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Visiting Palestine… by their conditions!
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- Last Updated on Thursday, 05 July 2012 16:38
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Fadi Abu Sada- We talk a lot about our visitors, we always welcomed everybody, since our country is the cradle of the three godly religions, and the land of hospitality and generosity, however some form of respect by those visitors are demanded, and a lot of responsibility from our side, especially the decision makers because our dignity as a community is in evolved as well as our image as Palestinians in front of the world.
Our latest visitor was the famous super model Naomi Campbell. She visited Bethlehem and the church of Nativity, but was able to set her conditions against our well. Things did not stop there, but went as far as clashing with journalists and stop them from covering the visit of Campbell and only one agency was allowed to film the visit, something that is not acceptable anymore.
We do not know who organized this visit, and frankly we do not care. Naomi Campbell was greeted by Rula Ma’ayah, the Minister of Tourism, and Dr. Victor Batarseh, the Mayor of Bethlehem, and both share the responsibility of butting the local journalists and the entire community in this embarrassing position and adhering Campbell’s demands, who every she maybe.
If she did not want to be seen in Bethlehem, why she came to visit the city in the first place? If she is ashamed to her photos in our city why did we welcomed her for? We can far as far as wondering whether she knew that she is visiting Palestine, have anybody even told her this?
Is it too much if we, the people of this city, demand some respect from those who want to visit us? Or Does it too much to have pride of country in front of our gusts and allow the documentation of their visit so we can send a message to the world that this is Palestine and those are its visitors, and all are welcome to visit it!
Naomi Campbell’s visit is not the first time a gust forces their conditions on us and sadly it looks that it will not be the last. What is sad as well is this police-state approach that is used with journalists, the time of using this kind of policy is gone especially at the time of Arab Spring.
Despite the talk about freedom of press and expression, but we still behave in contrary to that, and continue to insult our selves by our own doing in front the entire world. It’s safe to say that we do not welcome those who set their own conditions to visit us, who ever that gust is and despite their background, ideas, who race.
We should not welcome those who do not respect us and our country and think that with money and power things could be done by their way. What is shameful that those people escape with it and we do nothing about it!.
