The right to move, the gift of running

Running is a simple act of motion, a movement from point A to point B in a quicker way than the act of walking, cause while running, your legs are more in the air than on the ground.  For a split second you feel like a bird and freer than ever. 

Thus, when you are not free to move from one point to another, due to an Occupation, checkpoints manned by armed Israeli soldiers in the way, and an apartheid wall that’s been built shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, running becomes both an act of remonstration, and a refuge.

All this was the background, and the incendiary for a Palestinian and two Danish girls happening to work in the Occupied Territories to create the ‘Right to Movement’ back in 2012.  Speaking to another of the founder members Diala Isid, she told me, ‘that originally it was all about meeting up as a few friends to go out for a run, feeling free to move, but then it got bigger.’

Kids have the most fertile imaginations, and a social movement just getting born equally dreams big.  ‘Running was not common at all in Palestine.  Marathons were non-existent.  But we just decided we want to have a marathon like everyone else.’

And on the 21^st day of April, 2013 close to seven hundred runners became pioneers of marathon running in Palestine.

It must have been a success, since the number of runners rose to 2,300 in the second Palestinian marathon, while last year, 3,200 congregated at the starting line by the Nativity Church, all determined to last 42,195 metres on their feet.  Of these 3,200, 1,000 from 50 different countries travelled from afar as Palestine works like a charm for the more adventurous.

As Diala speaks to me, I realise that the Right to Movement is not a normal running group.  While they meet up more than once a week, to organise a simple run a series of logistics is involved.  The West Bank of Palestine is divided in three areas: Area A, B and C.  Area A is under the control of the Palestinian Authority, Area B is under control of both the Palestinian civil control and joint Israeli-Palestinian security control), while Area C (70% of the West Bank) is fully under Israeli civil and security control.

‘We, of course run and pass by Area C, since it’s the biggest area, but at times of conflict, we get wary that trouble is only round the corner and do not get too near to the Israeli settlements*, so we run only in Area A.  But at least we’re still outside, moving, running, irrespective of being fast or slow.’

With 70% of the area being controlled by the Israelis, organising a route 42km long becomes a quest for elasticity.

‘For the marathon, we only run in Area A, since it’s the only area where we can close roads for cars.  While we try to choose flat roads as much as possible, we have to involve hills, as unfortunately rather than a bridge, the Israelis built a wall.  In fact, about 200 metres of the race is by the horrible wall, but that’s what makes Palestine what it is today.  We start from the Nativity Church in Bethlehem, go through two refugee camps and then the wall, with soldiers stranded on their patches on roofs looking puzzled.  That makes 10 kilometres.  So therefore, the marathoners go through that four times and a bit. We dream of one day starting in Bethlehem run for forty kilometres and then let the runners enter triumphantly in Jerusalem to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, but for now we have to make do with the few roads that are left in our hands.’

Running is addictive.  We realised that we have a weapon against the boredom that an occupied land like ours can inevitably go through.  Instead of sitting in cafes sipping teas and coffees arguing about the latest injustice, we put on a running shoes and have fun.  And when we are not looping around Bethlehem we are running in far-away cities.  ‘Getting permits to travel away from Palestine is hard, lengthy. and demands of yourself endurance as much as a marathon does.  For example, we can only fly from Jordan since as Palestinians we are banned to fly from Tel Aviv.  But such injustices do not get in the way of us travelling to run marathons together.  So far, we ran the Copenhagen, Derry, Beirut and San Francisco marathons together.  We enjoy running away from home together and while there we tell our own story, and invite others to run in our marathon.  We hit two birds with one stone, or to be more politically correct, we become multi-taskers.’

When we were in San Francisco, in the U.S., it was during the last intifada (Gaza war).  Palestine was all the time on the news, but at least that enabled us with the help of the ‘Rebuilding Alliance’ to collect around USD50,000 for Palestinian school children in Gaza.

Myself, being also a runner, I always tell myself that I run to feel being myself, to feel free.  But I am also realising that in doing so I move all the time, and break the walls that sometimes get into my head.

And as a human being I dream of more runners in the world that will dissolve the Israeli built wall and any other injustice.