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In the first two weeks of May, following the Aqaba workshop, Peace Dream Football international director, Robin Graham crossed into Northern Israel from Jordan by the Sheikh Hussein bridge. There are only 3 border crossings from Israel to Jordan; the other two are at Eilat-Aqaba by the Red Sea; the Allenby Bridge ( King Hussein crossing) by Jericho on the road from Amman to Jerusalem.
The upcoming Middle East Peace Football Program will be held in the region between Nazareth and Jenin. Nazareth is in Israel, and Jenin is in Palestine. The visit to Israel and Palestine gave Robin Graham the opportunity to cement the relationships with the Peace Dream team of coaches, and with local officials and community leaders on both sides of the border.
Robin’s host was Faiad Shalaby the program director. The visit included visits to Jenin on the first day, to meet with the Peace Dream’s Palestinian coach on his home ground.
We found Ahmad Hussein Musa in the middle of training youth in a small village outside Jenin. The local administrators are enthusiastic and support cultivating youth who can play sports and build their understanding and ability to relate well with others, including the Israeli youth across the border. They have no illusions that this is a quick-fix solution. They appreciate the approach Peace Dream Football is taking. That approach is to encourage youth to develop football skills and at the same time their character and relational skills , both on the field and off the field. This initial stage will be over the course of 3-4 months within the separate target communities. The Jenin program will be run by Ahmad, the football coach, and he will be supported by a “peace coach.” Together they will combine their talents to teach and coach the youth in football and peace.
The same evening, back across the border, Robin was able to meet with Ahab the peace coach for Jenin, a wonderful young man. He is very skilled with a lot of experience in Arab-Israeli dialogue and youth relationships. Though we are optimistic, given the calibre of the programme and the people involved, there are no illusions. There may be several risks outside of our control. There is always the threat of violence in parts of the West Bank and Gaza, or even renewed violence with Lebanon. These events will have a dramatic effect on the ability to cross the border between Palestine and Israel.
These risks are understood, and yet we must continue to make effort and the first step has been to create a foundation of trust and rapport is being built among the program leaders who will guide the youth.
The following day Robin was able to meet with the community leaders in Afula, the Israeli-Jewish community about 10 kms from the Palestinian border. The neighbourhood has many recent Jewish immigrant families, including many from Eastern Europe and Ethiopia. The programme is being well received by the Afula regional community council for youth and sports. The next stage of the programme will be a series of one day tournaments throughout the regional schools (including school districts around Jenin). These local tournaments will promote the Peace Dream Foundation and its work.
Later in the day, Robin was able to meet with a second peace coach, Femi, a teacher who is pursuing advanced degrees in peace building and human resource management. Femi has long experience leading dialogue between Arab and Jewish youth. Through many hours talking and listening together we have been able to create the levels of trust which are absolutely necessary to the integrity and commitment to Peace Dream Football’s task. This is no quick “photo-op.” Peace Dream Football is committed to lasting change. This is no small task and relationships have to be strong, transparent and there has to be a win-win for all involved.
The third target group is the Israeli-Arab community, and Sandala, is the target village only 1 km from the border. The day that Robin visited, by chance, the village had organized a volunteer day and the village children were all involved in a street clean-up. The football coach in this Israeli-Arab community will be Omar Omari. At his house we discussed the evolution of the programme and many village elders came to offer their support. There was a lot of discussion about the nature of building peace, and the role of the village in the process.
The result of the visit and meeting with the programme’s football coaches and peace coaches has been to further build awareness, to develop the community of coaches, to establish the shared principles and values within this group, and to begin the outreach and inclusion of the wider community of elders and decision makers. There is an ongoing development in understanding about the programme, its intentions and goals. This will steadily improve as the programme continues. There will be further training and communication with the coaches in June and August. The next step will be the awareness building throughout the region when youth are involved in the June football tournaments. June signals the end of the school year and so the kids will be excited to participate and the name of Peace Dream Football and its overall vision will become much more familiar.
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