Triodos Bank: Where Transparency is the Best Policy
Zaytoun on November 18th, 2009Zaytoun is among the many ethical projects that benefit from a Triodos Bank loan to support its growth. Now Triodos is the first bank allowing anyone to see all the loans it is making. To read more click here
FT Foundations Director Says Bananas & Palestinian Olive Oil Her Favourite FT Products
Zaytoun on November 18th, 2009With the love of Palestinian Olive Oil growing in the UK, it seems it’s quickly becoming everyone’s ‘favourite’ product. The Executive Director of Fairtrade Foundation, Harriet Lamb recently said Palestinian Olive Oil is one of her two favourite favourite Fairtrade products of the last 15 years. Read more here
Farming Under Fire - Activist Blog Reports
Zaytoun on July 22nd, 2009See footage and reports of farmers under attack in Gaza and the West Bank www.farmingunderfire.blogspot.com
Zaytoun CIC Wins 2009 Arab-British Culture & Society Award
Zaytoun on May 15th, 2009The Arab-British Centre recently announced Zaytoun CIC (Community Interest Company) as winner of the 2009 Arab-British Culture and Society Award. The annual award of £5000 is made to an individual or organisation which in the opinion of the judges has made an outstanding contribution to the British public’s knowledge and understanding of the life, society and culture of the Arab people. The judges unanimously chose Zaytoun CIC ‘for the inspirational way it has marketed Palestinian olive oil and olives in the UK. Through the background briefings, informative promotions and exchange visits it has organised, it has very effectively raised awareness in the UK of the life, problems and potential of Palestinian farmers. Its success in gaining Fairtrade certification – a first for a Palestinian product and a world first for olive oil – has created new opportunities for extending the British public’s knowledge of an important aspect of the life of Arab people.’
Zaytoun CIC was one of eleven candidates shortlisted for the award. The judges were impressed with the high quality and range of the nominations received and specially commended the following candidates for their notable contributions:
* IB Tauris: Publisher of a large and varied list of academic books on the Arab and Islamic worlds.
* Professor Tim Niblock: Writer on the Arab world, and teacher of generations of UK and foreign students specialising in the region.
* Raja Shehadeh: Palestinian author of engaging and accessible books on life in the West Bank.
The judging panel for the 2009 Arab-British Culture and Society Award comprised: Sir Marrack Goulding (Chair), Dr Shelagh Weir (Acting Chair), HE Khalid Al Duwaisan, André Gaspard, Robert Irwin, Dr Ghada Karmi, Margaret Obank.
For further information click here
Fair Trade Conferencing: Taking the Power Back Through Creative Resistance
Zaytoun on April 1st, 2009A report on the second national fair trade conference in Palestine. Download here
Israeli Forces Open Fire on Palestinian Farmers and Internationals in Khoza’a
Zaytoun on February 27th, 2009February 24, 2009
Khoza’a, Khan Younis, Gaza
Palestinian farmers, accompanied by international Human Rights Workers (HRWs), were fired upon by Israeli forces in the village of Khoza’a, near Khan Younis, this morning. The farmers and HRWs were attempting to work on land around 300m from the ‘Green Line’.
Read more here
Watch video on You Tube here
Olive Oil The Lifeblood of Palestine
Zaytoun on February 21st, 2009Fair Comment - The Fairtrade Foundation Newsletter
Forty-two year old olive farmer Mahmoud Issa looks out across the 150 dunams (15 hectares) of olive groves that provide his living. As a member, he says he speaks for all the farmers in the Anin Co-operative when he describes his excitement at his co-op becoming Fairtrade certified.
The passion for his work is clear. ‘The zaytoun, the olive, means everything to us,’ he says. ‘My father and my grandfather farmed on this land, and now my children work alongside me harvesting. Our olive oil is of the highest quality because of the fertility of the land and we use traditional farming methods.’ In Palestine, the zaytoun or olive tree is revered and symbolizes many things, including family, land and hope. But it doesn’t just have spiritual significance, olive and olive oil production is a vital source of income for many farmers in the region.
Read more here
Israeli Soldiers Shoot Deaf Palestinian Farmer
Zaytoun on February 21st, 2009Dirty Tricks: Israeli Soldiers Shoot Deaf Palestinian Farmer, 4th Farmer Shot in 3 weeks
Eva Bartlett
What caused the Israeli soldiers to shoot a deaf farmer today? Was he threatening? Was it because the group of farm labourers had successfully worked quickly to harvest their day’s wages? Was the sight of retreating, unarmed, clearly non-threatening civilians too tempting to resist?
Whatever the motivation, the result is another casualty of Israeli soldiers’ malevolence: a 20 year old deaf farmer, Mohammad al-Buraim, working the land to support his family of 16, may not walk easily again. The bullet which targeted his ankle penetrated straight through and landed in the tire of the truck he’d been pushing.
Read the rest of this piece here
For Photos click here
Palestinian Fishermen under Daily Assault
Zaytoun on February 18th, 2009Gazan coast becoming a ‘no-go’ zone
On Saturday 14th February, 23 year-old Rafiq abu Reala was shot by Israeli naval forces whilst fishing in Gazan territorial waters, approximately two nautical miles out from the port of Gaza city. He was in a simple fishing vessel, not much larger than a rowing boat, with a small outboard engine, known locally as a ‘hassaka’. Rafiq, his brother Rajab and another friend were following the course of a shoal of fish. A group of five more hassakas were out at the time, about a kilometre to the west of Rafiq’s boat, further out to sea. An Israeli naval gunboat approached the area and began shooting at the other hassakas, which quickly changed course and headed east, back towards shore.
Suddenly Rafiq realised the gunboat was bearing down on their hassaka. As he recounted the events of that day, Rafiq likened the predatory nature of the naval vessel to that of a wolf. It circled their fishing boat and began shooting heavy ammunition in their direction. The three terrified fishermen threw themselves down flat in the bottom of their boat. The Israeli captain ordered them via megaphone to raise their nets and leave the area. At this point the gunboat was less then 20 metres from Rafiq’s hassaka. The second time the gunboat came around no attempt was made to communicate with the fishermen. Rafiq was desperately pulling in the nets with his back facing the gunboat. An M-16 assault rifle was fired hitting him twice with explosive ‘dum-dum’ bullets, which peppered his back with shrapnel from the bullets themselves.
To read the rest of this piece click here
For Video click here
For Photos click here
Gazan Farmers Speak Out
Zaytoun on February 9th, 2009On Saturday 7th February, international human rights workers once again accompanied farmers in al-Farahin, Abassan, in the south of the Gaza Strip as they successfully harvested their crop of peas in the shadow of the Green Line. This followed attacks from the Israeli military in recent days, as reported by the International Solidarity Movement. Farmers were interviewed about their experiences and an eyewitness spoke about the fatal shooting of local farm worker, Anwar Il Ibrim, on 27th January in the same field.
Click here for interviews with farmers in al-Farahin on 7th Feb
