Friday, September 4, 2009

Taking Desperate Measures to Educate Gaza's Youth


By Najwa Sheikh - Gaza
Palestine Chronicle

The month of Ramadan has come this year to the people of Gaza along with the new school year reminding them of the hard living conditions they have endured with the crushing blockade that Israel imposed on Gaza for the third year; A blockade that does not allow even for the basic needs such as medications, flour, building materials, papers, books and stationary for the new school year.......

Due to the continuous Israeli policy of not allowing any of the basic needs including building materials in to Gaza, UNRWA faced a great challenge with the increasing number of students on its schools. With no other alternative, the agency opened a school of cargo containers in Nuseirat Camp, called Nuseirat elementary boys School, on a piece if land of 3.800sq.m donated by the local community. This school includes 19 classrooms of the fourth, fifth and sixth grades only.

The classrooms are containers with a capacity of 36 students only; the wall surrounding the school is a blue plastic pavilion, and with the current regular power cut, the situation is unbearable for both the students and the teachers on this hot weather.......

Despite this difficult situation in the boys school, the students and the teacher’s resilience continues. This is a spark of hope that the blockade will never put out."

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