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 UNESCO publicationUntil now, agreements signed between the Israeli and Palestinian governments have often pertained exclusively to the political sphere while efforts to facilitate peacebuilding between both peoples have often been neglected even though they will make the cement of any sound peace agreement. The Al-Aqsa Intifada in particular has witnessed a growing divide between Palestinians and Israelis and a dire breach of trust that will take efforts to bridge. In spite of a series of initiatives taken by various Palestinian and Israelis NGOs and other organizations, the "people-to-people" projects have had a limited effect so far. However, they still should not be underestimated as they constitute the first drafts of efforts that need to be continued and will constitute lessons for future experiences in projects that bring both nations face to face. In order to ameliorate those very experiences, UNESCO requested that IPCC and JIIS (the Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies) carry out a two-phase project whose aim is to review the evaluation of past experiences of cooperation among Palestinian and Israeli NGOs in an attempt to assess the Palestinian-Israeli civil interaction and dialogue programs, and to study the impact of the current Intifada on peace and on the possibilities of conciliation and peacebuilding processes. The research was carried out in two stages and IPCC specifically focused on reasons behind the failure/success of cooperation programs and barriers that hindered achieving the desired goals of the past 10 years. In the first stage two separate but parallel studies were undertaken: one was conducted by an Israeli team at JIIS, while the other was carried out by IPCC. At the beginning of this phase, a steering committee was created to coordinate, guide and direct the work of the two teams. The literature on Palestinian/ Israeli civil society cooperation was then reviewed. The purpose of this task was to determine whether sufficient evaluation of Palestinian/ Israeli NGOs peace-building cooperation already existed and in which areas. This assessment was conducted through the review of various studies already made on the "people-to-people" projects by different parties as well as articles and media coverage, but also through interviews that were made with a sample of NGOs' representatives. In the second stage the two teams worked together, and on the basis of the two initial parallel research projects produced a third, joint report presenting their combined conclusions. The areas which still needed to be assessed were mapped and clear criteria for evaluation were suggested. Recommendations on successful concepts of cooperation (based on lessons from phase one) were proposed. The report also recommended a set of guidelines and models for future involvement in civil society cooperation and emphasized experiences that could be relevant to other areas of conflict around the world. In addition, a workshop was held at which the joint report was discussed in a forum composed of representatives of various NGOs, researchers, and evaluators: the proceedings of the workshop, including the comments and contributions of the workshop participants on the subject, were recorded and also written up as a separate document. The 'Civil Societies in Dialogue' program was an essential element in UNESCO's efforts to contribute to reconciliation in the region. Aimed essentially at encouraging open exchange between members of civil societies and their organizations, it sought in particular to: Support a permanent forum for dialogue in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, enabling representatives from both sides to work effectively through various forms of partnership and action; and To promote academic cooperation between researchers in Israeli and Palestinian universities, particularly in the social and human sciences, so as to jointly address common policy issues through research and policy advice.The cooperation of Palestinian and Israeli experts produced a comprehensive report that will help future endeavors undertaken by NGOs and stakeholders of respective societies. The assessment helped identify the areas of cooperation between Palestinians and Israelis in which further evaluation was required. It also identified models, concepts and mechanisms that can assist in building a positive and constructive peace partnership between parties. |
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