In early 2005, work started on the Separation Barrier on the outskirts of the Palestinian village of Bil’in. It quickly turned out that the construction work would involve the takeover of much of the village’s lands and the expansion of nearby Jewish settlements, which have already threatened to surround the village. This was the start of one of the most stubborn struggles against the crimes of the ongoing occupation.
Every Friday, hundreds of demonstrators – women, men, children and the elderly marched towards the barrier. The IDF responded with extreme violence, using shock grenades, tear gas – sometimes with canisters aimed directly at protestors – rubber- and plastic-coated bullets, and sometimes even live ammunition. Dozens of villages were injured, many were arrested, and night raids on homes became routine. But the Bil’inite spirit refused to break, and their struggle inspired millions worldwide. It spawned photo albums, exhibition, documentaries, and even an entire movie festival. The protests were accompanied by a prolonged legal battle, at the end of which the Israeli Supreme Court ordered that some of the barrier’s route would be changed and some of the lands returned to their owners.
Ever since its establishment, the Solidarity Festival has been monitoring the struggle. This year, twenty years after the Separation Barrier was built on Bil’in’s lands, we will mark the event with two award-winning films: Bil’in My Love by Shai Carmeli-Pollak and 5 Broken Cameras by Guy Davidi and Emad Burnat. At the end of each screening, we will host the filmmakers for a panel discussion with the audience.
Emad Burnat from the Palestinian Bil’in receives his first video camera on the occasion of the birth of his son Jibril in 2005. At that time, Israel decides to build the Separation Barrier on the land of his village. The villagers oppose that decision and their weekly protests with international and Israeli peace activists come to symbol nonviolent resistance.
