Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI)

Job Title:

Ecumenical Accompanier (EA) – unpaid

Location:

West Bank in Palestine, and Israel

Reporting to:

Australia: Sharon Edington, EAPPI-Australia National Coordinator (Act for Peace).

Jerusalem: EAPPI Local Programme Co-ordinator (World Council of Churches)

Duration:

Before travel to the field: 4.5 days residential assessment and training and substantial time commitment for reading and preparation, including Zoom trainings.

In the field: 3 months. EAs need to be flexible so that they can respond to the needs of each placement and of the local community. EAs are entitled to one day off a week in addition to time for sight-seeing during the training period and mid-term review, but evening and weekend work is required often. The EA will need to ensure that adequate time is taken for rest and relaxation throughout their period of service.

After return: Availability for a minimum of 12 months to undertake public speaking and other advocacy activities.

Background to the programme

The Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI) provides protection by presence to vulnerable communities impacted by the occupation in Palestine, monitors human rights abuses, supports Israeli and Palestinian peace activists, and advocates for an end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The programme is an initiative of the World Council of Churches (WCC) and was established in 2002 in response to a call from the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem.

EAPPI in Australia is managed by Act for Peace which is the aid agency of the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA).The EAPPI-Australia Committee supports Act for Peace during the stages to recruit and support the EAs and the EAPPI Local Programme Co-ordinator in Jerusalem acts as the EAs’ line manager in the field.

EAs serve in small international teams in one location (or ‘placement’) living in a shared apartment with their colleagues. More than 20 countries are sending EAs to operate in one of these six placements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem where they live and work alongside local people who are non-violently resisting the occupation.

The EAPPI is not involved in proselytising or missionary activity.

Background to the role

The work of EAs in the field is varied but can be tiring and stressful. Please note the following, which will help you decide if this work is for you or not:

• Close family and friends can worry about EAs in the field. Make sure you have their full support.
• EAs live in a conflict zone but have to maintain principled impartiality. This means you must be committed to principles of human rights above any desire to support one side over the other.
• Living conditions in the West Bank can be simple and special diets may be difficult to maintain.
• EAs are placed in small international teams and have to live and work together under stressful conditions for 3 months. You will have to share a bedroom with another person and private space is difficult to find.
• EAs who thrive in the field are typically those who are flexible, self-aware, able to ask for help, able to take criticism and advice and who have a ‘can-do’ approach.
• It is not permitted for EAs to drink alcohol while they are on duty in their placements. This means you will not be able to have an alcoholic drink for extended periods during your service in the field.
• The work is physically demanding. You may stand for long periods of time at checkpoints, walk long distances over rough terrain, get up before dawn for duties and be ‘on duty’ 24/7 for extended periods.
• In a crisis situation you may have to leave an area very quickly; this means you need to be able to run at full pelt for several minutes over uneven ground.
• The work can be emotionally draining and put you under considerable mental stress and in addition you may not have access to your normal support.
• For your own safety it is important to fully disclose health issues. Failure to declare health issues which then prevent you completing your duties may result in you being sent home.
• Access to medical facilities is generally good but varies depending on your placement. Being frank about your health once you have been selected is vital for our colleagues in Jerusalem to place you appropriately.

These issues are raised here not only so that you can consider them for your own safety and security, but also so that you can consider the knock on effect of these issues on your team mates and the security of the team as a whole, should you be recruited.

Role and Responsibilities of an Ecumenical Accompanier

Successful Ecumenical Accompaniers undertake the following:

• Observe and report on violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.
• Seek to act as a deterrent to violence and to offer protection through their nonviolent presence.
• Support acts of nonviolent resistance alongside Palestinians and Israelis.
• Engage in public policy advocacy and carry out speaking engagements in Australia upon return from the field.
• Stand in solidarity with the Churches and all those struggling nonviolently to end the occupation and the conflict.
• Witness and share in daily life under occupation.
• Build relationships with Palestinians and Israelis, which will further the programme’s work and become familiar with a variety of political views about the conflict within Israeli and Palestinian societies.
• Participate fully in the work of their team, including participating in identifying individual roles and tasks in support of the EAPPI mission, aims and objectives.
• Report frequently and extensively about their activities and on incidents of violence and human rights abuses.
• Establish and maintain contact with the media at home and in the field.
• Write articles about their experiences for wider distribution by the EAPPI, NCCA and WCC, as required.

Personal responsibilities

Participants will:

• Respect the ecumenical nature of the EAPPI, as it reflects its Christian heritage, as well as the other faiths you’ll work alongside.
• Respect local cultural norms and practices and commit to refraining from engaging in behaviour which could be perceived as provocative or disrespectful.
• Conform to EAPPI procedures and methods both in Palestine/Israel and in Australia as defined in the contract.
• Agree to comply with the EAPPI Code of Conduct including an order to evacuate when necessary.
• Maintain regular contact and communication with their EAPPI team and the World Council of Churches’ EAPPI Local Programme Co-ordinator on personal location and activities.
• Provide timely and detailed reports on their own and their team’s activities and on incidents they have observed.
• Accept and engage in mandatory programmed sessions for training, briefing and orientation purposes both in Australia and in Palestine/Israel.
• Act from a focused, nonviolent, peace-seeking personal centre.
• Follow the security advice provided by the WCC EAPPI Local Programme Co-ordinator and the rest of the team as well as local contacts, and refrain from taking unnecessary risks, which would endanger your own or others’ life and health.
• Acknowledge the risks inherent in this situation of conflict and take ultimate responsibility for personal safety and security by signing the ‘Statement of Indemnity’.

Selection criteria

As stated above, EAs who thrive in the field are typically those who are flexible, self-aware, able to ask for help, able to take criticism and advice and who have a ‘can-do’ approach.

Essential experience/skills

• Experience of working co-operatively as part of a team, being adaptable and self-motivated and working within specific guidelines.
• Excellent communication skills in English, both written and spoken, and ability to report in writing in a clear, accurate and timely manner.
• Willingness to learn at least greetings and common words in Arabic, and if required in Hebrew.
• Competence in using mobile phones, digital cameras and laptops including competent use of Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, the internet, e-mail, and a memory stick/flash drive.
• Knowledge of and interest in the Middle East region and the conflict in Palestine/Israel.
• Willingness to engage in personal fundraising to support program costs.
• Experience of public advocacy work, whether public speaking, media work or campaigning/lobbying your political representative(s).

Essential qualities

• Maturity, psychological stability, flexibility and ability to cope with stressful/critical situations and changing circumstances.
• Willingness and ability to develop relationships with both Palestinians and Israelis and an understanding of why this is crucial to the work.
• Ability to engage constructively with people in authority and stay calm when provoked.
• Ability to cope with modest living conditions.
• Ability to share the principle of peace, nonviolence and reconciliation as a way of life.
• Experience in or willingness to work in a different cultural context and an ability to demonstrate sensitivity to the region’s cultures.
• Respect towards and/or a strong identification with the ecumenical character of the programme and respect towards and willingness to participate in a variety of religious ceremonies.

Desirable experience/skills:

• Active involvement with church-related, ecumenical, faith-based or other civil society networks in Australia.
• Research and reporting on human rights and/or development work.
• Writing for publication.
• Knowledge of Arabic and/or Hebrew.
• Nonviolent direct action and solidarity work.
• Travelling, working or living in a conflict zone.
• Competency in photography.
• Experience of using a video camera.

Conditions of service

This is an unpaid position. EAs are provided with guidance and support to personally fundraise the AU$24,000 required to deploy them for three months. Please see the Terms and Conditions for the program regarding the payment schedule and what these costs cover (including accommodation, living stipend, flights and insurance).