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By: tyseer nasrala Nablus 1/9/2003 A Personal Note: From the time of his arrest on March 17, 2003, Khader’s family has been living a difficult life, to say the least. One particular difficulty arose this past month when Hussam’s six-year-old son, Ahmad, was rushed to a hospital for an unexpected surgery, where his appendix has been removed. While in pain at the local hospital, the unconscious little boy kept calling for his father for comfort and support, not realizing at the time that his father remains in jail. At the end, the boy recuperated and left the hospital, while learning a harsh lesson at such an early age of his life. As a child he was understandably afraid for not being able to receive a hug or a word of comfort from his father because the Israelis had taken him away. One can wonder, what kind of an adult will Ahmad grow up to be? No less an angry one. Under normal circumstances, this could be just a slice of a story that relates to one child, except that in the Palestinian territories it is all too common. The isolation and pain is felt too deeply by most Palestinian children living in the territories. Aside from the common nightmares and daily reminders of their father, Ahmad and his two older sisters, although continuously living in constant fear, remain at the same time hopeful that they will see their dad again and will someday live a better life in the future.
The rest of Khader’s family, especially his elderly mother and young sisters, have, in many strange ways, adapted to the challenges that have faced the PLC member in the past two decades. They have witnessed him being brutally shot and near death several times since the 1987 Palestinian intifada. They have had a first-hand experience with his earlier arrests, given that he has been arrested more than two dozen times in the past. He was also deported in the late 1980s, after which he became a spokesperson and a representative of Palestinians’ national struggle, delivering messages about his people to those living abroad. Eventually, in 1994, Hussam was able to return back to his homeland. Two years later, he was elected to the newly established Legislative Council in the territories. Khader’s recent arrest, along with the arrest of another PLC member, Mr. Marwan Barghout, places the fate of the Palestinian Legislative Council in question. The PLC should perhaps do more in terms of providing support to its members and their families. The PLC should always serve as a source for Palestinian national unity and public consent, while at the same time serve as a means that promotes the fulfillment of all basic Palestinian goals, including the establishment of a viable and legitimate Palestinian state within the 1967 territories, addressing the rights of the Palestinian refugees in accordance to UN resolutions and establishing sovereignty over Arab East Jerusalem |
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