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.