Karama organises many events for the women of Deheishe on a regular basis. Here are some examples:
Education project
From 2005 - 2007 Karama provided seven women from Deheishe with lessons in a variety of subjects such as; Math, Arabic, English and Science, to prepare them for their high school diploma. Out of the seven, six went on to attend university. This proved to be a positive change for the community as the background of these women were: married, in their forties and having up to seven children while living under very difficult economical conditions.
Acquiring the tools of education, they set an unconditional foundation for betterment of the community. By breaking away from their traditional role as housewives they became key figures for other women, empowering them with the will to impact their own future. However, this wasn’t achieved with ease they faced many obstacles along their journey juggling family duties and studying.
Karama is very proud of their dedication and drive to succeed and would like to congratulate these women on their great achievement!
Education programme for Karama Women
The women in Palestinian society do not have many opportunities for education and this is the main reason why Karama began offering educational programmes for women. The goal of these programmes is to teach women the necessary skills to earn a high school degree as well as prepare them for any future education.
Over three years 12 women attended three lessons a day by a qualified teacher and paid for by Karama. These women were between 27 and 38 years old. For these women the first step was to learn how to read and write. The next step was to prepare them for secondary school level. All 12 women passed these exams. The final step was to prepare them for the high school exams (Tawjehi). Nine out of the 12 women passed the high school level and two of them got high results and good grades (83% and 87% which equals an A). Five out of the nine women are now students at the university.
Why is this beneficial for women?
1. It makes a difference in their families' lives because now they can teach their children and help them with their homework.
2. When the women finish school they will be able to find a job, which will help their family economically and help to improve their living conditions.
3. In general it will help women to gain more influence and position in the Palestinian society.
Woman computer course
The Subject (women's voice)
This subject is a part of Karama educational project.
The participants: Female university students (18 years old and older).
The aim (objectives) :
- To discover the importance of women in the society.
- To develop the students' abilities and skills, and enable them to attain an important position in the society.
- To discuss the many problems that concern them and address the obstacles they face in their society
- To examine many of these issues with a supervisor and discuss them in a constructive way.
- To meet women in high positions in the society, and to learn from their experience.
- To try to help the young girls be leaders in the society.
- To participate in lectures, discussions or festivals held by societies or organizations concerned with women's issues.
Subjects
- Some problems that they face are: early marriage, a limited opportunity to make decisions and rules being imposed on them.
- Work dominated by men, and the jobs which society refuses to give women an opportunity in which to work.
Lectures
Since September 2003 a social worker (Amal Abu Sa'da) has been giving weekly lectures to women from the camp. The lectures deal with the problems these women face everyday including health, education and psychology.
English Classes
In February 2003, Karama has started arranging English classes for women. In the following four months a Swedish volunteer, Nina Gren, gave lessons for about ten women twice a week. Currently, there are very few women in the camp who speak sufficient English to give interviews to foreign journalists or to speak with international volunteers on their own. The courses offered by Karama improve the women's possibilities to communicate and provides them with better opportunities to attend university as well as for finding work. Women who have not used their English for a while have the possibility to refresh their knowledge.
Democracy Project
Karama will give courses to women on human rights issues, especially concerning women's rights and needs. During this project Karama will collaborate with Palestinian and international human rights organizations that will be invited to lecture and discuss about these issues. The aim is to empower women and raise their awareness for their rights, since they are facing threefold suppression - as women, Palestinians, and refugees.
