International campers share traditions
BY JIM SMEDLEY | Independence Day is a time for celebration. Going to parades, consuming good food, watching fireworks and enjoying the day in traditional fashions.
Gosh, it’s great to be an Egyptian, an Israeli or a Jordanian—because that’s how they celebrate Independence Day in their respective nations.
Sound familiar?
On the eve of July 4, youth from Seeds of Peace International Camp gathered to discuss the ways their countries celebrate Independence Day.
From Jordan there was Tala Issa; from Israel, Nadav Greenberg; from Egypt, Menna Shoman; and from Palestine, Hamdan Queshta.
Q: On what day does your country celebrate its independence?
Issa: On May 25, Jordan won independence from British rule.
Greenberg: There is no set date on our calendar, but the Jewish calendar is different. It would be around springtime here and we celebrate the creation of the state of Israel in 1948.
Shoman: Our celebration is the Day of the 23rd of July Revolution. That’s when the last British soldier left Egypt. It was the first time an Egyptian ruled the country since the pharaohs.
Hamdan: Our celebration is on Aug. 15, marking that day in 1988 when Palestine was declared a state in Algeria.
Q: What does freedom mean to you?
Issa: Freedom to me is to have a central government, a king and government controls the country and there are no other countries involved.
Greenberg: Your right to make decisions. A statewide level of ruling yourself without someone hampering your choice. Also, it is your right to say so when you hold a certain opinion. There are certain barriers to freedom – you have to respect others’ rights.
Shoman: It is two things. The first is having elections to choose from within the country that is going to rule over it and having no one to influence the elections. My freedom to talk about what I want. But it shouldn’t be without limits. As a personal freedom when I take something I should pay it back.
Queshta: It means being able to speak your mind and make decisions without outside interference from anybody else. It means I can criticize anybody in my country.
Q: How does your country celebrate its independence day?
Issa: We have a military parade. The King awards medals to military who are retiring and civilians who do well at their jobs. The king and queen have a dinner celebration that’s televised. They will invite ministers of government and well-known people, celebrities. The Dabka, a folklore dance, will be performed.
During the day there will be films on television on how we won our independence. The streets will also be decorated with flags, flowers and pictures.
Shoman: Our celebration is like Jordan’s. We will decorate the streets and have films on how we received our independence.
Our president goes to the tomb of former presidents and places flowers on tombs.
But at night, at night we will have fireworks. They will be put on top of the Cairo Tower. The Cairo Tower is very high. And it’s so beautiful when they go off and the trails lead to the Nile.
Issa: Yes, we have fireworks, too. Oh! And every Independence Day there is a new song created for the king.
Greenberg: Our Independence Day starts on our Memorial Day, when we remember the soldiers who died for our country. Independence Day starts on the afternoon of our Memorial Day. The streets will be decorated and there will be a big celebration in the streets. The next day there will be two main events. The first is a Bible quiz and prizes will be given to people in a lot of different categories.
Queshta: We will go down into the streets and raise flags. Most people don’t feel it’s real because it’s not real. There’s going to be a day when the state of Palestine is going to be declared. People will be excited about it. We had a meeting with Yasser Arafat before coming here and he told us we would have a state by September.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to say?
Greenberg: The Israeli people had been wandering for thousands of years, until recent times, the declaration of an independent state. A lot of Israelis feel strongly about our home country. Independence Day is not taken lightly. It is a very strong, emotional day.
Shoman: I’m proud of my country because we are ruled by Egyptians now and had been ruled by non-Egyptians for a long time. I am proud all the presidents we’ve had have helped us to have a beautiful country. No one would have dreamt that we could have come so far, so fast.
Queshta: Most people are not happy. They are anxious and angry about having a state, because nothing is going to change. The borders are not like in 1967.
Issa: Independence Day is very precious for people all around the world, especially Jordan. I’m proud of my country and king because he’s working to make things better economically for everyone.