I think we were all heartened by recent news that a Palestinian Youth Orchestra from Jenin performed for a group of aged Holocaust survivors in Holon last week. The event was organized as part of “Good Deeds Day,” an annual event organized by an organization belonging to Israeli billionaire Shari Arison. The 13 member orchestra performed an Arabic song, “We sing for peace,” followed by two musical pieces with violins and Arabic drums. Sweet, right?
Well, all the optimism engendered by this unprecedented event faded away with news that the Palestine authority had disbanded the orchestra because of the performance and banned the Israeli Arab conductor, Wafa Younis, from re-entering the camp.
Adnan al-Hinda, director of the Popular Committee for Services in the Jenin refugee camp, said that the participation of the children in the concert was a “dangerous matter” because it was directed against the cultural and national identity of the Palestinians.
He accused “suspicious elements” of being behind the Holon event, saying they were seeking to “impact the national culture of the young generation and cast doubt about the heroism and resistance of the residents of the camp during the Israeli invasion in April 2002.”
Uh… yeah. That makes PERFECT sense.
froylein
3/29/2009
Let’s suggest Wafa Younis for the Nobel Peace Prize. Philosophy professors are entitled to suggesting nominees to the Nobel Prize committee.
David H.
3/29/2009
Sad.
Mark Goforth
3/29/2009
Leave it to the so called “adults”-with their never ending hatred and distrust-to trash the good hearted peaceful efforts of well meaning young people.
Nadia
3/29/2009
Sad but true. What exactly was done “against the cultural and national identity” of the Palestinians? The girls were dressed in their burkas, and they performed an Arabic song, and used Arabic drums. Who’s identity and culture were ignored; that of the Palestinians or perhaps that of the elderly Holocaust survivors?
Joshua
3/29/2009
Palestinians: abusing children since 1948.
Ephraim
3/30/2009
The answer is obvious, and this was bound to happen.
It was “against the cultural and national identity of the Palestinians” because they were being nice to Jews.
The “Palestinian” identity must, by definition, be the negation of Jewish and Israeli identity. This identity (one wag called them the “Pseudostinians”, quite accurately, I think) must have as it’s raison d’etre the negation of anything Jewish. For the Pseudostinian identity to be real, the Jewish identity must be shown to be false. This is imperative, since recognizing in even the smallest way the legitimacy of Jewish identity might lead to recognizing Jewish claims to Eretz Israel. Once this happens, the war against israel will be seen to be unjust. And chas v’shalom that the Arabs should recognize Jewish suffering. The Holocaust was a Zionazi lie. I thought everyone knew that.
Matter and anti-matter cannot co-exist. Didn’t you guys ever watch Star Trek?
Batya from Shiloh
3/31/2009
No great surprise. They didn’t like their kids being used as a Left wing gimmick. They don’t want peace. All the peace-talk is just the Israeli and foreign Looney Left dreamers. If the Arabs really wanted peace there would be peace.
The Left should clean the chometz from their minds and see the facts.
Miriam
4/1/2009
The girls are wearing hejabs, not burkas. Burkas cover the entire face.
And it’s true. As a Muslim, I have to say that this was incredibly lame. If a group of young players wish to pursue any type of peace effort, it should be allowed. There is no reason why there can’t be peace, but the authorities aren’t going to allow it apparently.
Michael Kerjman
4/28/2009
Any wonder?
Every new Arab princeling starts from bargaining something by denying the agreements with Israel, signed by his predecessors.