2024-01-20 14:26:15
A tent…the best wishes of the “survivors of death” in the southern Gaza Strip
Muhammad Hamdan (58 years old) moves among the vendors on the main road to Mawasi Khan Yunis in the south of the Gaza Strip. He asks about the availability of components for the Arish that he intends to establish for his family, and finds that their prices have doubled. He is trying to negotiate with some sellers, hoping he will succeed in lowering the price, even if just a little, but to no avail, according to a report by the Arab World News Agency.
Opposite the main intersection of the street, the fifty-year-old finds a young seller with a good reputation, and his hope is renewed to buy his supplies at lower prices that suit his many needs. He does not own any of the components of Al-Arish, and his financial ability is limited because he is unemployed. But he hears the same prices, so he sits on the sidewalk to unleash his thoughts, searching for a way to manage his affairs, or a door to knock on for help.
Muhammad, who was displaced from Al-Maghazi camp only about two weeks ago, did not wait long until he returned to the same seller asking him for help on how to exceed these prices and provide the minimum requirements for living in Al-Arish. The young man suggested purchasing lower quality components and splitting the wooden boards lengthwise into two halves. To reduce the number required and thus the cost.
Muhammad Hamdan has 13 children and grandchildren (Arab World News Agency)
The man, who has 13 children and grandchildren, was forced to accept this option, so the seller set out to collect Al-Arish’s many requirements. But despite the economy in demand with this innovative trick, the cost remained large and was far from being within the reach of the fifty-year-old who was displaced with his children, so he asked the seller to pay the remaining amount later if he was able to borrow it from others.
The man carried his goods and took them to his sons who were waiting for him to set up the arish in Mawasi Khan Yunis. They want to escape as quickly as possible from being crowded into a barn that they have been living with relatives since their displacement to this area.
An unattainable dream
Muhammad resorted to setting up Al-Arish after his attempt to obtain a tent from the humanitarian institutions distributing it failed, despite his searching, asking, and pleading with those in charge of the distribution to grant him the tent, which he hoped would save him effort and money, and relieve him from the “torment” of Al-Arish, whether in terms of residing or living in it. .
The man said that he had given up on demand and hope in every known place where these tents were distributed, despite seeing many people getting a tent and sometimes more and then selling it away from the market. He pointed out that Al-Arish, in its simplicity, cost more than 400 US dollars, while providing the minimum requirements for its stay.
Muhammad Hamdan moves among the vendors on the main road to Mawasi Khan Yunis in the south of the Gaza Strip to ask about the availability of Al-Arish ingredients (Arab World News Agency)
According to him, purchasing a tent of a suitable size that is sent as part of donations from abroad costs up to $650, which he says is a price that most of the displaced cannot afford, as most of them are unemployed and did not receive any financial income during the war period.
Despite this, the man stressed that obtaining the tent as part of the donations is the greatest achievement that can be achieved for the displaced; To protect their children from the cold and rain, in addition to saving money and effort in light of the high prices of Al-Arish supplies.
Muhammad demanded that there be “a method or system for everyone to obtain a tent, even in a gradual manner.” As for some people getting it and others not, this can only be described as favoritism and the use of personal relationships and mutual interests.”
He added: “We are in war and displacement, and the parties responsible for distributing tents and aid must move stronger, and the most important thing is justice in distribution, so that we do not feel oppression and injustice doubled twice, from the occupation and from our countrymen.”
No specific system
While the methods of relief institutions dealing with the distribution of tents vary, between giving them to the displaced to reside in any place they prefer, or establishing group camps in which the displaced live uniformly in terms of the quality of the tents and some of the assistance they receive, the entities responsible for distributing these tents are multiple, and vary among international institutions. Local and government agencies, in the absence of a single specific system to which the displaced can turn.
Displaced people complain on social media platforms about the difficulty of obtaining tents and not knowing where to order them from.
Muhammad resorted to setting up Al-Arish after his attempt to obtain a tent from the humanitarian institutions distributed by the Arab World News Agency failed.
One of them said: “We wanted a tent in which I, my children, my daughters, and the rest of the family, 28 people (people), could spend the night. By God, we died of cold, hunger, and thirst,” while another asked: “Where can we find a ready-made tent or a nylon sheet and wood at a reasonable price in Rafah?!” .
A third affirmed: “I want a tent in any way, enough for a roll,” referring to what is described as “distributing it in unfair or balanced ways.”
In the same context, community activist Hani Abu Akar wrote on his Facebook page: “All those at the head of aid must be dismissed; Everyone is a unitary worker and works for his party and its people, with the absence of a unified system or a single participatory strategy to relieve people… A few find everything and others starving in the open. There must be a declared unified system instead of everyone working alone, due to a conflict of interests.”
Relief activist Muhammad Omar attributes the displaced people’s many complaints about the shortage of tents and other needs to the limited numbers of those tents arriving from abroad compared to the large numbers of displaced people and the disaster they are experiencing.
Omar said: “The reality of war and displacement exceeds the capabilities of large countries and not institutions, whether international or local, that have little to offer those affected by displacement who need almost everything; Because they are far from their homes and places of residence.”
While he acknowledged that some displaced people obtained more than one tent from several parties, and that some beneficiaries sold tents at prices that differed according to the places and even the specifications of the tents due to their financial need to purchase other supplies, he considered that the dangerous field conditions prevented matters from being controlled in a controlled manner.
He said that this makes it “self-evident” that some violations have occurred, taking into account that “everyone who works to help the displaced is primarily concerned with the aid reaching the largest possible number and in any way,” according to his estimation.
He added: “The conditions of the displaced cannot tolerate patience and waiting. It is illogical to slow down distribution for fear that some will benefit more than others or sell some aid… The most important thing is to distribute in a way that provides the afflicted with the necessities for survival, and this is what everyone is striving to achieve.”
He continued: “We are in a deadly war, and an unprecedented disaster that transcends all borders. Now we must work to help the displaced by all possible means, while ensuring transparency and justice in a way that does not delay the arrival of aid to those who deserve it.”
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