The Political Oral History of Palestinian Women
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In the context of our concern with the role of women and their oral history in activating human memory and the process of historiography, as well as our interest in the ongoing research in this area conducted in the Arab region and abroad, members of the Women and Memory Forum participated in the “Workshop on the Political Oral
History of Palestinian Women”, held in Cairo on 23-26 April 1998. The Workshop was organised by the Palestinian Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation – the Department of Planning and Enhancing Women’s Participation. The UN expert, Dr. Fayhaa Abdel-Hadi coordinated this meeting.
The Workshop started with an opening address by Mrs. Samira Abu-Ghazaleh, Chair of the Palestinian Women’s Union in Cairo, followed by Dr. Adel Yahya, historian and director of the Palestinian Foundation for Cultural Exchange; Dr.
Hoda Elsadda, coordinator of the Women and Memory Forum; and Dr. Fayhaa Abdel-Hadi,
Workshop coordinator. The opening speeches pointed out the significance of Palestinian women’s political struggle, and the importance of oral history in general and women’s oral history in particular. They also referred to the specificity of the historical phase stretching from the thirties into the sixties of this century – an under-researched period in the historiography of Palestinian women’s struggle. The speakers highlighted the need for an analytic approach to certain significant points in Palestinian political history, and the importance of shedding more light on women’s political struggle throughout the thirties, forties, fifties and up to the sixties – the establishment of the Palestinian Women’s Union, and the break out of the Palestinian Armed Struggle.
The Workshop was held in preparation for the process of documenting the political oral history of Palestinian women in the given period. The study will be based on women’s oral narratives. Through documentation, it hopes to give voice to their experiences of struggle so as to come out with a more comprehensive picture and to present a clearer, less biased image of the historical period.
The programme of the Workshop provided insights into various issues. Prof. Ahmed Mursi gave a talk on folklore in its relation to oral history. In her presentation, Dr. Hoda Elsadda emphasised the importance of gender awareness and knowledge of the feminist approach to women’s oral history. Dr. Fayhaa Abdel-Hadi presented a review of the available literature on the history of the Palestinian woman. Dr. Adel Yahya discussed and led training sessions on techniques of research in oral history. The Workshop, moreover, included a showing of a documentary film directed by Arab Lutfi entitled A Beautiful Mirror, which documents the memories and narratives of four Palestinian “warrior women”. The film sets an example for the use of oral history in documentary films.
Sixteen women researchers took part in the Workshop, representing different Arab countries (Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan and Egypt). They were trained in oral history research techniques so as to start collecting the narratives in June 1998, and over a period of three to five months. The project involves the cooperation of and coordination with the institutions working in the field of oral history, together with the Palestinian Women’s Union. The collected material will then be analysed and studied prior to its publication in book form.
 
 

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