11-15-2014 Can Internship Program Build High-Tech Bridge Between Israel and Palestinians? - Naomi Zeveloff The Forward

http://forward.com/articles/208868/can-internship-program-build-high-tech-bridge-betw/?p=all

 

…Some West Bank entrepreneurs say that the major impediment to tech development in the Palestinian territory isn't young techies' lack of exposure to high-tech firms so much as the Israeli occupation itself. On the one hand, the West Bank tech industry has made strides in recent years, attracting millions of dollars in startup investments, and now accounts for six percent of the Palestinian economy. "There is a sense that given the whole political context, tech could be an industry that would be relatively stable," said PIP's Fenster. "All you need to have a startup company is laptops and an internet connection and so the feeling is that there is an agility and flexibility with high tech that could be useful within the Israeli-Palestinian context."

But on the other hand, Israel's restrictions have inhibited the Palestinian tech industry from reaching its full potential. Abudaka points to the fact that Israel won't allow 3G access — which the Civil Administration contends is for security reasons — in the West Bank as one impediment. Another has to do with education. While Israeli universities can access scholars from all over the world, West Bank universities must first seek permission from Israel to bring in foreign instructors. Then there's the fact that Israel controls imports into the West Bank, which can lead to lengthy delays — an issue the Civil Administration said it is working to address. The result is that while the Palestinian tech scene has pockets of innovation it's also mainly a service economy providing software development for foreign companies — including Israel — without making major breakthroughs of its own…

Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

11-17-2014 This is not yet an intifada, Palestinians say - Philip Weiss Mondoweiss

11-17-2014 This is not yet an intifada, Palestinians say - Philip Weiss Mondoweiss http://mondoweiss.net/2014/11/netanyahus-intifada?utm_source=Mondoweiss+List&utm_campaign=3819b326ea-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b86bace129-3819b326ea-398495333 There is not yet a third intifada, Palestinians in East Jerusalem say. But there could be an organized uprising if Jewish zealots' incitements about the Al Aqsa mosque continue. In interviews, these Palestinians say that Israel's escalation of violence in East Jerusalem has isolated and terrified neighborhoods. "There is no security. You are afraid economically, politically, and physically." And the individual acts of violence by maddened Palestinians who feel they have nothing to lose reflects the universal demand for human dignity…   Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member
Read more

10-22-21015 Israel’s descent into unmasked, right wing extremism: A new generation rises to fight occupation, settler-colonialism, apartheid - Omar Barghouti Salon

http://www.salon.com/2015/10/22/israels_descent_into_unmasked_right_wing_extremism_a_new_generation_rises_to_fight_occupation_settler_colonialism_apartheid/     This Palestinian resistance is a spontaneous reaction to the most racist, far-right government in Israel's history…The question of Palestine is one of resistance against a colonial, apartheid regime.… Concerted, widespread, sustained nonviolent pressure that is anchored in international law and universal principles of human rights is needed, particularly in the form of boycott, divestment and sanctions, or BDS [and perhaps] a military embargo, for instance, similar to the one imposed on apartheid South Africa,…After such a "de-escalation," perhaps we can pursue the goal of freedom, justice and equality... Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member
Read more

2-6-2014 On the Ugly Side of the Wall - Bill Fletcher, Jr. Tavis Smiley Show

http://www.tavissmileyradio.com/bill-fletcher-jr-traveling-through-palestine/   Last month, a small delegation of African American artists traveled through Israel and Palestine to get a firsthand look at the daily lives of Palestinians. What they saw shocked and angered them, and their eyewitness accounts are sure to spark debate here as heated as any confrontation in the Middle East. Bill Fletcher Jr., senior scholar with the Institute for Policy Studies, led the delegation and shares his perspective on the region. Posted by Judith Ferster, AIME member
Read more