Shoruq
Organization is a non-profit, Non-Governmental Organization established in 2012
in Dheisheh Refugee Camp in the Occupied
Palestinian Territories (OPT).
Shoruq’s vision, mission, objectives, and programs are geared towards
political, social, cultural, and economic prosperity and dignified life for all
refugees in the OPT and the diaspora, as well as empowering refugees in shaping
a just solution and a better future for themselves and their offspring.
Shoruq
Organization envisions and endorses the establishment of a democratic and sovereign
Palestinian State, along with a just world that defends the inalienable rights
of Palestinian refugees and advocates for their guaranteed and
internationally-recognized right of return
to their original lands, which they were expelled from in 1948.
As an active
advocacy organization, Shoruq aims to safeguard the inalienable rights of
Palestinian refugees and displaced persons through diverse advocacy methods
that effectively empower them and protect their fundamental human rights. Shoruq
specifically achieves this by utilizing advanced multimedia and art as primary apparatuses, in order to construct a
suitable environment that guarantees a dignified life for all Palestinian
refugees, in accordance with several relevant international
decisions and UN resolutions, which explicitly affirm their
right of return to their original lands
1 - Enhancing advocacy and lobbying processes, in order to attain just
and inalienable rights for Palestinian refugees, as well as empowering them at
the local, regional, and international levels.
2 - Creating
a supportive and protective legal environment for refugee children in conflict
with the law and the most marginalized and vulnerable children to ensure their
equal access to justice, in addition to providing them with social and
psychological assistance when necessary
In Dheisheh
Refugee Camp, located southwest of Bethlehem City, 13,017 inhabitants live on
less than one square kilometer of land. Dheisheh is one of the 58
recognized Palestinian refugee camps administered by United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). The camp was meant to be a temporary
sanctuary away from the destruction of 532 Palestinian cities and villages, and
expulsion of more than 750,000 Palestinians in 1948 Nakba (Catastrophe). The refugees are from 45
villages west of Jerusalem and Hebron. The camp is the largest of three
refugee camps in the Bethlehem Governorate.
Although
Dheisheh has a highly resilient and active community, the people have endured
many hardships over the years. The main problems in the camp today are severe
overcrowding, unemployment, and, sadly, a lack of hope because there are few
opportunities for young people.
Education is
highly valued among the local community and, according to the results of the
Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics; the illiteracy rate among Dheisheh
Camp population is approximately 5.7 percent, of whom 73.3 percent are females.
However, the primary schools for boys and girls, which are run by UNRWA, face
structural problems, such as size of schools in comparison with the number of
students and constant shortage of teaching staff. According to the Palestinian
Central Bureau for Statistics, there are 32.9 students on average in UNRWA
classrooms in the West Bank. The curriculum in these school is restricted to
primary subjects, including Arabic, English, Math, History, Geography and
religion, with the focus on rote memorization rather than critical
thinking.
Today, more
than half of the camp’s populations are under 18 years. The children have no
playground, sports fields, or other open spaces to safely play. Although Dheisheh
has a number of local institutions and associations that provide services to
various segments of the society including children, youth, women, and people
with disabilities, there are still many gaps in opportunities.
It is difficult
to ascertain the exact unemployment rate in the Bethlehem area refugee camps, but
Sharek Youth Forum’s 2013 report on the status of Palestinian youth estimates
youth unemployment in the West Bank and Gaza at a staggering 44%. UNRWA
estimates the unemployment to be between 30-43%.
