Dr. Denise DeGarmo, associate professor and chair of the Department of Political Science at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, spoke passionately about human security in the occupied Palestinian State on Thursday evening.
A group of 20 people attended the discussion at the Main Street Community Center in Edwardsville. The presentation, titled The Quest for Human Security: The Case of the Occupied Palestinian State, examined the model of human security set forth by the United Nations Development Programme in 1994, and assessed the status of human security in the occupied Palestinian state. The event was part of the SIUE Office of Educational Outreach Lifelong Learning program.
Some of DeGarmo’s SIUE students joined her during the discussion to recount their own experiences studying and visiting the chaotic region.
“People here don’t know anything about this and they should,” said T.J. Pearson, a junior with a double major in political science and philosophy. “They’re not going to get this on Fox News or CNN.”
DeGarmo talked about Israeli occupation, and specifically the government’s practices regarding the usurping Palestinian lands. She noted experiencing this first hand while staying with a longtime friend during a trip to Palestine last Christmas. She awoke to find about 10 of 13 acres that had been in her friend’s family for many years had been claimed during a “land grab” by the Israeli government.
“Imagine you have a home in your family and someone just comes in and takes it over,” DeGarmo said. “This is not leading to a state of great human security.”
She added the Israeli government not only takes the land, but often tags buildings on the property as not meeting code requirements. Adding insult to injury, the government then bills individuals for demolition. In the case of her friend, DeGarmo said she demolished her own buildings to avoid penalties.
People who are subjected to land grabs often need to reside in refugee camps or flee the country. Some of the countries taking in displaced Palestinians are Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Ireland. DeGarmo shared maps of the region showing Palestinian loss of land from 1946, 1947, 1967 and 2005.
“It’s been progressively worse as more and more demolitions have been taking place,” she said. The once densely Palestinian populated region now only has smatterings of Palestinian residents in non-contiguous properties in the West Bank and the overall region.
DeGarmo said the current state of Israeli occupation in formerly Palestinian lands has meant total economic control, meaning the types of jobs and financial security Palestinian individuals can get is dictated by the Israeli government. Israel also determines access to health care, schools, water, housing and sanitation, as well as predicates the cultural norms and the location of refugee camps.
“There are a lot of Palestinians who profit from this occupation,” DeGarmo said. “Palestinians are employed by Israelis in service jobs, stores, government and non-government agencies. But overall there is rampant unemployment.
“Economic development is so important to human security. If people feel like they are safe and they have dignity, they can mobilize politically. They have to be provided the proper safety net to mobilize. If they sit passive, nothing will change. It’s just a passive resistance at this point.”
For details about upcoming programs, contact Cheryl Brunsmann, assistant director of Educational Outreach, (618) 650-3209.