OneVoice Movement

Siaseh Café: Coffee and politics in Palestine

A Siaseh Cafe in Nablus on March 3, 2014.

Once a week, OneVoice Palestine activists gather over coffee. The brew is strong, much like the opinions of the Youth Leaders, who talk politics and the peace process in cafés across the West Bank. These Siaseh (or Politics) Cafés provide a forum wherein young Palestinians are able to debate their peers openly and evaluate decisions made by Palestinians leaders and the international community.

“We send the Youth Leaders a different topic from the news ahead of each session,” said Abdallah Hamarsheh, OVP’s Youth Leadership Training Program Director. “We also send invites to the Youth Leaders and ask them to bring friends who haven’t engaged in conversations with OneVoice in the past. The results are usually very interesting.”

Bringing different views to each conversation creates a unique discussion around Palestinian national interests and how the community addresses them. On one recent occasion in Nablus, activists discussed the ongoing negotiations with the Israelis and the role of the grassroots in reaffirming Palestinian national principles. While the majority showed ample support for non-violent activities, some questioned the prospects for progress in the window that remains for a final agreement. The activists questioned the sincerity of Israel’s participation in the negotiations in light of continued settlement construction in the West Bank and the recently proposed Knesset bill to annexbill the Jordan Valley.

“While the majority of participants support the two-state solution as a means to end the occupation and conflict, resolve the final status issues, and establish an independent Palestinian state, there is a common feeling of frustration among the participants,” said Ezzeldeen Masri, Director of OVP’s Gaza office. “More than 20 years have passed since the commencement of the peace process and yet Palestinians are not witnessing any progress.”

The Siaseh Cafés are part of OVP’s larger “Wake Up! What is Your Role?” campaign launched in November 2013. Through “Wake Up!” OVP is energizing the centrist, Palestinian mainstream to take their future into their own hands and support the negotiators. Through youth initiatives, TV and radio shows, town hall meetings, and issue-based discussions, the campaign aims to break the state of apathy about negotiations and demonstrate that non-violent resistance can be successful in securing Palestinian rights while connecting every day Palestinians to their leaders.

OVP asks Palestinians to “Wake Up!” and change the status quo

OneVoice Palestine is taking to the streets of the West Bank and Gaza to bolster support for the peace process by emphasizing that everyday Palestinians have a part to play in ending the occupation and establishing an independent state.

The “Wake Up! What is Your Role?” campaign, launched last year in the midst of the U.S.-led negotiations spear-headed by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, is energizing the centrist Palestinian mainstream to take their future into their own hands and support the Palestinian negotiators. To launch the campaign, hundreds of activists gathered in the Jordan Valley to raise a 1,000-meter banner stitched together by OVP chapters in Hebron, Bethlehem, Nablus, Jerusalem, and Jericho. Written on the banner were the core national principles that are the basis for Palestinian negotiators. The PLO's Chief Negotiator, Dr. Saeb Erekat, addressed the activists while Jericho Governor Majid Fitani and Lieutenant Colonel Atef Naser looked on during an impromptu public meeting.

The “What Is Your Role?” campaign has five components: youth-led initiatives on campuses and in communities; public town hall meetings with Palestinian influencers; TV talk shows on Palestinian national television with live studio audiences and street interviews; radio shows on popular stations in the West Bank; and Siaseh (or “Political”) Cafés where activists get together to talk politics. Each medium reinforces facilitates open, candid discussions between average Palestinians and their leaders and provides a vehicle for non-violent activism and public engagement in the political process –making OVP’s campaign a unique and important part of the grassroots efforts needed for a successful outcome.

State building in Palestine: Community engagement key to success of future laws

Members of the Palestinian Security Forces, community members, and OVP youth leaders in Hebron.

OneVoice Palestine’s (OVP) community is fully engaged in supporting state building in Palestine, and it’s catching the attention of respected organizations.

On August 22, OVP co-sponsored a public meeting with the Palestinian Center for Research and Strategic Studies (PCRSS) to discuss a national security law proposal in Hebron.

Over 60 members of the security forces and community leaders discussed the law proposal entitled, “Developing Modern Legislation for the Palestinian National Security Forces.” It is dedicated to promoting and facilitating the structuring of civil-military relations in accordance with fundamental democratic principles.

Director of PCRSS, Dr. Mohammad Almasri, took the stage and explained to the audience the benefits of creating a legislative law for the Palestinian Security Forces. He said that the importance of such projects comes from its promotion of democracy and human rights through developing legislation for the security sector in Palestine.

OVP supports state building on such principles.

OVP's Executive Director, Samer Makhlouf, and the youth leadership Program Director, Abdallah Hamarsheh, attended the meeting with a significant portion of OneVoice's chapter in Hebron.

Similar to OVP's public meetings program, the event aimed to connect and engage Palestinian leadership with local communities to create a valid discussion over democracy in Palestine and transparency of legislation through public engagement.

“We believe in promoting the culture of democracy in Palestine,” said Dr. Almasri, “and by engaging the public with community leaders and decision makers, we can create a culture of debate that enhances democracy among public and private sectors and ultimately contribute to state building in Palestine.”

Democracy and legislation were not the only subjects discussed during the event. Makhlouf took the opportunity to speak to the current negotiations while promoting positive participation in supporting the Palestinian leadership’s efforts to achieve peace.

“The feedback we received can easily be described as hopeless,” said Makhlouf. “The general mood among the participants is skepticism and apathy, but we need to continue working to achieve an end to the occupation and the conflict.”

Makhlouf explained how vital these talks are to the lives of Palestinians: "We need to move forward and focus on building our independent state. Ending the occupation and the conflict are a priority, but it has to be in accordance with international resolutions for Palestinians to fully embrace their rights.”

A negotiations update: The Palestinian leadership attended a meeting with Israeli officials on September 2 despite the recent events in Qalandia refugee camp. Three Palestinians were killed by the Israeli military, while settlement expansion announcements continue, particularly in Area C near East Jerusalem. Despite all of this, the Palestinian leadership continues to show a huge commitment to ending this conflict. The skepticism among Palestinians is growing around the reality of a viable comprehensive peace agreement, but the work of OVP remains in installing hope and building consensus among Palestinians to continue supporting viable talks based on the 1967 borders and international resolutions.

OVP Executive Director Samer Makhlouf (center) during the event.

Exhibition in Hebron displays historic accounts of Israeli occupation

Dr. Masri, with Dean Dr. Abu Louha and OneVoice Palestine executive director Samer Makhlouf view gallery submissions.

On June 12, 2013, OneVoice Palestine’s (OVP) Hebron youth activists co-hosted an art gallery marking the historic event of Al Naksa, also known as the 1967 or Six-Day War, in coordination with the Dean of Al-Aroub College, Dr. Muheib Abu Louha, and the Al-Aroub Students’ Council.

The gallery, entitled "Historical Account of the Bitterness of the Israeli Occupation," was the first of its kind at the college. The students contributed a number of Palestinian heritage pieces reflecting on historical struggle of the Palestinian people, beginning with photos from Al Nakba and ending with reflections of the future state, emphasizing the harsh reality of the Israeli occupation. About 90 participants from the college, Hebron, and neighboring towns took part in the gallery.

The students explained that the gallery embodied the daily suffering and tragedies of the Palestinian people caused by the occupation and settlement expansion in the West Bank.

OVP Board Member, Dr. Mohammed Al-Masri, along with Dean Abu Louha and Executive Director of OVP, Samer Makhlouf, inaugurated the event after receiving a big standing ovation from the students of Al-Aroub.

Makhlouf expressed his eagerness to work with the volunteers and college students, stressing the role of Palestinian youth in this physical and intellectual struggle with the Israeli occupation.

“The occupation continues to steal our beliefs and dreams of an independent Palestinian state,” said Makhlouf. “OVP and our volunteers in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip will continue the road of state building and peacefully ending the Israeli occupation throughout all our activities.”

The students stressed the need for the youth to recall Palestinian historical events that have had the greatest impact in shaping the overall picture of the conflict in the region. They argue that these historical events are of great value in shaping the future of the independent state. It creates a vision of what is important and what is not through looking back at key moments in Palestinian history. The volunteers also expressed their thanks to OneVoice for the trust given to them to organize the exhibition, in hope that it gave visitors a bold picture of Palestinian history through the occupation.

Local villagers also participated in the event at Al-Aroub.

Swings, Roundabouts, and the Occupation: OVP protests land confiscations in Jericho

Zubaydat's citizens joined OVP to peacefully protest land confiscation near their village.

The children of Zubaydat want a playground. A slide, a pair of swings, maybe a climbing frame; not a big ask for 500 children, perhaps. But while they just want to play, the kids of this West Bank village also find themselves living under military occupation. 

Zubaydat is at the nexus of a territorial conflict that – quite literally – insists on coming between the kids and their playground. Now, OneVoice Palestine (OVP), a movement of Palestinian youth, have decided that it’s time to play their role in ending the occupation and giving the village’s children their freedom to play, literally.

“The kids used to play in a small area just west of the village,” said Wasim Masri, communications officer at OVP. “But the Israeli authorities declared the area a closed military zone and told the villagers to keep their kids away from the playground.” 

In 2009, the villagers requested permission from the Israeli authorities to build a new playground, but this request was denied, according to Masri.

The occupation is about more than just playgrounds and it impacts more people than children alone. The Oslo Accords classified 99 percent of the village as area C, Masri explained.

The ‘C’ classification grants Israel full civil and security control over the area which, for residents of Zubaydat, means frequent raids by soldiers, repressive building restrictions, as well as constant water shortages, because the occupation prevents villagers renovating or digging new wells. Furthermore, the demands of Israeli settlers – keen to expand their territory – lead to continued confiscations of Palestinian land, including Zubaydat’s old playground.

As part of a program of activism to prevent further confiscations and save the viability of a Palestinian state, OVP activists in Jericho marched to Zubaydat to protest settlement expansion. Land around the village continues to be seized for the nearby Israeli settlement of Argaman.

The activists, joined by locals, civil society organizations, community leaders, and Jericho’s governorate office, marched to the separation wall south of Jericho, carrying trees and Palestinian flags to plant in an area threatened by confiscation.

Townspeople and youth leaders from different cities in the West Bank set the village of Zubaydat, north of Jericho, as a the starting point for the activity. According to OVP youth leaders, their initiative comes in response to the Israeli policies, which prevent farmers from reaching their lands in areas where agriculture is the main source of income, such as Zubaydat.

OVP Executive Director Samer Makhlouf expressed the need for these types of actions.

“Palestinians will continue carrying out non-violent resistance against the occupation and settlement expansion in the West Bank in order to deliver a message to the world that we are the owners of this land,” said Makhlouf. “Settlements are the biggest obstacle facing the two-state solution and the peace process.”

The youth leaders and townspeople, cheering and showing support for one another, proceeded to plant many trees near the separation wall.

“Our goal is to support the citizens of Zubaydat,” said OVP’s youth leader and the village’s own Hamza Zubaydat.

Indeed, the OVP youth leaders have promised their campaign won’t stop until a viable and independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital is created. Only when the occupation is ended will the villagers of Zubaydat gain the freedom to farm on all their land, dig the wells they need for water, and rebuild their children’s playground.

OVP’s activists and townspeople of Zubaydat marching to the land south of the separation wall in Jericho.

Zubaydat's location in Area C.

OneVoice Hosts Building Bridges for Peace

Dr. Patrick Magee and Jo Berry of Building Bridges for Peace met students at OneVoice Israel event at the University of Haifa. They travelled to Ramallah the next day to meet with OneVoice Palestine activists. 

On March 13, Dr. Patrick Magee, a former IRA member, and the daughter of one of Magee’s victims, Jo Berry, spoke about the role of forgiveness and conflict resolution at an event co-sponsored by OneVoice Israel and Haifa University.

The event enabled Pat and Jo, founders of Building Bridges for Peace, to share their unique story and relay back to the students the importance that understanding and dialogue played in their reconciliation. Indeed, a key theme throughout the talk was empathy, for it is only through understanding of where someone else comes from that we are able to learn of the circumstances which shaped the views and opinions of others. 

This point was emphasized by Jo when she said, given a change of circumstances, she could have easily grown up to be a member of the IRA. She stressed that actions are determined by circumstances, not by any innate characteristics within us. It was only through knowing Pat, and the struggles and injustices he faced growing up in the Northern Ireland conflict, that she could understand how and why he turned to violence, and in turn why her father lost his life. 

Pat and Jo have traveled to many countries to share their story, but this was their first visit to Israel and Palestine.

“Everybody wants peace, every conversation we’ve had here has been about that,” Pat observed. “There’s a solution already there, it’s just creating the conditions for people to come around the table and thrash it out. There’s so much fear. Fear drives people to apathy and drives people to extremes.”

Some students present in Haifa found the idea of Pat's and Jo’s reconciliation incomprehensible, even wrong, though many others wanted to better understand. As such, some frank exchanges between the students and the speakers took place.

Pat was also keen to emphasize that one must not lose hope.

“There’s a list of seemingly endless problems, no solutions in sight, and then this miracle happens,” Pat said after a question about seemingly intractable conflicts.

The students asked Pat and Jo a variety of questions, ranging from how their families received the partnership, to how their experiences and what they have learned could be applied to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In response, the message was clear, in that it emphasized the need to be open, patient, and to empathize – to imagine one’s self in the place of the other.

Jo also had some practical advice to end on: “I recommend you get involved with OneVoice, they do fantastic work.”

***

Pat and Jo with OVP activists in Ramallah.

The next day, OneVoice Palestine youth leaders met with Pat and Jo in Ramallah.

Pat and Jo had a chance to discuss the conflict, occupation, and suffering, as well as see the impact of the settlements and separation wall. They shared their stories with youth leaders in an event OVP’s activists described as “inspiring” and “a powerful example of reconciliation.”

Within the duration of this visit, Jo spoke of her commitment to peaceful resolution, mediation of conflict, and about Building Bridges for Peace. She was inspired by the youth leaders’ work in the West Bank and Gaza and their commitment to non-violent activism. Pat spoke about his journey, his 14 years in prison, and Jo’s efforts for achieving reconciliation with him.

OVP youth leaders shared observations about the need for justice, an end to the occupation, and solving all final status issues in line with international resolutions as pre-requisites to real reconciliation with Israel in a meaningful sense.

The youth leaders listened intently to Pat’s story, and then explained how there is another internal reconciliation that Palestinians are concerned about: the schism between the West Bank and Gaza, and how important healing this divide will be in order to achieve a sustainable peace agreement with the Israelis that will end the occupation, build the Palestinian state, and bring peace to the region.

Over the course of two hours, Pat and Jo shared with the youth leaders the concept of creating a legitimate partnership in times of conflict. They also answered questions by the youth on peace building and the obstacles generated by mistrust and frustration on both sides of the conflict.

“I can only imagine their journey for reconciliation,” said OVP activist and Project Manager Malaka Samara. “In times of conflict, it is important to hear the other side and give an opportunity to create a legitimate partner to end the conflict for the benefits of both sides.”

OneVoice Palestine continues outreach to Gazans

OVP Gaza Director Ezzeldeen Masri leads an introductory session for university students in Gaza City on March 12, 2013.

In a Gaza City conference room covered with OneVoice messaging, 30 university students from around the Gaza Strip gathered around the table to hear why they—as citizens— must play an active role in securing a Palestinian state.

OneVoice Palestine-Gaza Director Ezzeldeen Masri introduced OneVoice to the students and briefed them on the historical reasons why the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) made the landmark decision to accept and pursue the two-state solution, how it could secure their rights and independence, and what they could do as Palestinian youth and the inheritors of this legacy, to help bring it about.

Ezzeldeen recounted the decades of bloodshed that people had already suffered through, and emphasized a critical point, that violence between the two sides will not achieve what Palestinians truly want: an independent state living in peace and security.  

“After the 1982 war, the PLO decided to focus more on the political and diplomatic front in order to end the occupation and establish the independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders,” Ezz explained.

An audience member raised a question about armed resistance to the Israeli military occupation, and Ezz focused on the need for Palestinians to focus their energies on nonviolent resistance.

“At OneVoice Palestine, we honor the martyrs who have suffered or died in the cause of Palestinian justice and statehood. Now, in our struggle toward liberation and independence, we support the vision of our President, Mahmoud Abbas, in ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on the two-state solution and through popular nonviolent resistance and other diplomatic and legal measures,” Ezz responded.

OneVoice Palestine was glad to be able to facilitate a genuine debate on what steps the Palestinians needed to take to begin building a future free of occupation. Recent history provided an important touchstone to many of the young people in attendance.

Yasser Arafat's vision of the Peace of the Brave, and the historic Arab Peace Initiative of 2002, provided the framing for a lively debate, as the young Gazans present discussed what could be done to break the impasse.

“For me”, said Ezz, “one of the most important things we’re doing here in Gaza is giving these young people the tools and grounding necessary to take ownership over their fate and play an active role in ending this occupation and building the two-state solution. Nobody else here is doing this sort of work-- nobody.”

Some of OVP’s longest serving Gazan activists - Mahmoud Daoud, Hasan Skaik, and Islam Shalah - spoke about their experience and the skills they gained from participating in the youth leadership training program (YLP), encouraging participants to join and become OVP volunteers. The activists also introduced the town hall meeting program (THM) and the various initiatives that OVP conducted in the past, as well as brainstorming about future activities.

“The OVP leadership training program helped us develop the skills needed to become politically active and capable of contributing to the march toward liberation and independence,” Mahmood explained to the group. 

Mr. Salem Hindi, director of the Palestinian Peace Coalition, and Mr. Ibrahim Kishta, councillor in the Palestinian Diplomatic Corps and an OVP supporter, both addressed the session’s attendees. They spoke about the need to adopt nonviolent popular resistance in order to put pressure on Israeli society and for the international community to demand an end for the occupation and the establishment of the Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders.

"We must have a clear objective: liberation, independence, and popular nonviolent resistance combined with diplomacy are the best methods to reach our goal," said Mr. Kishta.

Mr. Hindi concurred. “Nonviolent resistance proved its effectiveness in the West Bank towns of Bodress, Nalien, and Nabi Salah,” and therefore should be used elsewhere in Palestine.

“At this stage in our struggle toward liberation and independence, we need to adopt the popular nonviolent resistance model," activist Islam Shalah told the group.

By the end of the intro session, 23 of the 30 attendees signed up for the youth training program with OVP-Gaza, helping Ezz and his team further increase their impact and non-violent agenda in this most challenging of environments.

The introductory session was done in cooperation with the Adam Center for Dialogue of Civilizations in Gaza City.

Mahmood Daoud, OVP activist (right) explains the youth leadership training program to the group. 

OVP Gaza youth leader Islam Shalah told the group that nonviolent resistance must be the model in Palestine.

Participants, including Mr. Kishta (far left) and Mr. Hindi (center, speaking), discuss the role of nonviolent resistance in bringing about a Palestinian state.

OneVoice Palestine’s “Women of Influence” project to nurture new leaders

Malaka Samara, center, meets with Sahar Qawasmeh, head of the Adwar Organization for Development, and senior OneVoice activist Ibrahim Mubarak to discuss her “Women of Influence” project.

On International Women’s Day – a day set aside by the United Nations to raise awareness and commemorate the advances women made in their societies – a new initiative takes hold in Palestinian communities looking to do the same.

Led by OneVoice Palestine’s Malaka Samara, the new Women of Influence (WOI) project aims to emphasize the importance of Palestinian women and their essential social, economic, and political role in community-building to end occupation and the conflict.

Clearly, one cannot build peace by leaving half of a society out, and women have been sidelined in peace building for too long. Only 2.5% of signatories to peace agreements since 1992 have been women. Since 2000, 16 peace processes had minimal involvement of women, and in five cases, no women were involved at all.

The WOI project seeks to train, empower, inspire, and energize Palestinian women to be active, to contribute to the improvement of their communities, and to ensure that women are involved in Palestinian state building, and the peace process, at all levels.

The UN has acknowledged the vital importance of women’s involvement. Women’s participation in conflict resolution and building peace is called for in Security Council Resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1820 (2008), but its real impact is yet to be felt by women in conflict zones such as Palestine.  

“We are living under occupation, having daily challenges in our life at all levels,” said Malaka. “Women are mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters, so it is very important that they raise their voices and be part of the development of their communities and help end the occupation by delivering their messages to national and international decision makers.”

The WOI is the brainchild of Malaka’s prolonged efforts and interest in Palestinian women’s issues and her time spent volunteering with OneVoice Palestine as a youth leader. The project has several phases, the first of which concluded last month. Six introductory meetings in Bethlehem, Jenin, Qalqilya, Hebron, and Jericho – the WOI target cities – occurred with women leaders and heads of local organizations. These meetings sought to introduce the project and establish a network of partners for future women’s initiatives through the WOI project.

Upcoming phases, spread out over the year, include introducing the project to small groups and discussing the challenges of Palestinian women in positions of influence, with emphasis on women in political life. Women from each target city will receive six months of training before implementing the project. Prominent and influential female leaders from across Palestinian society will serve as guest speakers in public meetings, sharing their personal stories and advice on topics such as family, community, traditions, religion, and politics.

Malaka envisions that each candidate will have the desire to make a change in life, believing that women have a vital role in changing their communities, and can be critically important actors in ending occupation and building a Palestinian state that values the role of women.

Malaka also hopes to be able to channel the young leaders in the program toward opportunities in partner organizations and in the private sector.

“Ultimately, we want these women’s experiences to be transferable – from theoretical to practical,” Malaka explained. “This way, they can be part of the change in themselves and their communities.”

 

Yasser Arafat’s leadership and legacy debated by King’s College panel

From left to right: BICOM Prof. Alan Johnson, OVE Director John Lyndon, Amb. Manuel Hassassian, and The Price of Kings Co-Director Richard Symons at the February 27 panel debate. 

By anyone’s estimation, Yasser Arafat was - and remains, posthumously – a totemic figure in the Palestinian national psyche. As is often the case with such foundational figures in the history of a people, it is difficult to separate the myth from the man, and for an honest appraisal to take place. 

However, at OneVoice Europe’s film screening and panel discussion on Arafat during the February 27 event – following our heated debate on Shimon Peres January 30 – the analysis was free flowing and candid from all three panellists.

Palestinian Ambassador to the UK, Professor Manuel Hassassian, was frank in his remarks, and admitted to not having been supportive of every move his former president made. Hassassian pointed out the “oxymoronic character” of Arafat, who “had incredible charisma,” but, he felt, was sometimes guilty of political miscalculation. Hassassian ultimately praised Arafat for managing, uniquely, to wear both the “hat of a statesman and the hat of a freedom fighter,” and for being the crucial figure in the struggle for Palestinian rights and statehood.

Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre’s (BICOM) Professor Alan Johnson was critical of some of Arafat’s deeds and legacy, but stressed that the film “reminded us of how far we’ve come in terms of negotiating...Peres mentioned that it was illegal for Israelis to negotiate with the PLO,” and Arafat presided over that transformation.

Looking to the present-day leadership, there was a mixture of pessimism and optimism stemming from the panellists. Richard Symons thought that because President Mahmoud Abbas did not enjoy the same adoration as Arafat, he would have less ability to make a historic deal. Hassassian, though, has confidence in Abbas’s strategy, which he said was “negotiation and refraining from violence...he said that he is willing to make the historic compromise of agreeing to 22% of the land,” but “the basic condition to negotiate is to put a moratorium on the building of settlements.”

Ambassador Hassassian and Professor Johnson had different takes on the state of play in Israel. Hassassian argued, “the Israelis are not ready to make peace because they do not have the political will,” while Johnson disagreed and sees a window of opportunity in the recent Israeli elections, in which he views as a “significant shift to the left.”

The event was notable for the extent to which the panellists were willing to be critical about some of the shortcomings of their respective “sides” in this conflict, with some constructive ideas discussed around ways to break the current impasse and restart negotiations. All panellists agreed that the missed opportunities to reach a negotiated two-state solution can largely be blamed on a lack of leadership on both sides. As Richard Symons said, “it is all about political willpower, nothing else matters.”

Symons closed the event on optimistic note, when he pointed to a new, “younger generation of political leaders who were trying to break through” and whom he felt had the ability to really affect change. It is this generation of Israelis and Palestinians that OneVoice puts its faith in, too, training thousands of the region’s most talented young people so that they can be the change necessary to end this conflict.

 

OneVoice Palestine launches youth leadership training program for 2013

Long-time OneVoice Palestine youth leader and current staff member, Mohammed Asideh, during an introductory training session in Nablus in January. 

OneVoice Palestine launched the 2013 Youth Leadership Program with an ambitious plan in mind: to reach 1,000 youth leaders by the end of this year.

Designed by OVP's youth leadership department, the program plans to engage new participants from 11 different cities in the West Bank through three newly created regional offices in Nablus, Jenin, and Bethlehem.

The program is designed to determine the readiness and willingness of the participants to move up in the program. Of the projected 1,000 new youth leaders, 500 will advance to receive basic leadership training, 100 will receive the advanced leadership training, and 40 will train as senior advanced leaders – the highest volunteer position – throughout 2013.

The program will provide basic leadership training through the first six months of 2013, focusing on topics such as communication skills, leadership skills, working within a team, and campaigning. There will also be an introductory session on the history of the conflict and the work of OneVoice since the Movement's inception. The youth leaders will benefit from these workshops, building their leadership skills and shaping their personalities to become active leading members in their own communities.

In January, OVP reached 191 new youth leaders – a one-month recruiting record. Citizens from all participating cities in the West Bank joined the introductory sessions and learned about OneVoice's message and the two-state solution. The sessions, conducted by OVP's senior youth leaders, also aimed to engage new recruits and create opportunities for OVP senior volunteers to lead introductory sessions.

"We are seeking to mobilize leading Palestinian youth through our progressive program," said Abdallah Hamarsheh, OVP's youth leadership program director. "The aim is to establish a nonviolent resistance base against the occupation and the Israeli settlement policies."

During the second half of 2013, OVP will move into advanced training with 100 volunteers from the basic training phase, tackling one topic each month until the end of the year. Topics will include public speaking, media, negotiation skills, and the conflict as seen through the Palestinian narrative.

January already proved to be a fantastic start to what appears to be a successful year for the youth leadership department in OVP. The team is very excited to move forward with the program and promote nonviolent activism among the Palestinian youth in the West Bank and Gaza.