Behind Closed Doors: Palestinian Families Under Curfew

By Dr. Suha Sabbagh

After deportations, curfews are the cruelest punishment for mothers, one mother from the West Bank told a team of experts from the United Nations. The UN report on The Situation of Palestinian Women in the Occupied Territories, issued in March 1990 by the Commission on the Status of Women, notes that all members of the family suffer when curfews restrict their mobility. Mothers suffer the most, however, because, as in patriarchal cultures everywhere, the responsibility of running the house falls squarely on their shoulders.

A Double Burden for Mothers

It is not unusual to find Palestinian families with 10 or 11 children crowded into two or three rooms. During curfews, overcrowding of this kind produces stress among children which manifests itself in the form of aggressive behavior. Mothers are faced with the double burden of controlling the children's aggression toward one another, and making sure that the family has enough food supplies to last throughout the curfew. Based on interviews with 30 women from the occupied territories, the UN report had the following to say on the effects on the mothers' emotional well being:

"There is a deterioration of the psychological well-being of mothers in particular. During prolonged periods of curfew, women are fully responsible for finding food to feed the large Palestinian family. They must also insure that the children stay within the family home, which is often overcrowded. Women must also deal with their husband's frustration at his inability to go out and earn an income. It was stated that women seemed to be stronger and more able to cope with the circumstances than men, some of whom have developed psychological problems. However, the combined effect of this stressful situation is linked to an increase in cases of high blood pressure, miscarriages, diabetes, headaches and psychosomatic illnesses among women. There are few medical services available for these stress-related problems."

The West Bank and Gaza have been under almost continuous curfew since the beginning of the Gulf war. This is the longest curfew that Israel has maintained over such a large segment of the population (1.7 million) since the 1967 occupation. It is also one of the most severe; the curfew is imposed for an average of 22 hours per day. Many families crammed into small quarters have very little food left to feed their children.

While farmers and suppliers of other food products are given permits to bring their supplies to the market, many families do not currently have the resources to purchase these goods. There are 100,000 Palestinian laborers, who work mostly on construction sites in Israel. These laborers have been without income since the curfew was imposed. Many families were provided for by one member of the family working in the Gulf states. This economic valve has also been shut in the course of the Gulf war.

Many institutions that provided employment on the West Bank and Gaza received financial backing from the Gulf states. Now this backing has been reduced, or cut entirely, and many Palestinian employees have lost their jobs (see Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, December 1990, p. 26). Under normal circumstances, this state of economic insecurity would take its toll on family members. It is no doubt exacerbated by the curfew. The loss of all control over their economic future felt by many adults is only aggravated by the loss of control over their own mobility.

Palestinians are further frustrated because so little attention has been paid by the media to their oppressive situation under curfew. Yet the media has reported and re-reported the cheering of a few individuals over the sight of Scud missiles falling on Tel-Aviv, a complaint echoed by Hanan Mikhail Ashrawi in an interview with "60 Minutes" (February 3). This cheering, she said, must be viewed as a measure of the degree of frustration that people in the occupied territories feel because the UN, under American influence, has for so long been unable to protect Palestinian civilians. She, Faisal Husseini and other responsible Palestinian leaders in East Jerusalem and the West Bank have been on record since the renewal of fighting deploring attacks on Arab and Israeli civilians alike (Washington Report, February 1991, p. 23).

No Reason to Cheer

Palestinian mothers had no reason to cheer. So far, two Scuds have landed in the West Bank, but only 10 percent of Palestinians have received gas masks. It is difficult to estimate the psychological impact on mothers who feel that their children have been singled out to die.

For mothers of newborn babies, during curfew there are even more immediate things to worry about than the absence of gas masks. The UN report goes on to say that infant malnutrition and infant mortality rates "soar under curfew." "The stressful situation in the occupied territories precipitates the drying up of some mothers' breast milk, but in times of curfew, no other milk can be found to feed babies. Water mixed with starch has been used as a substitute for mother's milk with unsuccessful results. Some families are unable to afford the cost of purchasing canned milk for infants, and consequently the babies suffer from poor nutrition."

In some cases, telephone communications are cut during curfew. This means that women who are ready to deliver are unable to call an ambulance and must deliver at home. As a result, infant mortality rates have risen in the occupied territories. In extreme cases, the electricity is also cut during curfew. This means that refrigerated foods spoil, and food poisoning occurs. The loss of perishable foods constitutes a financial hardship few families can afford.

Even informal schooling must stop during curfew. Since schools have been closed for most of the past three years since the intifada began, women have been running an alternative school system by teaching children in their own homes. Because classes in this "clandestine education system" are sporadic, and are held in defiance of military law, the atmosphere surrounding the children is never calm and reassuring. Consequently, children have not learned to concentrate for prolonged periods of time on homework, as they might have in regular classrooms.

A long-term consequence of the intifada is the near total loss of parental authority. Intifada children don't view teachers, or, for that matter, parents, as a source of authority. The only source of authority they are willing to listen to are slightly older children who control the streets. These are the heroes and role models of the younger generation. Psychologists in the occupied territories agree that it is not possible to predict at this point the full psychological impact of this erosion of parental authority. It is possible, however, to depict in the UN report the realities today:

"Children are exposed to violence often at an early age, and rapidly are made aware of the political-realities of occupation. During curfews that sometimes last for several days, fear and aggression is expressed inside the house. This places considerable pressure on the members of the families, sometimes causing tension between the parents. The children engage in role-playing the Palestinian /Israeli conflict-acting out the stress by fighting and screaming. If not, they sit frequently in front of the TV watching violence. The psychological impact on the children can be seen in their frustrations, nervousness, stress, fear and aggression. The long-term effects cannot be predicted with certainty. However, from previous conflicts and wars, research shows that this lack of normal childhood will influence the rest of their lives. Many of the mothers feel that the next generation is going to pay too high a price. Not having schools, children are irritable and nervous and sometimes throw stones at each other; their mothers have to explain to them the enemy is external. Before, the respectful and obedient child was considered superior; now the strong, muscular and aggressive child is more popular.

The UN report goes on to say that women have also tried to make the best of the situation by creating institutions to ease the pain of occupation. However, even these efforts are thwarted in times of curfew. After 1967, the first generation of Palestinian women under Israeli occupation became involved in women's unions and welfare organizations, now forbidden in the occupied territories, which in turn operated hospitals, schools and kindergartens, sewing centers, and other traditional activities for women.

Equal Partners

The younger, less traditional generation of Palestinian women work as equal partners with men, constituting 50 percent of all popular committees responsible for providing community services. These committees help families with absent heads of households, or families that need financial support. In such committees, women tend to be better equipped than men in assessing family needs and determining the amount of assistance required.

Women are also contributing to the new economic order. The report lists some of these efforts: "A number of cooperatives planned by women and run by women are operating on the West Bank and Gaza. These cooperatives produce canned goods, biscuits and cookies, grow and sell vegetables and raise poultry for local markets. Their objective is to encourage women to earn a living within reach of their children, in the same village."

Gains and Setbacks

The UN report notes that women have begun to take a more active role in community decision-making and that their participation has greatly enhanced their status. However, women's gains are set back by the same conditions that set back communities under occupation. In times of curfew, the small cooperatives suffer because of lack of refrigeration, or because workers are unable to fulfill their duties. The spoilage of perishable goods during curfews causes economic hardships that can force these institutions to shut down. Stress-induced irritability is the cause of accidents at work. This also cuts down on worker productivity.

The problem facing the population in the occupied territories exceeds curfews. Under occupation, people have little control over their economic and agrarian system, including all the small local industries run by women.

Curfews, in a way, symbolize this total denial of control. They cause a great deal of stress on the family behind closed doors. They also make men acutely aware of their inability to provide for their families and to control the financial destiny of the family and, by extension, the country.

Streets which provide added space for crowded families are denied them by the soldiers, reminding adults and children alike of the loss of Palestinian land. The children sense the helplessness of their parents and are reminded of their status as people under occupation. Their parents, reminded that their sons and daughters are growing up without an education, know that even if these children survive the intifada unharmed, they will have no skills with which to support their own families in the future.

Under conditions of such extreme repression, which breed aggressive behavior in all who are so confined, is it so surprising to find that a minority of frustrated teenagers took to the roofs in defiance of the curfew to whistle at incoming Scuds? It behooves the media to cover the causes of the malady that creates such aggressive behavior, rather than sensationalizing the symptoms.

Dr. Suha Sabbagh is executive director of the Institute for Arab Women's Studies in Washington, DC