To the editor:
Atef Abu Saif's commentary, "Why I stay in Gaza," includes nothing about the real reasons things are so bad in Gaza, but there's a clue in the dateline: Jabaliya Camp, Gaza Strip.
In a few weeks, it will be seven decades since six Arab armies invaded the newly re-established Jewish state in the Land of Israel, started the war responsible for hundreds of thousands of Arabs leaving their homes, and approximately the same number of Jews being thrown out of their homes, and becoming refugees. For the first nineteen of those years, Gaza was ruled by Arabs. Since 1994, all the Arabs in Gaza have had their own government and since 2005 all of Gaza has been under the complete control of the Palestinian Arabs.
Why, then, do refugee camps still exist in Gaza, in the Palestinian Authority and in Arab countries like Lebanon?
In 2016, UNRWA, the United Nations agency specifically charged with helping Palestinian Arabs, spent an average of $246 for each Palestinian it defines as a refugee, although only a small portion, perhaps 20,000 out of 5.3 million, were actually refugees. In contrast, the UNHCR, charged with helping all the other refugees in the world, spent less than a quarter of that per person.
Obviously, a large share of the blame, probably the lion's share, belongs with UNRWA. For the good of all, especially the Palestinian Arabs, UNRWA and its outsized budget should be taken over by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which actually helps and resettles refugees rather than perpetuating and even worsening their plight.
Sincerely,
Alan Stein