INTERVIEW

Kindling the dream- Interview with Nadia Shamrokh, director of the Jordanian Women’s Union (JWU) and general coordinator of the Net of Arabic Women

The Jordanian Women's Union, in collaboration with the Movement for Peace - MPDL -, carries out the project of improvement of the life of the Palestinian refugee children in Baqa'a's camp. JWU was decorated in 2003 with the prize of Human Rights of the UN.

- Since 1974, JWU has been working on women equality, refugee human rights and the equality promotion. What is the work of JWU with children and teenagers?

- The Union stopped functioning from 1981 to 1990 due to active marshal laws in Jordan, and our programs have been in effect since the lifting of marshal laws on 1990. Our focus is on women in general, however changing the adult women mentality is not as easy, therefore we are targeting children from ages 8-16, meaning to endorse better and well informed future citizens. In 1990 we started communities in rural areas and refugee camps focusing on children ages 8-16, the children used to attend the union in holidays, weekends and other school days off, and they have been educated through recreational approach on human rights and children rights.

- The refugee Baqa’a’s camp is the biggest concentration of Palestinian refugees in all Jordan, around 175.000 people. What is the situation for children in this difficult context?

- The refugee camps, in general, are experiencing great financial and educational hardship, and they are suffering the lack of implementation of UNHCR instated rights, and they find themselves living insecurity and short of communal protection.

Therefore, Palestinians who live in the camps are under the conditions of given nationality regulations, that make them to appear as "second class" citizens, suffering from inferiority resulting from living in the camps, and the ones who do not have national identity (citizenship) lead to almost the complete lost of their civil rights in their assigned "regional" communities, and without the hope to return to Palestine, thus creating cases of extremism. The JWU helps to establish a regional coalition for the right of return to all Palestinians in all the regions.

Starting from 10 years ago, the UNRWA has decreased its assistance to refugee camps, which has lead to more needed presence of the JWU. Children in the camps suffer from different external and internal issues resulting from the found hardship.

- ¿What kind of work do you do with the families and children in the refugee camps?

In 1993 JWU launched the children parliament ages 10-18, which was made for children in all greater Jordan, camps includes; the children conference supported the implementation of these recommendations:

1- Playgrounds and recreational centers for children all over the country. And more so for children in camps.
2- Caring for children in refugee camps who suffer of being left in side-line, with lack of all children rights.
3- Caring for children suffering from issues related to families: divorce, violence, etc.
4- Child to child support, which provided to children means of access to books, recreation, company of well children; formal and informal. Also yearly summer camps and the informal big brother approach.
5- Guesthouse for divorced families in the refugee camps (Baqa’a and Wihdat camps).
6- Mothers dealing with children, parenthood child education. Lectures addressing women to better raise children and overcome issues found in their communities and household.

- ¿What role do government organizations play in the support of your work?

- The JWU as NGO is not receiving any governmental support to implement the programs, however the benefits are reflected on the Jordanian society at large. We count on the funds from the "international community".

- In your opinion, ¿what is the key to stimulate children in this situation without alternatives and freedom?

- The key to stimulate children is to solve the following issues: the implementation of the human children rights in the Jordanian practiced law, ratifying Jordan's agreement to the International Children Rights convention; and addressing the Palestinian children in Jordan and all over the region, mainly through advocacy work of "the right of return" kindling the dream. However we provide service and support dealing with the issue of identity providing them a space where they find themselves away from the economical and identity issues experienced in their household in order to lead a productive life.

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