When Tim Rittman joined a project to help in Palestinian refugee camps, he found that Israelis and Arabs can work together. The project was never completed, but, he wonders, did they really fail?

It was in Malta, March 2001, that I first met Hisham from Egypt. That is where the Palestine refugee project started. I was a first year at my first IFMSA (International Federation of Medical Student Associations) meeting; it was amazing to meet medical students from all over the world deeply committed to doing something to change the world for the better. Idealistic? Definitely.

I realised that it was better to be idealistic, trying to do something useful, than to be pragmatic and end up doing nothing. Hisham was passionate when he talked about building an association of Arab medical students and the problems facing refugee camps in Palestine. What impressed me the most was that he desperately tried to be apolitical. He did not blame Israel; he did not blame the Palestinians; he simply wanted to improve the poor health and lack of education resulting from the refugees' living conditions. At the meeting, we were interested in the same issues, and later we discussed the situation by email. It was decided that something concrete should come out of the next meeting, in Denmark.

I met Anan, a Palestinian medical student, who had a vision for the project, in Denmark, in August. I could not resist and jumped in with both feet. Anan and I coordinated a national organising committee in a week. We convinced people from Switzerland, Finland, the Netherlands, France, and Egypt to help, including Hisham. After some careful negotiations, diplomacy, commitment, and flexibility, we secured support from the Israeli delegation.

It is a tribute to both Israeli and Palestinian students that—while their respective countries are in deadlock—groups of medical students were able to overcome their differences and work together. The Israeli delegation could not be directly involved in the project, it was agreed, because of the difficulties with them entering the camps, but their support was nonetheless significant.

The project was for medical students from around the world, each accompanied by a Palestinian student, to visit a refugee camp. The activities would be health promotion, social programmes, and educational programmes. The idea was to give both practical and emotional support to the people in the camps and to show that there is concern about their needs. The practical part of the project would last for a few weeks, but the social and supportive aspects would go on for much longer. It would not have mattered if the refugees were in Palestine, Germany, Rwanda, the United States, or the United Kingdom: this message is what we wanted to emphasise.

There were people who told us that we should stay away from political problems and that we were getting into a difficult situation, but that was not our aim. Of course, it is impossible to be wholly apolitical, but to ignore a situation where there is need is to reject what the IFMSA stands for: it was decided that the project would start.

It was fantastic. I was working in an area of the world in need of genuine help, but I had just finished my first year of medicine. I have to admit that the whole experience was a steep learning curve. Before Malta, my knowledge of the Arab-Israeli conflict was sketchy. I had to learn quickly and maintain a clear and balanced view. I found a book on the recent history of Jerusalem which gave me a good introduction to the problems of the region. I kept up with the news and I spoke to people I knew who had some involvement with the area. Solutions to the conflict seemed—both now and then—so simple, yet simultaneously, so impossible, considering the history and deeply held views in the region.

I drafted a project outline after the August meeting. It became increasingly clear that we would need local surveys to assess needs among the refugees and to look at logistics. Fortunately, Anan and a few other medical students were taking part in a scheme of clinical rotations in Britain for six weeks, so I arranged to meet them in London in October.

At that time, the project was exciting: it was achievable, constructive, and going well. One problem that remained with us from the start was, however, security. At the time, there were a number of restrictions imposed on the refugee camps by Israel, as security measures against the “intifada” (uprising) that began ten months previously. This restricted access to the camps and would severely affect whether it would be possible to reach the people who we wanted to work with.

Although the work we were doing was progressing well, there were always doubts that the project would ever happen. The students from Palestine were sure that the situation would improve soon, however, and that it would not be long before we could put into practice what only existed on paper. I was acutely aware of the black cloud hanging over the whole venture, but at the same time I saw the potential the project had. It was too good an opportunity for everybody to throw it away.

After meeting Anan in London, we had a framework and agreed that he would organise local surveys to be carried out. I would have these by the end of November, and by Christmas the proposal would be written and we could apply for funds.

After the events of 11 August, the weeks were a rollercoaster of expectations, hope, and disappointment. My initial reaction was that if this was the work of a Palestinian suicide bomber, surely that was the end of the project. It turned out not to be, but what would the consequences be for the region? What would happen to the Arab-Israeli peace process? How would George Bush and the United States influence the situation?

At first, the situation looked good: the attack was not carried out by a Palestinian group, and the Muslim world distanced themselves from any involvement. Nothing had significantly changed in Israel as a whole or in the Palestinian occupied areas of Israel. Unfortunately, this stability did not last.

It is not unfair to say that the United States handled the situation badly regarding the Arab-Israeli conflict. In my opinion, they had the chance to push the peace process forward under the guise of bringing Arab countries into their global coalition against terrorism. Israel sent troops to occupy large parts of the Palestinian area, with token outrage from the international community. Palestinians replied with the now well practised language of violence, a series of attacks and revenge attacks, rather than talking peace at the table. As opportunities for progress came and went, the situation slid into chaos, and I fell into despair.

What was an exciting possibility, when I met Anan in the summer, gradually became a fading dream. Events that nobody working on the project could control had taken our vision out of our hands and made it impossible. In short, the project had failed.

Or had it? When I think back on the experience, I remember the highlights: the initial vision and enthusiasm from Anan and Hisham, the cooperation of medical students from opposite sides of a bitter conflict, and the international collaboration for an amazing project. On a personal level, I have gained so much: I have friendships with people who I may never have come into contact with, from cultures that I have had a fascinating insight into. Steep learning curves of diplomacy, organisation, and involvement in potentially political situations were overcome, if not yet mastered. I have learnt that with all the will in the world, our most ambitious plans will not always succeed, but that along the way, our experiences will not be wasted.

What happens next? The Arab students are picking up the pieces of what is left and looking forward to a time when the project will be feasible. I do not know when this will be, but I deeply admire their endless optimism in the middle of such challenges.

Will I be involved? I am still thinking about that; it was an amazing experience and I have learnt a lot, but maybe it is time to move on to something else. I am still active in the IFMSA; I cannot wait for the next three and a half years if they will be anything like the year and a half I have just had.

To read last months article on the IFMSA click here