Human Rights Program Review

I’m 23 years old and from the Netherlands. I have a bachelor's degree in law and a pre master degree in Middle Eastern Studies. Currently I am in university to obtain my Master of Arts in Middle Eastern Studies. For the completion I had to do an internship and coming to Palestine felt like a perfect opportunity. Since I am also very interested in law, international law in particular, I chose to do the human rights internship for nine weeks. The Excellence Center provided an interesting, safe and nice atmosphere to learn about human rights and the situation in Palestine.

My program consisted of three parts. First I took two weeks of Arabic classes. During this time I regained some knowledge from university and this gave me the chance to practice by myself in the weeks that followed. Throughout the weeks I learned the most by just listening to people and hearing the language all the time. Moreover, it is nice that lots of the staff at the Excellence Center will communicate in basic Arabic to make sure you keep practicing.

The next two weeks, I went on many trips regarding the human rights situation in Palestine and specifically in Hebron. These trips can include visiting human rights organizations and governmental institutions. We for example visited Human Rights Defenders, a Hebron based organization whose goal is to document the reality of the occupation. I was even able to arrange an extra meeting with one of their founders to elaborate on the organization and their work even further. That is a huge benefit of staying for a longer time, you are able to build up relationships and undertake the activities and meetings you are personally interested in.
Another visit was to the ministry of Education. Here we met one of the supervisors who mainly explained about the issues of teachers and students whose schools and/or houses are in the H2 area which is under Israeli military control.

The last month of my stay I taught English in Kharas, a nearby village. The students were about 9-15 years old and followed a summer programme to improve their English skills. It was exciting to experience such motivated students. Thereby, I got to learn more about the culture, for example during the food day when the kids shared Palestinian sweets and dishes.

Generally my time in Palestine has been very enriching and enjoyable. The people I met are all so generous and hospitable which made my stay so pleasant.
Moreover, it made me feel very welcome in the city and the country as a whole. As a woman I personally felt very safe in all of Palestine. At some times the reality of the occupation is quite visible in Hebron, for example when the Israeli army clashes with Palestinians near the old city. But even at those times I did not feel unsafe. The same goes for other Palestinian cities and I very much enjoyed traveling throughout the country; to Nablus, Ramallah, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Jericho.