Talk:Hanan Ashrawi

Birthplace

There is no such place called "Palestine", how can a woman be born in an area that doesn't exist? This area was not part of any nation when Ashrawi was born there, it was a disputed territory do to the Arab indifferences with Jews and Israelis.

I have edited it to the 'British Mandate of Palestine' - Jonny May.

the term palestine predates current politics. consider it a geographic location and move on. --User:Yung Wei^綪永徽 22:40, 11 April 2006 (UTC)

There is indeed a place called Palestine...I lived there for a year and a half. Just because it is not a "sovereign nation-state" in the modern sense, does not mean it is not a place. Before 1948, there was no question what that area was called, give me a break.

It is not up to an encyclopeadia to decide controversies

Hanan Ashrawi has been accused of being soft on terrorism against Israelis. This article is not impartial or objective in its decription or language. For instance she cannot be described as a peace activist without a reminder that many millions of people she considers legitimate targets for terrorism disgree with that description of her. I am changing back the changes therefor to the text.

87.66.84.97 (talk) 18:03, 31 December 2008 (UTC)

If you haven't made these changes yet could you be a little clearer on what well-sourced (read WP:RS if you haven't) information you'd like in the article? I have never seen any statement attributed to ashrawi that she considers "many millions of people legitimate targets for terrorism" for instance.Bali ultimate (talk) 19:16, 31 December 2008 (UTC)

I will look up some sources. I have personally heard her comments that imply that suicide bombing is wrong in principle but... where Jews become less illegitimate targets. I have to dig up some old material for quotes. I do not mean to denigrate Ms Ashrawi with that comment only set the record straight. It is unfortunately a mistake made by many activists on all sides. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.66.93.198 (talk) 15:04, 1 January 2009 (UTC)

http://www.aijac.org.au/resources/ashrawi_profile.html A list comiled by those who did not want her to get the prize. I must add that neither in all the interviews with her I have ever seen nor anywhere on the web can I find a single quote where she unequivocally condems terrorism against Jews. Also her statement against suicide bombing and killing civillians in Israel is quite shocking for its practical reasoning rather than the any of the moral argumentation one expects from a 'peace activist'.

"We, the undersigned, out of our sense of national responsibility, and in light of the difficult situation of the Palestinian people, hope that those who stand behind the military actions against civilians in Israel, will reconsider their actions and will cease to encourage our boys to perform these operations, because we do not see results from these actions . We believe that these operations do not advance the fulfillment of our endeavor, for freedom and independence. Military actions are defined positively or negatively not by their own criteria [i.e. the success of the attack itself] but rather according to the achievement of political goals." [My highlighting]

Signed: Hanan Ashrawi and others [Al Quds, June 19, 2002].Tulli (talk) 16:04, 1 January 2009 (UTC)

So, if i understand this accurately, she signed a statement that said "military actions against civilians in Israel" was bad for the Palestinian cause. What's shocking about this? It's probably accurate (bolsters israeli hardliners, hurt's public image of the palestinian side, etc...).Bali ultimate (talk) 16:29, 1 January 2009 (UTC)

Not shocking at all, Just telling for the implication that if the attacks against civillians were less counterproductive, they would be more justified? This ambiguity is a thread that runs through much of her work, and having just read through the entire MIFTAH site it is clear she does not come across in the mold of the classic peace activist willing to see the best in both sides, so any honest portrait of her must contain that. It is not for us as academics to assign morality just to report on it. Or maybe we could mail her and ask her to clarify? Tulli (talk) 14:41, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

Do you have a specific proposal you think might improve the article? Some of your comments above are veering towards WP:OR which is fine for a talk page, but won't work for the article itself. It's all about what reliable secondary sources say about her, not what we feel to be true. (there is even less wiggle room on bios of living people, read WP:BLP if you haven't.)Bali ultimate (talk) 14:55, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

Note: "Ashrawi defends Hizbullah and Hamas"

Could someone with more wikixperience read the linked article and decide(act on) whether it's thus appropriate to include this statement, even in reference form, in this article? My concern is that the text of "Ashrawi defends Hizbullah and Hamas" does not concern this assertion beyond the first paragraph(which again sets this foundation that is never built upon or supported). The second paragraph states: ""The [Second Lebanon] War proved [Israel] could not defeat a nation fighting for freedom," Ashrawi said." While this could be construed to be in defense of Hezbollah, the second paragraph concludes: "Later, the Christian lawmaker blamed Hamas's January 2006 election victory on Israel, saying the occupation bred extremism." This is a belief that is repeated a bit later in the article. Before adding to this, I'd note that this information alone, to me, does not support the statement "Ashrawi defends Hizbullah and Hamas." That statement blaming Israel for Hamas' election victory defends Hamas only insofar as any statement critical of Israel is an endorsement of their enemies. I hope we can agree that this isn't true. Finally, the article contains: "Nearly 75 percent of Gazans were dependent on welfare and the Strip's unemployment rate had skyrocketed to 50%, she said, adding that conditions there had worsened since Hamas seized power in June." Were the previous choice of words("the Christian lawmaker blamed") insufficient, this pushes the article's portrayal of her attitude towards Hamas towards the negative. This is inconsistent with the information suggested by the opening paragraph and title, and the impression I get of her from reading the article differs greatly from the impression drawn from the title. Maybe indeed she said things at Emory that support the title's assertion, but they aren't referenced in the article itself. As it stands, I feel that the appearance of "Ashrawi defends Hizbullah and Hamas" on this page, even as a linked article title, constitutes a serious point of view distortion to the possibility of libel. I would ask that the statement that this reference supports, "Ashrawi is a member of Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad's Third Way party", be supported by a neutral reference, and confirming articles sought that determine whether Ashrawi has defended Hezbollah(which I personally see as plausible) and Hamas(which I personally find dubious). Thanks —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.191.119.226 (talk) 23:05, 4 January 2009 (UTC)

Ted Koppel TV show

Apparently appearing in the Ted Koppel 1988 "Nightline" debates between Arabs and Israelis in Jerusalem had a lot to do with her initial rise to public prominence... AnonMoos (talk) 02:21, 21 August 2010 (UTC)

The antisemitic article on MIFTAH

I will appreciate an explanation why this part with reference to MIFTAH's official site has been erased several times by Sean.hoyland? There is no controversy on the publication- MIFTAH admitted that is was their mistake. (ScottyNolan) — Preceding unsigned comment added by ScottyNolan (talk • contribs) 17:23, 2 April 2013 (UTC)

Review WP:BLP and "beware of claims that rely on guilt by association, and biased or malicious content". This article is not about MIFTAH. If this matter is worthy of inclusion there will be coverage by decent reliable sources, mainstream press, that demonstrates that this is both notable and relevant to the biography of the subject of this article. Which other sources have covered this ? Has Ashrawi commented ? You used a MIFTAH primary source in this article about Ashrawi and yet that source says "Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, as founder, has nothing to do with the day to day management at MIFTAH" ? That alone should be a red flag. Sean.hoyland - talk 18:21, 2 April 2013 (UTC)

"Controversy" section does not merit inclusion

Not only does this section only influence one article criticizing her opinions (the same as would be done to any politician), but the "controversial" view which she expressed is upheld by the majority of scholars and historians. This can be seen on the 1950 Baghdad Bombings page, where the pro-Israeli narrative (that Mossad was NOT in fact responsible) are clearly a minority viewpoint supported by much less evidence. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.112.148.213 (talk) 05:00, 30 September 2014 (UTC) Unfortunately, Dr. Ashrawi never acknowledged the fact that more than 600,000 Jewish refugees were forced from their home and had to move to Israel. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.90.247.138 (talk) 06:37, 11 February 2015 (UTC)

Father "forced to flee"

The article states Ashrawi's father "... was later forced to flee the Israeli army ...", and this is given two sources, however the first states the family fled together to Jordan, while the second says her father stayed behind, but later rejoined the family, with no mention of being forced to leave, or fleeing the Israeli army. Is there any other source to corroborate this claim, or can this be safely removed? 188.120.148.147 (talk) 11:30, 17 November 2015 (UTC)

As no corroborating source is presented, I remove this statement, at least until someone can produce a source. 94.230.86.221 (talk) 08:53, 23 November 2015 (UTC)

POV and irrelevant details

This quote seems highly POV, and mostly unnecessary:

""In 1948 the Ashrawi family's comfortable existence was turned on its head due to the 1948 Palestine war and to demands placed on her father, as a physician. Due to the war, many Palestinians ended up in refugee camps in southern Lebanon and Syria.""

Why is it relevant that her family was comfortable? Who says it was? What are the demands placed on her father? Who placed them? What significance is it that some Palestinians ended in refugee camps in Lebanon and Syria? Ashrawi's family fled to Jordan, and later returned to Ramallah.

I move that this entire sentence be replaced by a concise "Following the 1948 war that followed Israel's declaration of independence Ashrawi's family fled to Jordan", or something to that effect. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 188.120.148.147 (talk) 14:35, 17 November 2015 (UTC)

Edited page accordingly. 94.230.86.221 (talk) 08:57, 23 November 2015 (UTC)

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