Sunday, December 21, 2008

Request for assistance

The readers of the blog have probably already read of impossible situations for students in Gaza wishing to study abroad.

Peaceman has lost 2 years of studies being trapped in Gaza. He came back for a year in the middle of his studies to make some money so he can finish his degree in Europe.

In June 2007 the Hamas took control over Gaza and ever since Israel has placed a siege of the Gaza strip and only very few students had been able to leave since.

Due to the very high unemployment in Gaza, he has been barely able to find work and what he had managed to find has been only enough to support himself within Gaza. His plans to make enough money to pay for his tuition and expenses during his studies in Europe have are not possible under the siege.

Thanks to the University he studied in, they are allowing Peaceman to partially study on line. This is extremely difficult in his current situation with continuous power shortages and no reasonable studying facilities. He is of course not able to attend classes and keep up with the requirements.

The good news is that there is a good chance that peaceman will be able to leave Gaza within the next few days or weeks.

Peacman is seeking help in finding ways to receive a load or grant for his tuition and initial living expenses. He is will of course pay back any loan once he has the ability to do so.

Any help from the readers of ways to assist him would be greatly appreciated.
If you know of a way to help, please post your details to the blog (email+ phone). These details will not be published (the blog is moderated and comments are posted only after reading each post). Peaceman or I will contact you to for further information.

Thank you. Hopeman

13 comments:

Merche Pallarés said...

I'm sure someone will help him. This world of internet does wonders! I wish Peaceman all the luck and success in the world. Hugs, M.

RDierking said...

I wish I could help, but as a student I'm scraping by too. However, I'm sure someone on this wonderful internet will know of a way. You'll both be in my thoughts. R

Mary Cuevas said...

how about some ngo's or human rights groups? maybe they can help with a grant or loan money.:) try the irc, amnesty international, etc.:)

wishing you both and everyone in gaza a safe holiday season.

it is distressing to hear about the horrible conditions in gaza on the news. but at least they are covering it.

saw a film called "waltzing with bashir" today. wow. an animated film about war in beirut back in 82-83 and the massacre in the palestinian camps. sad film.
mary
http://marycuevas.blogspot.com

PeaceofaPuzzle said...

Dear Peaceman and hopeman please continue to blog. With power outages and such I know it's hard but the world needs to hear of two people on opposite sides of this tragedy for all involved trying to get along. It is so important to know that which the news doesn't cover often. The ordinary people. I pray Peaceman will get the money he needs to go to school. I pray hopeman you will get what you need too. Keep on Keeping On

PeaceofaPuzzle

Anonymous said...

I hope you can soon give us news after what we are learning today (December 27, 2008) that Israel launched deadly attacks on Hamas headquarters in Gaza.

Our prayers for good men of good will.

(Signed an American Jew)

Anonymous said...

just want to hear from u and know u r ok. Peaceman I try to understand what is happening and why but in truth I probably have a very poor vision. People before politics seeems to be a trueism for us. I really have no concept of how life is in gaza city. I would not ask you to be to specific because there are some terrible extremests out there. Put a few words together to let us know u r ok.Take care

Mary Cuevas said...

hi hopeman,
i am hoping you and the rest of your family are okay. and all of gaza for that matter. i am so sorry to hear what is going on there.

there are protests scheduled in front of the israeli embassy for tuesday and one tomorrow in another town in my area.

please write as soon as you can.
mary

Unknown said...

my prayers are w/you now
be safe

emilaheller said...

I am weeping with sorrow at the return of the cycle of violence. I bow to you both in gratitude for your bravery and continuous effort to express compassion in the midst of so much pain. My prayers are with all the people who are being harmed by fear. emila

Anonymous said...

In my country there was a man that we honor every January. He taught us to love each other no matter what the color of our skin is, our nationality, or the way we worship. The attitudes of many have changed in the US since his famous speech, "I have a dream..".
We humans who love peace need to step forward and tell those in power that the status quo is not acceptable. We need to take the example of people like Dr. King, Ghandi, and President Sadat and say we will not stand for a world of violence. In my country we are promised, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. So many here cannot see that as long as somewhere else fellow humans are denied these "inalienable human rights" they are in jepardy of being lost for all who now enjoy these rights.
I pray for you my brothers in God, Peace man and Hope man. "If God is for us who can be against" We all worship the same God we need to put aside our differences and ALL work for world peace. As long as some have no peace we all have no peace!!!

Amina Altaf said...

I heard about you both on a local radio station (NPR) in Boston. Each day while driving to work, I listen to the depressing news of innocent people dying in the Gaza/Israel region due to the recent conflict. After listening to it all and hearing the government/political officials on both sides, I get even more aggravated. All I can hear is them pointing fingers at each other. While the blame game goes on, noone is ready to take responsibility. They pretend to be fighting for the country and their people, yet their people are dying. I wonder if the people of Gaza and Israel ever question -- are our leaders there for their own agendas or are they really fighting for the land and the people? As the drive ends I try not to think about it. Not because I don't care, but because it saddening. At the end of the drive I tell myself I need to listen to something more exciting to start my day tomorrow.

However, curiosity gets me tuned in again. Tonight as I drove back from work, I heard about you both. It made me want to cry since I can’t even fathom what you both have to go through, yet you instill a sense of hope – a hope for peace. Your writing is way more powerful than what the media delivers. It’s the story of Israel and Gaza that I wonder about and find rather different than the propaganda we hear. I want to thank you both for your courage and wish you a safe and peaceful life with you family and friends.

Anonymous said...

i heard about this blog on npr and have forwarded to my friends and posted it on facebook. it's an invaluable service you're doing doing and it cuts through the absurdity hashed out by the easily-accessible media.

in terms of paying for college... i've found that a great resource for raising funds is a website called "thepoint.com" i organized a fundraiser this past summer in which i solicited donations from people that were met by a matching donation from a family foundation. in just over 2 months we raised over $20,000 by employing social networks.

i'm sure if everyone that read this important blog donated $5, peaceman could head back to school.

the service you provide is worth far more than $5.

john said...

if we raised some money here (USA) to help Peaceman defray some of his costs , how can we send it? Paypal is an option . I'd like to help keep hope alive ...

Its wonderful that two people separated by man-made barriers are seeking Peace and Love across the great political divide..Having just seen what division can do in my native Kenya , i pray that one day you two brothers of Peace can help stop this senseless violence , brother against brother , over what should be sacred land for all religions and peoples.