Sebastia’s Living Community sidelined for ancient ruins

Sarah Irving

I have in my possession two leaflets about Sebastia, an outrageously pretty little West Bank village which you’d never guess was once a major city, the capital of ancient kingdoms and home to an imposing Crusader cathedral which is now the village mosque.  Read on

Fair Trade’s New Frontiers

Sarah Irving

The fair trade movement has, by paying just prices for export crops like coffee, fruit and cotton, improved the lives of some of the world’s poorest farmers. But recently – as much by accident as design – several new Fairtrade certifications and fair trade projects have tried to bring these benefits to producers in confict zones. Sarah Irving finds out about the challenges they face.  Read on

Fair Trade in an Unfair World: the Case of Palestine

Leonie Nimmo

The Palestinian Fair Trade Association (PFTA) is a truly inspiring organisation, and during Fair Trade Fortnight 2009 I was privileged to finally meet its founder, Nasser Abu Farha, as the world’s first Fairtrade olive oil was launched. In Manchester, Nasser spoke to audiences across the city on a BBC radio programme, from the dizzying heights of the Co-operative Group tower. He explained that Palestine is the natural home of the olive tree, and that the olive groves of the West Bank are cultivated by traditional methods which help to promote biodiversity, and have a particular air flow and sunlight, which improves the taste.  Read on

‘Visit Palestine’ says West Bank’s growing alternative tourism industry

Ben White

Palestine should not have problems attracting tourists, with its rich blend of history, religious significance, local culture, as well as the varied and breathtaking scenery. But of course, the political context of the Israeli occupation means that the vast majority of tourists in the “Holy Land” only see Palestinians through the window of a tour bus, as they dash in and out of Bethlehem for a couple of hours.  Read on

Beyond boycotting Israeli goods

“When you do business with Israel, you invariably do business with the Occupation”  Irish Palestine Solidarity spokesperson, 2006

On 9th June 2005, after the International Court of Justice’s ruling against Israel’s apartheid wall, a coalition of Palestinian civil society organisations issued a ‘Call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against apartheid Israel until it complies with International Law’. Public outcry over the recent Israeli massacres in Gaza has prompted renewed discussion of boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS) as tactics to combat Israeli state aggression.  Read on

Apartheid and Agrexco in the Jordan Valley

Leonie Nimmo

JORDAN VALLEY, PALESTINE — In Israel and the Occupied Territories the colour orange is symbolic of opposition to the Gaza ‘disengagement’. It can be seen on banners; t-shirts; propaganda material; protesters storming the old city in Jerusalem or the young people with petitions gathering signatures in Israeli bus stations. Orange streamers are handed out at road junctions in Israel and attached to cars flying down the settler-only highways of the West Bank.  Read on