In 1978 Raymonda Tawil, noticing the armies of Israeli policy “experts” leading foreign diplomats, VIPs, and journalists around the West Bank and East Jerusalem to prove how enlightened their rule over the “natives” was, decided to strike back.  The Palestinian Press Office she launched on Saladin Street in East Jerusalem gave people around the world credible reporting from the West Bank.  The office functioned as a sort of human rights switchboard, with more than a dash of full-throated feminism.  Her mantra was "When our women have the chance to get out from under masculine domination, you'll see what they'll do for Palestine."  

         For hours every day, Raymonda and her coworkers worked the phone with villages and towns and cities, talking to mayors, activists, anyone with information to share.  This allowed the office to come up with a complete documentary of events: lists of the arrested and beaten, the homes ransacked and property confiscated.  Information eventually reached the pages of Le Monde, New York Times, Frankfurter Allgemeine, and the Times of London.   A forgotten nation Moshe Dayan said no longer existed (and Gold Meir said never had) at last had a voice. 

 Israeli authorities eventually closed the Press Office and drove Raymonda into exile. But over the past thirty years she has continued to write books and articles; thousands of readers enjoy her Arabic blogs. 

           We’ve decided to create an online English-language Palestinian Press Office because her original vision remains in force: a clear, articulate, humanistic voice is needed to counter the falsehoods and half-truths perpetuated by those with power.  To adapt what Pablo Freire said about education, media either integrates people into the “logic of the present system and brings about conformity or it becomes the practice of freedom, the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of their world.”  

        This blog is about transformation. We invite readers to leave comments, or contribute their own articles and reports.