I published a version of this diary back in 2009 when I was living in Beirut, Lebanon and working with Palestinian refugees in camps. I am putting this up now in the interest of informing the community about the Palestinian position as they pursue statehood at the United Nations.
Any peace process that does not include the views of Palestinian refugees in exile will falter. The issue of their right of return must be dealt with in some way, but it is up to the victims of displacement to decide how they negotiate their rights.
As a Palestinian-American living in Lebanon, I cannot help be confronted with the plight of Palestinian refugees on a daily basis.
The views expressed here are my own. I do not mean to put forward any set solutions to the problems outlined below, only to advocate for a wider Palestinian participation in negotiations with Israel. I appreciate your comments, but ask that we be civil and remain on topic.
For the record, I blame the government of Lebanon for the sorry state of affairs of the refugees within their borders, but I believe that Israel has a responsibility to acknowledge and make amends for their displacement. If the elected representatives of the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon negotiate for reparations instead of the right of return, I would respect that decision. However, I believe that the description of their situation in Lebanon will help readers understand why they have not given up on the dream of returning to their own country.
There are an estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and they are the most isolated and impoverished of the all Palestinians in the Diaspora. The entire refugee population, of which only about 50% are registered with United Nations Refugee and Works Agency (UNWRA), live in 12 official camps or in displacement centers known as gatherings. Refugees not registered with UNWRA are not eligible for shelter, food or health aid from the agency. No benefits are provided by the Lebanese state for Palestinian refugees.
The security of the camps is out of the purview of Lebanese police. Palestinian factions are responsible for policing the camps, resolving disputes and meting out justice. The camps are rife with violence from internal and external forces. In 2007, the camp of Nahr el-Bared in the north of Lebanon was completely destroyed after being infiltrated by Fath al-Islam, Islamic radicals from outside Lebanon. The Lebanese army invaded the camp in a manhunt to capture the radicals and in the process made destroyed a large portion of the living structures there. The refugees of Nahr el-Bared are away from home again living as guests in the nearby camp of al-Baddawi and other communities. The international community has pledged to rebuild Nahr el-Bared, but donors have been slow in honoring their pledges and the future of the displaced refugees in still unknown.
The Lebanese government supported by a large percentage of the Lebanese population refuses to integrate Palestinian refugees into Lebanese society. Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are not granted citizenship and must apply to the Lebanese authorities for travel authorization, a permit that is difficult to obtain. Until 2010, Lebanese law barred Palestinian refugees from participating in 72 categories of professional labor including medicine, law, engineering and even driving a taxi. The Lebanese justified these discriminatory laws by claiming that integration would deny Palestinians an argument in negotiations on the "right of return" with Israel. However the true motivation is the fragile sectarian balance in Lebanon. Most of the Palestinian refugees are Sunni Muslim. Their inclusion in Lebanese citizenry would weaken the standing of Maronite Christians who dominate the political scene in a bizarre confessional system of governance. A recent change in the law opens up more employment opportunities to Palestinians in Lebanon.
The Palestinian refugee community, long barred from many types of work, is poor. Most households lack basic infrastructure such as drinking water, electricity, garbage collection, and connection to a sewage system. It is not uncommon to see open sewer tunnels running through the camps. In the rainy winter months, the lack of proper drainage causes most of the homes in the camps to flood. Worsening economic conditions, spreading poverty and a strong feeling of hopelessness are the daily reality of refugee families in Lebanon.
Palestinians generally are admired throughout the Arab world for their high educational rates and the high priority they place on education among their children. However the situation within Lebanon is quite exceptional. Approximately 80,000 children between the ages of six and fifteen live in Palestinian refugee camps and gatherings in Lebanon. Legal and economic barriers have made education no guarantee for a better life or for finding work. Therefore, education is not valued by either parents or children. While school attendance is close to 100% for children under the age of 10, by the time a student reaches the age of 15, there is a 69% chance that he or she is a dropout.
Public Lebanese schools are not open to Palestinian refugees, and private schools charge tuition fees that families cannot afford. UNRWA is the only educational option for most of these children. Classes in UNRWA schools are overcrowded--between 55-60 students per class. School buildings have been forced to implement shift schedules so that the large number of students can be accommodated. Students must complete a full curriculum in three hours per day. There is little in the way of extra-curricular education and no physical space for sports in the camp. In short, life in the Lebanon for refugee children is one of exclusion, and education is not a source of enjoyment or social exchange. Sources of entertainment and fun for children are for the most part absent.
Employment, if educated or not, is scarce and emigration seems to be the highest goal for most young people. Given this reality, the camps are perfect breeding grounds for illegal trafficking and smuggling, violent political actions, and gang and militia formation.
Over the last several months of working with children and youth from this community, I constantly think about what the future holds for them. As the noted researcher on the camps in Lebanon, Rosemary Sayigh, described in her important book, the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are a people with Too Many Enemies.
I do not see relief coming from internal Lebanese actions. The Lebanese state is enjoying a delicate moment of stability, but that can be destroyed in an instant. Inflation is high and the poverty rate among Lebanese citizens is growing. The state has a dismal record of providing services for its own population, and there is little to suggest that they will integrate Palestinians in the near future.
I support the right of these refugees to return to full citizenship within Israel and I must continue to do so until if and when they say that they want something else. I cannot give up that right on their behalf. That is not up to me, a Palestinian who was lucky enough to get U.S. citizenship. And it can not be negotiated away by the Palestinian Authority, an entity that has absolutely no representation from the refugee population, the largest polity within Palestinian society.
Any negotiations with Israel that deal with their future must include their participation. A government in Ramallah is unlikely to consider their concerns and many prominent Palestinians from the West Bank are on the record of giving up the right of return. I find this highly arrogant and unjust.
Many refugees I spoke with simply want Israel to acknowledge the harm done. Lebanon is the only home they know and they do not wish to live as a minority in a hostile Israel. Some want reparations. No one knows exactly how many truly want to exercise their right of return. But it is clear that they want options.
After all, it is certainly in everyone's interest, and especially Israel's, to include this population in any comprehensive peace deal. To ignore them is to create many more generations of Palestinian political and military action against the state of Israel. I would say the future of the whole region demands that their voices be heard.
9:33 AM PT: Out to a meeting. Please keep the generally good tone in the comments going.