Last Monday, the Palestinian Vision Foundation, in partnership with the Danish Aid Office (DCA) and with the support of the European Union, organized a launch ceremony for the “Y-Plus” platform at the Isaaf Nashashibi Hall. It is the first media platform of its kind in Jerusalem. It will convey the voice of Jerusalemite youth by telling their daily life stories and reflecting on their successes and the violations they are subjected to by the occupation authorities, in a straightforward narrative and based on international humanitarian law.
In the welcome address, Pal Vision’s program director, Mrs. Nadine Al-Tabari, expressed the importance of a platform of this kind to convey the Palestinian youth’s voice to the world, especially in Jerusalem. She stressed the need to empower Palestinian youth and increase local and global awareness of the violations that Jerusalemite youth are subjected to in their daily lives. A representative of The European Union, Boris Heren, expressed in his speech the European Union’s continued support for Jerusalem and the importance of lobbying and advocacy in the city, especially in light of the current situation.
In his speech, Mr. George Zaidan, the representative of the Danish Aid Office, referred to the importance of visual documentation of the suffering and violations caused by the occupation authorities in Jerusalem. He emphasized the significant role visual documentation played in raising global awareness of the Palestinian cause. Researcher Tariq Al-Bakri concluded the ceremony with a lecture on the youth’s essential role in protecting the Palestinian memory from being lost and forgotten.
The ceremony included the launch of the Y-Plus campaign for August 2021, on the “Impact of Forced Displacement on Palestinians in Jerusalem” to convey a real picture of the current situation in Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan neighborhoods and keep pace with the events of the city. Lobbying and advocacy officer at the Palestinian Vision Foundation, Ms. Areej Al-Rajabi, presented a legal memorandum, “Forced displacement in Jerusalem,” in partnership with Diakonia and Al-Haq Foundation. Lobbying and advocacy sessions were arranged on Tuesday and Wednesday, 27 and 28 of July, with diplomats and directors of human rights and civil society organizations to raise awareness and advocate for Palestinians in Jerusalem.
It is worth noting that the campaign will include a series of films about human stories from Jerusalem. It will expose forms of forced displacement experienced by Jerusalemites, which will be published weekly on the social networking pages of the Y-Plus platform.
Y-Plus is a digital media platform conveying the unheard Palestinian voice to the world. Although our work focuses on Jerusalem, we will tell you stories from Ramallah, Nazareth, and Palestine that Palestinians who always look forward to a better future know.
