Paul Calvert spoke with Daoud Nasser

Hope for peace in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict can often seem in short supply. However unseen by the mainstream media gaze there are some pioneering grassroots initiatives doing a great work to bring reconciliation and healing between people groups. One such project is Tent of Nations; based on Nassar Farm, just outside Bethlehem, they are a 'people building bridges'. Seeking to bring people from different nations, cultures and religions together to build bridges of understanding, reconciliation and peace Paul Calvert spoke with Daoud Nasser to find out more.

Paul: Tent of Nations is on a farm here, how long have you owned the farm?

Daoud: We have owned this farm since 1916 when my grandfather bought this land. He came and established an existence in a cave; it was like in the biblical time. He started to plant trees and cultivate more land, so that from the land the family could live and this was for generations during the Ottoman period, the British mandate period, the Jordanians and even after 1967 with Israel. We are still here and we are hoping to continue to keep this land for the new generations.

Paul: Now I understand that the Israeli government are actually challenging your rights to the land here. What exactly is happening?

Daoud: In 1991 they declared it as State land and so the legal process started. We went to the court and presented the papers from the Ottoman, British, Jordanian and Israeli periods. Then they demanded from us a new survey and eye witnesses. Then we started to have problems from the Israeli settlers who came and uprooted trees and damaged our water tank; they tried to open roads through the property in order to establish a settlement. We stopped all that by court. The last time the settlers came they uprooted 250 olive trees. It was a very difficult situation for us, but I got an e-mail from a Jewish organisation in England called European Jews for Justice in Palestine and they sponsored 250 olive trees. They came and they planted them and for me it was like a sign of solidarity. So even this long process we have to go through with lots of difficulties, which we are still going through, we have to keep hope.

Paul: Would it be easy for the Israeli government to actually come and take your land?

Daoud: Anything is possible but we don't want to be in this circle. We don't want to think in a negative way because we believe there is a future and the future should be shaped with our own hands and that's why the idea of the Tent of Nations is to remove out of this circle of violence and instead of reacting, act and be positive. We believe that we as people here can change the future; change the situation in a positive way and this is the idea of the Tent of Nations to bring people together and to connect people with their land. This is two major issues.

Paul: You are a Palestinian farm and all around you are Israeli settlers, how easy is it to get to your farm?

Daoud: Yes the road is blocked to the farm so we have to stop the car and leave it there about 500 metres and walk. There are a lot of obstacles facing us, a lot of difficulties; we have no electricity or running water; we have nothing to develop, we are not allowed to build anything here. We thought we need to focus on our vision of establishing the Tent of Nations here in order to invite people and use the place as a meeting place, to bring people together, meeting face to face and overcoming the prejudice.

Paul: Now the settlers that live in the area, what legal rights do they have to the land round about?

Daoud: This is a problem. Religion in the Middle East and in our country is misused by Jews, by Christians and by Moslem's and mixing religion with politics is dangerous. Some people come and say we have the divine rights and God promised us this land; for me as a Palestinian and especially as a Christian we have to read the Bible in all its context and understand what it is all about and for us as Christians we are believing in the new covenant. That's why we believe we cannot say who has the right to the land, everybody has the right. We can share the land and we can live in peace. We need to build trust, we need to bring people together to overcome all these difficulties and share the land.

Paul: You bring people from around the world for reconciliation, how important is reconciliation?

Daoud: The issue here is also about human rights and justice, bringing people here together is like building a bridge. When people come together face to face they can start to understand what other people think and to listen and to see the other side and this will change the situation. This is the way to have reconciliation and the next step is peace.

Paul: So what do you do to bring people together?