Wednesday, August 25, 2010

I am a citizen of Gaza - passport denied....





Dear Hiyam
Salam and blessings...

Finland is the first country in the world to guarantee its citizens  the legal right to use broadband Internet at home with a speed of one megabit per second. On the other hand, Palestine is the number one “country” in the world, which deprives it's citizens of their rights in acquiring a Palestinian passport, especially... if they are citizens of Gaza.

In May, I – and along with me, the world and it's brother – submitted a request to renew my Palestinian passport, in order to keep the promise I made to my dear mother that we would perform the Umrah pilgrimage together in the blessed month of Ramadan. I followed all the required procedures, paid the postal fees and the charges for renewing a passport – and waited.
After less than a month, by way of the owner of the agency I received the reply REFUSED.

Yes, the Ramallah government refused to issue me a passport for reasons of security,because I represent a danger to them, due to my political and/or work related affiliations,or because of the color of my beard and/or because I'm from Gaza.

The word “GAZA” is one that in itself is an accusation of whoever pronounces it, and whoever belongs to it, is outside the law, and whoever resides in it, is a terrorist, even if he does not have a beard. And everything that leaves it ,must be searched by high-frequency, X-ray devices to make sure it complies with debased and biased standards imposed by those people and their associates.
I thought I was the only unlucky one that the grip of “refused” had caught hold of with all its strength, and that I was the only one savouring my sufferings because of the tyranny, so I isolated myself to heal my wounds. I implored Allah to drive away my distress. 

Within just a few days the issue had been dispersed around me, and the area of suffering had expanded to include a greater slice of society. It includes doctors and patients, academics and students, Umrah and Hajj pilgrims, and a large number of citizens who thought they were entitled to acquire a Palestinian passport.

Various solutions have been offered by the advisers, whom are plenty on the political issues prevailing in the Gaza Strip. One team has asserted that the problem lies with the travel agencies which arrange the matter under the table, and weave the plot with the beneficiaries that “walk away with” the postal fees and the renewal costs. Another team has nominated the names of agencies, the very same ones, to register with, because of their connections and closeness to the decision-makers over there [in Ramallah]. 

A third focuses on the behaviour of the individual and his appearance; to ensure getting the passport you must – in their opinion – dress like a hippie [in baggy clothes] and have a box of Viceroy cigarettes in your hand, remove your beard with sugar wax  if you can, and give the impression to the report writers in your area that you've lost it and let yourself go and became a “junkie” overnight just like any other self-respecting bum. 

And the last team hangs the matter on the peg of division , and calls for division to be rapidly stopped and for the work that unity requires to be initiated, to bridge the gap and remove the differences between brothers, to make the wheels of peace turn…and…all the other incomprehensible phrases in my dictionary.

In desperation the government in Gaza has issued a decree that they would renew passports for a year, in an attempt to make things easier for people with urgent travel needs, especially those performing the Umrah pilgrimage. Immediately after that came Saudi Arabia's announcement that they would refuse to give visas to green colored passports, because they had not been renewed by the Ramallah government as it was earlier agreed upon.

The problem with these thugs in the black Muqata'a  is that their refusal is dependent on the applicant's political affiliation; so when you hear one of them speaking on your PC- screen assuring they are supporting,the people of Gaza and their steadfastness, collect whatever saliva God has granted you in your mouth, Mix it with the phlegm hanging in your throat, and with all the power that has been given you, give vent with one phrase: I spit on you ! ...




Khaled N. Safi 


Related: If you reside in Gaza - Passport denied




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