Testimonies

Ulfat al-Kafarneh, 28

I live with my parents, six sisters, and three brothers in the a-Nasser neighborhood of Gaza City.

In 1999, I graduated from high school and started studying administration, computers and quality control. When I finished, I went to work for Unipal General Trading Co. One year later, I switched to the Palestine Materials Plant Company, where I worked in administrative positions. The company manufactured interlocking tiles and stones used for paving sidewalks. At the time, it was the only company producing these things in the Gaza Strip, and our products were considered to be very good. There was lots of work. We won tenders from municipalities, the UNDP, the Ministry for Local Government, and private customers. We supplied stones and paving materials for streets, as well as for parks and residential dwellings. Our raw materials were mostly sand, small gravel, cement, and chemical substances to strengthen the tiles. Forty laborers and technicians worked in the factory.

I worked daily from 8:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.  Fridays were my only day off. I worked hard and was very happy with the job. I made 1,400 shekels a month (some 350 USD), which, for me, was a nice salary. It covered my personal expenses and enabled me to help my parents pay for clothes and other things we needed, and my brothers who were at university. I could also go out to eat with my sisters and friends, which enabled me to breathe a bit and get a change of atmosphere.

While working, I began to study social work at the university, paying the tuition from my salary. Each semester cost about 250 dollars. In 2006, I completed my studies. Although I had a degree, I continued working in the factory, because I was satisfied and felt comfortable there after having worked in the plant for six years. That was the year that Hamas won the elections and after that, Israel began to close the crossings part of the time. There was a shortage of raw materials that the factory needed. As a result, it did not open every day, but only when there were materials. In June 2006, after the soldier Gilad Shalit was abducted, Israel bombed the only power station in Gaza, which impaired our operations. The crossings were closed most of the time and the shortage of materials increased, but the plant continued to operate on a partial basis.

In June 2007, after Hamas took over Gaza, Israel completely closed the crossings and did not allow in materials that the plant needed. We lost our jobs immediately. At first, we thought that within a month or two, the crossings would reopen and we'd return to work, but time passed and they remained closed.

Since then, my life has become increasingly worse. I had no income and was left with no money because I had no savings. I was constantly anxious and felt broken. The only thing I thought about was going back to work, or getting another job that could provide me with a livelihood. I applied for lots of jobs at institutions and private companies, but none were available, because the closing of the crossings had caused many companies and plants to close because they couldn't get raw materials.

It gets harder every day. I feel useless, and think back to the time I used to work. Then I was happy and felt good. Now, I worry all the time. I want so much to become a useful person, who works hard to earn a living. To aggravate matters, the prices in Gaza have gone up. In my family, only my father is working, as a driver. He earns 30, 40 shekels (some eight or nine USD) a day. That's nothing for a family of 11 persons, when you consider the daily expenses, along with the university tuition for some of the children.

I was very sad to hear that tanks had destroyed large parts of the factory during the war. Now I've also lost my hope that, if the crossings are opened, I could go back to work there. It will take years to rebuild the plant, even if the crossings are opened. Who knows when we'll be able to return to work.

It will soon be the ‘Eid al-Adha holiday, and we can't buy what we need to celebrate in the customary manner, such as clothes or some lamb to eat. Over the past two years, we haven't enjoyed the holidays and festivities. Everything feels the same, and we're all depressed.

Ulfat Mufid Jum'ah al-Kafarneh, 28, is an unemployed resident of Gaza City. Her testimony was given to Muhammad Sabah at her home on 4 November 2009.