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The joint work of Ashtar Theater and CARE International is unique. Forum Theater is utilized as a mechanism for awareness-raising and discussion with the audience on taboo issues in Palestinian society. The theater productions are addressing democracy in the family, women’s right to education, violence in the schools, but are also venturing in extremely difficult areas such as sexual harassment in the workplace, and early marriage of young girls. According to Edward Muallem, of Ashtar Theater, talking about incest, for example, “was very difficult and nobody dared to write or speak about it.” CARE International arranged for women groups in the remote villages in the West Bank to meet with Ashtar Theater, because Ashtar was looking for reliable information. At first, when some twenty women were asked for their input, there was a deafening silence. One of the women actors with Ashtar started reading statistics about incest, and at that point, according to Muallem: “I felt I had to leave the room so they can start talking.” The discussion lasted for four hours. The Joker in the theater productions is the debate facilitator, and Abu Shaker is the personality of the oppressor. In Tulkarem, in the northern part of the West Bank, a woman walked on stage during a play on early marriage and said we must get rid of Abu Shaker entirely. The Joker told her that we must resort to debate and persuasion to help Abu Shaker change his ways. In Nablus, in the central part of the West Bank, a woman from the audience wanted to unseat Abu Shaker and take his chair The Forum Theater productions are generating debate in the schools as well. A principal tried to stop the performance when students began comparing their situation with that in the play. The Joker intervened and explained that a debate is a lesson in democracy, and people should express their opinion without offending others. In another school, in Ramallah, at first the girls in the audience were denying the presence of psychological violence in their community, but after watching a theater production on this topic, they started talking openly about problems they are facing. CARE’s Manager of the Capacity Building Program, Shuaa Murrar, described her work by saying: “I like what we are doing because the question is how to change public opinion. When we started, the newspapers were afraid to write about the issues we are raising.” Murrar added “we are breaking new grounds every day, and one of the plays was shown on Gaza satellite television channel and a debate with experts followed.” | ||||||
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