The Excellence Centre - Palestinian Laws and Legal Internship

My name is Jaskiran and I’m from the UK. I’m a second year law student. My time at the Excellence Centre was extraordinary and I am so grateful to have been able to experience this beautiful country and its kind-hearted, fierce, passionate people. My activities at the Excellence Centre during the work week (Sunday to Thursday) included Arabic lessons from 9am-12pm on most days and then there would be a trip to go on or I would meet with my programme-specific mentor, who was a local Palestinian lawyer. The Centre organises most of your visits and educational trips during the week and then you are free on Fridays and Saturdays to find your own things to do or see. I met with my programme’s mentor the morning after I arrived in Palestine and visited the Independent Commission for Human Rights and received a very informative talk from the Head of the Commission. I then began my Arabic lessons the next day, and my teacher, Ghaida, is the most eloquently spoken and charismatic person. She made our lessons so enjoyable and ensured that conversation and communication in Arabic was the priority. And two weeks later, someone complimented my ability to converse in Arabic - even though I know I have a very long way to go to be fluent - and I thought of my teacher and peers who made this possible. Ghaida inspired in me an excitement and hope that I can take my Arabic studies further, and as a lover of languages and the rich historical, social and emotional understanding that you learn by learning a language, I could not have had a better experience learning Arabic at the Centre. On my programme, I also met with a lawyer for the Sharia courts and found out more about the origins and sources of the modern Palestinian legal system. I also had the privilege of sitting in on Mamon’s Human Rights presentation and his ability to turn a few PowerPoint slides into an academic debate and environment of intellectual creation meant that we not only learned the history of the Israeli occupation of Palestine and how it came to be, as well as the devastating human rights violations that this has inflicted on the Palestinians, but also heard each other’s reasons to be here and what we thought was the solution to such suffering.There is certainly no better way to understand the occupation than by being here, and learning about the law and history from not only highly educated teachers and mentors here at the Centre but also people who have stayed kind-hearted and extraordinarily willing to help and educate at no personal gain for them. But there is also no better way to experience the beautiful culture and people here either. My host family became like my second family here and I have never experienced such warmth and kindness from complete strangers than with my host family. And also with the people here that I didn’t get to know personally - Palestinians are so willing to help you out, feed you and make sure you’re comfortable, and everyone always has kawaha brewing on the stove, ready to serve any guests or friendly strangers they come across. I stayed in a room in my host family’s home, with my friend Elise, and they made us feel such a part of their home that I will remember their love and kindness for the rest of my life. My absolute favourite part of staying here in Hebron was the home-cooked meals and delicious food you will find in every shop and family’s home here. What is the best way to experience Palestinian cuisine you ask? Definitely at someone’s home, eaten together from the same plates. During my time here, I also visited Jerusalem and Bethlehem multiple times, and also Battir, a small village on the outskirts of Bethlehem where one of our host brother’s is a manager at Neev View restaurant with stunning views. I also visited the Farwaa Refugee Camp, which is a necessary part of your understanding of the collateral damage that the occupation has caused. Some other things I did on the programme was visiting a local school and meeting with someone from the Ministry of Education, seeing the illegal border walls that separate Bethlehem (and the West Bank) and Jerusalem and doing an internship with our law mentor.
One of my favourite parts of the experience with the Centre was having breakfast with all the participants every morning, catching up about our days and discussing what’s next and just feeling truly part of a community here. I had plenty of time after my Arabic lessons and trips for the day to go to a local cafe and write up my notes and choose whatever I wanted to do for the evening. As long as you are respectful and willing to become a student and listen and learn from the people and their experiences you will feel more than safe in Palestine. I actually felt safer in Palestine than I did during my visits to Jerusalem, because I knew that I was part of a family and community here in Hebron.