? In addition to those three thousand fishers,
there are the fishers of South Gaza , North Gaza , Rafah , Khan Younis , and such other areas. They are all about six or
seven thousand fishers all over our coast,
starting directly from Rafah . Of course, they do not allow us
up to " Ires "; so it is approximately from Rafah thirty kilometers; to be multiplied by three miles.
It is known that a sea mile is equivalent exactly to one kilometer and fifty two meters
So let's say that a sea mile is equivalent to two kilometers. So we are allowed six kilometers, i.e. thirty kilometers
all in all. How many fishes can we find all over such distance?
Raaed is form Al - Shate'a Camp in Gaza .
He supports six children. He was displaced from the village of Al - Jurah of the city of Ashkelon in 1948. He works as
fisherman.
By the way, I was imprisoned in Israel too. They arrested me from the sea at a distance of 12 miles.
While we were on our boat, the cruiser, known as the " Israeli Hornet", came and started throwing bombs in water and
shooting at us using heavy weapons. The captain admitted that before the court;
that even the interpreter was astonished. He turned to me and asked me, "Is it possible that all such firing was
directed to you?" I told him, "Yes, just as you heard. I did not lie".
The judge asked me, "Can you face
the captain?
I replied with yes for I did not commit any mistake, while they accused me of a long list of charges took five , six or
even seven pages, including not complying with orders, etc, and our boat was imprisoned for two months
in the dams area at their side. My crew and I stayed for a month at their prisons till we were finally released
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After the capture of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit on the 25th of June 2006, the Israeli occupation forces imposed a
land and sea blockade on Gaza Strip
and allocated three miles only for fishing in the Strip.
This was nearly just after the story of Shalit , the capture of Shalit . You can say that starting from 2006 onwards , they
allowed us to fish at a distance of three miles, and sometimes allowed a distance of six miles.
After the 2008 war,
they allowed us only three miles.
According to Oslo Agreement, we should be allowed twenty miles. At the beginning,
as a chief of the boat, I used to reach twelve or thirteen miles.
Fishers are often pursued by the occupation forces for any
reason, especially if the sailors trespassed the three miles
allocated for fishing.
Various methods of intimidation and deterrence are used against them, starting from watering to shooting them.
These are examples of the harassment and the problems faced
by the fishers in Gaza , which are caused by the occupation
forces, and
which often end with destroying the fishers properties at least.
I sometimes get far two meters. What does a three , four or
even then meter distance represent!? They are actually
nothing.
On the other hand, they measure things by millimeter .
They allocated three miles. If you reach three miles and an inch , they will immediately arrive and shoot your boat...
There are gunshots in our boat. It was shot two times.
I was on the verge of death. The bullets entered from one side and exited from the other. They even shot the cabin where
I sit. The bulletin had just passed in front of my face.
It was just God's protection that saved us and kept us alive. They were actually three times. The last two times were
just one or less than one year ago. One time, while we were
in the northern region, the glass got broken and penetrated
my head.
Fishermen experiences with occupation forces are all similar, and rarely you can find anyone who has not been exposed to
arrest or shooting; just as what happened with Louay .
Louay goes to sea since his childhood and lives in the same building where Raaed lives. He spent five years at Israeli
prisons, for being charged of crossing the permissible borders in the sea, as he said.
We fish for the livelihood of our children.
This is what we know.
They imprisoned us just because fishing, just because we work to feed our children. They imprison us
for just surpassing the three miles,
or even before reaching the three miles, for just surpassing
two miles; because the last mile is for them and it is not
permitted to be surpassed.
They say on media that they have opened for us three miles, but actually they are two only, which are merely like a lake
of water, not suitable for fishing even with a hook.
I was imprisoned before. I am now 34 years old. I was imprisoned when I was 20, just five or six months after my
marriage.
This was in 1998. They imprisoned and referred me to their
court, and told us that we surpassed the limits permitted
according to the agreement made between us, the Israelis and
the Palestinians. According to this agreement, we were
permitted
twenty four miles, have been reduced to
fourteen miles, then to eight miles, six miles and finally reached today three miles,
which means that our sea is just a lake! I am serious; fishers are really suffering, God only knows. Those who have some
money, or have saved a little amount , are using it to earn their living, while the rest of ordinary people who live on
daily means of living are just buried alive.
Can you dive alone? -Yes I can
Yes I can
How will you dive? Do you have diving equipment?
No, it is prohibited
It does not exist.
It is not only a matter of siege. Israel rather interferes
in our own personal lives. If you want to get an oxygen tank
and dive just like any people abroad to see what exists in
your land, here in Gaza , what is in the sea of Gaza , what is
at the bottom of the sea, it is forbidden; it is forbidden
to use oxygen tank. If you use an oxygen tank and go diving,
the cruiser may see you via the radar and shoot you or direct a rocket against you to just kill you. They take
everything. They provide us a tap dripping little water for us to live,
and then close it when they want.
Everything is faced with closure and imposing more
restriction in sea. What does the sea mean for them in their
other political affairs?
We accompanied Raaed and his relative friends to a fishing trip to get closely acquainted with the problems they face
The sea was calm before sunset
and it was the first time for Raaed and his colleagues to go for fishing for nearly a month because of the blockade and
the lack of diesel fuel and its high price
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They had to prepare their nets before boarding the boat.
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The sailors are preparing to throw their nets, hoping to be able to catch some fish to feed their children at least.
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Afterwards, the boat went for a distance close to the three mile limit;
but we preferred not to approach in anticipation of risks.
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The fishing outcome was poor
and frustrated the sailors' hopes. But they were expecting
so, due to the small area allowed for them to fish in which
fish became rare.
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The sailors returned with their poor fishing; each to his children who are many. There is noting in their hands to do;
maybe they will gain more tomorrow ...
The situation is now below zero, not zero, but below, There are people who made searchlight system for sardine and so. I
swear there are some who mortgaged their homes and others sold half of the homes,
to make such searchlight system to be able to earn their and their families' living. Otherwise, forget about it; they
live in extreme poverty. More that 95%, I just don't want to say 100%, of all fishermen are almost below zero
There is no fishing.
Even if there are some who have some money, to how long it
will survive with them!?
Constant dropping wears away a stone.
I have not get one hundred dollars for three or four months.
In the past, when the Jews were occupying us, before the arrival of the Authority,
the Jews used to distract us
from politics by fishing. It was their policy.
They wanted us as fishermen to accompany our children aged fourteen or fifteen years old in fishing. They wanted them to
work with us,
in order not to go outside and throw them with stones and so. They wanted you to get them to work because we were under
their occupation and they wanted to control everything from east to west.
But today especially after the era of Shalit , harassment against us increased by 100%
Louay's condition is no different than Raaed's . Louay lives
with his six children in a small house that does not fit two
persons.
Who wants shrimp? -Me
Me
Who wants crab? -Me
Me
Who wants poverty? -Me
Me
Children wish everything except poverty, They live it moment by moment .
Siege is imposed on everyone. I have been living in this
house for fifteen years. It is composed of a bed room, a
salon, a kitchen and a bathroom.
What could I do? Should I commit suicide? should I die?
I am twenty eight years old.
It has been seven years I cannot build an apartment or work. My children are lost.
How old are you?
Twenty eight
I am thirty four years old. It has been exactly nineteen
years since I first went to sea, when I was a little boy;
exactly nineteen years have passed
Have you built something?
Thank God Almighty
His son is twelve years old
and his daughter is fifteen.
After seven years, he will get him married?
Where would he marry? You said you have been working as a fisherman for twenty years. What have you done and
accomplished all over your past twenty years!?
How can you coexist with this situation?
What could I do! This is the situation here.
We have to adapt ourselves. We live on whatever is available and just keep silent. We have just to live and accustom
ourselves whether there is anything to live on or not. We live according to our circumstances, or what could we do!?
This is our situation.
We cannot even silent our children or put them to sleep. All
over the night , we keep moving them here and there for water
falls from everywhere.
We turned to hate winter .
Yes, everybody likes winter and say it is well-being and a
gift. But I swear we hate it really,
because of the large quantity of water dripping on our children while they are asleep, obliging us to keep moving them
all night from one place to another. Sometimes, we put them to sleep on the ground. Eight individuals are really not
little, and the room cannot accommodate us all.
It is not enough for all of us to sleep in. We keep moving them. It is only one bedroom and a salon.
We accustom ourselves to live
This was all I made from my work in the sea. I got married and built this bed room and salon
and the situation remained as it is.
I was planning to continue building after one or two years. But fifteen years have passed and I cannot put further
stone; I cannot build or do anything.
Requirements are just increasing. In addition to my wife and myself, I have six children. So we are eight . Big family!
We cannot live. How could we earn our living? How could we eat and drink?
The money I bring I keep it for food and drink, not building. I cannot afford building.
Are you going to make them sailors?
When he goes to play in the street, I prevent him from playing, to sit and study and not be like his father and suffer
in his future just as we are suffering now .
What could we do? The Jews are occupying our country. Perhaps we will spend all our lives and die while the Jews are
still occupying our country and the situation is just as it is. We lost hope. It is true that there is great hopes in
our Lord; but the life we are going through is really hopeless.
We always say that tomorrow will be different, tomorrow will
be changed, will be improved, will be better; the next year
will certainly be better...
For example, in the beginning of this year , we said that we had finally left the past year which was very bad for us.
May this year be better. But this year was even worse. From the very beginning of the year , diesel fuel, electricity and
water were all cut off. Our lives turned to be too hard.
Fishermen inherit fishery from their parents, and thus the sea became their only source of income to which their lives
and the future of their children are clung.
The main reason behind our problems is the sea being a means of living. Since there is no income, there is no good life
and no one can do anything and will just stand still .
Believe me we took a bag of flour from my husband's brother and another bag from his friend because we do not have money
to even buy flour.
Life is failure. Almost everyone in Gaza wishes death today before tomorrow . There is no life.
Why should we live?
Actually, I said
I want to enjoy my youth, to be happy, to live with my
family like people; go and come back, and work like young
men. But I found there is no hope; I sleep, wake up, and
keep sitting where either power is cut off or diesel fuel is
not available. And of course because there is no income, one
cannot go anywhere.
No one feels anyone. We are living in a state of injustice.
The government does not feel us. Neither Ramallah nor Gaza feels us. Each, whether Fatah or Hamas , is just looking for
its own interests. They only reward their employees.
But I, as a member of the Palestinian people, together with
my six children and wife and many others who are just like
us, have nothing to do but to die, to be buried alive.
Neither Abu Mazen nor Abu Haneah "Abu Al Abd" asks for
anyone. How could I live?
Aids that come to the people of Gaza should be distributed to the people of Gaza
The internal division between Fatah and Hamas in the Gaza Strip has even affected the little children.
It affected and damaged their souls that it became too difficult to be treated.
For example, at the time of war, when there were some aids
delivered to Hamas , they distributed them to all quarters
supporting Hamas . And because we were telling our little
children that we are with Fatah , they did not come at all to
our house.
There was war near our houses. Hamas were fighting next to our houses. Some people were sent to provide aids.
We asked them why you are just providing aids to people in quarters around us and are excluding us? They replied that we
have to go to their mosques and belong to them. Those who do not pray in their mosques do not receive any aids.
Well, we pray to our Lord, not to Hamas nor
Fatah . To get aids, one should go to the mosque and support Hamas . This is even applicable in Ramadan
and the days of war. Every Ramadan, aids come to the people, whereas the Arab countries donate for the Palestinian
people. But they only distribute them to those whom they know
and belong to them.
We, in the quarter, do not support Fatah . But they tell us, no you are supporting Fatah , because we have an employee
working in the Authority.
It is true that there is an Authority employee in the quarter, but he does not belong to Fatah , Hamas , nor any other
cadre.
But they say that anyone belongs to Ramallah Authority, actually belongs to Abbas and Fatah ; so let Abbas then provide
you with aids, for we do not give to Fatah ; we only give those who belong to us.
Although the adults are concerned with talking about life to ensure future of the children, it seems that Gaza's
children's awareness of the difficulty of life equals and perhaps exceeds the adults' awareness in terms of their
sensitivity towards even the smallest issues. This is what has been expressed with absolute spontaneity by
the seven year aged little girl, Amira . She spontaneously
reflected the adult's injustice against her childhood and
innocence.
They distribute many closed packets of sweets to people
And you? Didn't they give you one ?
No they didn't -Why?
Why?
Why did not they give you?
Because we belong to Fatah . They do not give Fatah ; they give Hamas Group only.
And what do you do when you find them not giving you sweets? Do you cry? -No,
No,
I do not cry but I feel so sad -You
You
have heard now yourself from this little child. But what if you did not come, to whom would have she spoken? They will
leave her and will not listen to this little girl. They will tell her leave and go home
Let your father come
Yes, and we listen about human rights in the lesson and we ask what human rights are...
Child Ali enters our discussion and expressed awareness that may not be available for many adults.
Fatah or Hamas , it is all one Palestinian people. But the
situation in which we live in here, forces us to reject
Hamas . If it was Fatah that is controlling, and we still
live in such bad conditions, we would have said the same
about Fatah .
My father is an employee in Fatah . But he does not belong to Fatah Group. He just needs his job to support his family.
What I want to say that we do not support Fatah .
We just want to live. We do not support Fatah , but we support the the people of Palestine . We support and follow whoever
takes the correct path to save us from our bad conditions.
Our conditions are too bad really.
When they bring sweets, they do not give the children claiming that we belong to Fatah . For your information, the
children's minds are just like the adults';
they want to express themselves just like adults. They say we support Fatah .
Now the adults
say that they do not want Hamas for the bad conditions they are experiencing. Why children say that they support Fatah ?
It is because the bad conditions they are witnessing.
They see life around them.
They see the water dripping on their heads all night letting them keep moving from one place to another. They can see
all these bad conditions.
We live in bad conditions.
We hate the school. There is order and calmness in school.
But at home, you cannot find room for studying.
In our house, there is no one not successful in school. They are all good and excellent. Their grades are above 90%. But
for this little child to study,
we have to keep saying all time , "Be quite, be quite, be quiet...
Each should have his own room.
Each should have his right to study. In such bad conditions, no one considers your opinion. We say thank God and may our
conditions be better, God willing.
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Despite the smallness of this house where those children live, despite their poverty and the poverty of their
families, they are aware of their situation just like adults
and know the potentials of their parents, and do not hurt
them by their request;
and are satisfied with any little amounts, and they just study and work hard.
The adult teaches the child hoping to ensure a better future
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