Issam Khalidi
Anyone
interested in elevating Palestinian journalism cannot possibly ignore the
enormous heritage that Palestinian journalists have left, which is nowadays
sadly collecting dust, if not being eaten by moths in some distant archives.
The history of Palestinian journalism is as rich as it is diverse.[1] Although there are no fully reliable circulation
figures for any Middle Eastern country for this period [British Mandate], the
press obviously grew and expanded in direct relation to the expansion of
literacy and education. In spite of its relatively small population, Palestine
supported a remarkable number of newspapers and other periodical. Many were
ephemeral or had a restricted number of readers, although the audience for a
newspaper was often larger than might be imagined, and often considerably
higher than the number of subscribers, because newspaper were commonly read out
loud in homes, coffee shop, and other private and public gathering places, and
were passed from hand to hand. The number of newspapers and periodicals
established in Palestine from World War I to the end of the Mandate was
striking: it totaled 200, with 48 founded by 1929, 85 in the 1930’s, and 67
between 1940 and 1948.[2]
Palestinian journalism became the primary
mechanism for developing a Palestinian narrative with which to address the Arab
world. Testament to this is the fact that, with over 50 thousand issues per
day, the leading Palestinian newspaper of the 1940s, Al-Difa’, was
second only to Al-Ahram in its outreach to the Arab world.[3]
During the British Mandate in Palestine many national newspapers expressed national sentiments against
the British Mandate and Jewish immigration. These included al-Karmel
established in 1908 by Najeeb Nassar, Filastin in 1911 by
Issa al-Issa, and Al-Difa’ in 1934
by Ibrahim al-Shanti. These newspapers were
the pioneers of sports journalism in Palestine. Sports pages in contemporary Palestinian newspapers are
an extension of sports columns in these widespread newspapers.
Examining
these newspapers we learn that
prior to 1948 there were about
65 social athletic clubs in Palestine. About 55 of them were members of the Arab
Palestine Sports Federation (APSF) which included athletic clubs from all over
Palestine.[4]
These newspapers are historical documents which refute the Zionist
claim that the Palestinians lacked
any cultural, social or athletic aspect;
that the Zionists populated the
region, and graced it with civilization and modernization, and brought sports
and culture to the primitive people who had hitherto known nothing of either of
these refinements.
Sports were inseparable from the political
processes that swept Palestine after WWI until 1948. It was an element of
Palestinian culture. Throughout its different stages it played a role in
shaping national consciousness, and maintaining the Palestinian national
identity.[5] Since
its founding, Al-Difa’ took a harsh position against Zionism and
Jewish immigration into Palestine. Its emergence coincided with numerous Zionist attempts to dominate every
aspect of life including sports. It came three years after the founding of the
Arab PSF in 1931. Different from Filastin, Al-Difa’ emerged - in 1934 - when sports
were in the process of growth and institutionalization.[6]
This essay examines sports news in Al-Difa',
and demonstrates the link between sports media and political conditions in
Palestine from 1934 until 1948.
Efforts to dominate athletics, marginalize the Arabs, and cultivate
cooperation with the British at any price were the main traits that
characterized Zionist involvement in sports.[7] In 1928,
Palestine Football Association PFA was established by Jews British and Arabs,
and continued to be dominated by the Jews. [8] It’s the Zionist domination that sparked the
initial creation of the Arab Palestinian Sports Federation (APSF) in 1931 with
Palestinians unwilling to legitimize Zionist colonization or serve as a fig
leaf for a Zionist dominated institution. The APSF was founded at a time when
the Palestinian national movement had to grapple with the fact that its
traditional leadership was ineffective in the face of a refusal by the British
mandatory administration to accord Palestinians the same degree of
self-governance that it had granted other Arabs such as the Egyptians and the
Iraqis.[9]
The Palestine Football Association PFA,
despite having been established as an organization that grouped teams
regardless of religion and race, projected itself as one of the driving forces
of Jewish sports in British-controlled Palestine. Palestine in its view was
Jewish and British; Palestinians did not figure in its nationalist
calculations. Its mother organization, the Palestine Sports Federation, adopted
Zionism's blue and white colors while the PFA dropped Arabic as one of its
languages within three years of its founding. The Zionist anthem "Ha-Tikva
was played alongside Britain's God Save the King" at the start of official
matches. The Palestine Olympic Committee followed a similar pattern with its nine
members, seven of which were Jewish. [10]
It's a matter of fact, that Arab sport lagged
behind Jewish sport. The Jews came to Palestine from developed industrial
societies. Definitely, they brought with them physical culture and the culture
of sports. The yishuv, and the Zionist movement that represented it, in
consequence received powerful external support, both from many of its
coreligionist elsewhere and from the greatest imperial power of the day, as
well as from the League of Nations. [11] All
the gauges of the economic, social, and political advancement of the yishuv–
the massive import of capital, the inflow of highly skilled human capital, the
community’s predominantly urban nature, its high degree of ideological
homogeneity, its unique social makeup and governing structures – when taken
together, indicate its capacity for generating considerable state power.[12]
1934 - 1936
Without massive immigration, the Zionist
movement could not hope to claim majority status, dominate the Palestinians
demographically, and could build a Jewish national home in Palestine. The year
1935 alone, the high point of Jewish immigration before 1948, witnessed over
sixty thousand Jewish immigrants, as many as the country's entire population in
1919. [13] The Zionists attempted to find the possible
(legal and illegal) ways to increase the immigration. Since 1924, they have been
trying to find new tricks for admitting more Jewish immigrants to the country;
they have used smuggling and manipulation; they have pretended to submit to the
restrictions of the immigration laws [while] transferring Jews to illegal
resident status in Palestine by hiding them in the settlements. The Maccabiad
was one of the ways of achieving these tasks.[14]
Al-Sifri reports that for the three years following 1933, Palestine saw an
average of 60,000 new Jewish immigrants each year. “The Zionist organizations
used three ways of smuggling in these illegal immigrants: the Maccabiad,
exhibitions and the power of absorption,” he claims. The Maccabiah Games and
the Levant Fair were considered perfect opportunities to gain entry to the
country, bypassing British immigration restrictions.[15]
The Maccabiad was held in
Tel Aviv in 1932 and 1935, hosting thousands of Jews from dozens of countries.
The event stirred Jewish nationalism and provided a means of introducing Jews
to the future homeland. It was also a means of normalizing the coming Jewish
state in Palestine. Yakutieli, a leader of the Maccabee World Organization
wrote in Ha'aretz on 29 March, 1935, “The recognition of Eretz Israel sports by
the international federation can be seen as a direct result of the Maccabiah
Games.”
The
second year after its founding, Al-Difa’ published a valuable article
about the second Maccabiad (1935). A writer expressed his confusion in a
courageous manner in an article that demonstrated the nationalistic stance
which Al-Difa’ took directly after its founding:
Beside the International Athletic Movement which many call the "International Olympic", the Jews created an athletic movement which they called the "Maccabiad". The first Maccabiad was held in Tel Aviv in 1932. Many Jews from forty countries visited Palestine to attend these games. All of them were from the halutz youth [Halutz - Hebrew 'hulutz - pioneer scout, in Zionism, those who settled in rural areas, drained swamps and built the land]. As soon as the games ended many of them stayed in Palestine ..... We were informed by the illegal immigration that the halutz Jew arrives as a tourist, and he disappears as soon as Palestine absorbs him. For example a Jewish halutz arrives in Palestine pretending to be a lawyer. Having more than one thousand pounds, the government becomes certain that he is rich. Then the Jewish agency will get back the money which was given to him before arriving to Palestine. So what catastrophes fell on Palestine every day! Is there a nation that could tolerate what Palestine passed through! Is there a nation which could accept this fate! Is Zionism still satisfied with all this. Ask Sir Arthur Wachop!! …. Sir Cliff Lister!! …. the whole world. They will tell you that the “International Zionism” is worried about the restrictions on immigration. These restrictions does not only bother the Arabs, but also bother the Mandate. Zionism will be satisfied only by having “Erez Israel” to Israel.” [16]
Beside the International Athletic Movement which many call the "International Olympic", the Jews created an athletic movement which they called the "Maccabiad". The first Maccabiad was held in Tel Aviv in 1932. Many Jews from forty countries visited Palestine to attend these games. All of them were from the halutz youth [Halutz - Hebrew 'hulutz - pioneer scout, in Zionism, those who settled in rural areas, drained swamps and built the land]. As soon as the games ended many of them stayed in Palestine ..... We were informed by the illegal immigration that the halutz Jew arrives as a tourist, and he disappears as soon as Palestine absorbs him. For example a Jewish halutz arrives in Palestine pretending to be a lawyer. Having more than one thousand pounds, the government becomes certain that he is rich. Then the Jewish agency will get back the money which was given to him before arriving to Palestine. So what catastrophes fell on Palestine every day! Is there a nation that could tolerate what Palestine passed through! Is there a nation which could accept this fate! Is Zionism still satisfied with all this. Ask Sir Arthur Wachop!! …. Sir Cliff Lister!! …. the whole world. They will tell you that the “International Zionism” is worried about the restrictions on immigration. These restrictions does not only bother the Arabs, but also bother the Mandate. Zionism will be satisfied only by having “Erez Israel” to Israel.” [16]
The use of press - including sports news - in
the national and ideological struggle was a reaction against
the British policy and the Zionist national project in Palestine. The Athletic
leadership did not include sports as a part of Palestinian national-ideological
system, rather by itself sports due to the political situations and the
rejection to the Zionist project became part of this system.
At that time, with Filastin, Al-Difa'
did not only cover the sports news, rather they offered their columns to
readers in order to take part. Sport news were published spontaneously, they
were not subjected to regulations and rules. They were spread randomly, as well
as commentaries by editors and readers. They reflected the lack of awareness of the
importance and role of sports in different aspects - health, social, political
etc. At
that time Al-Difa’ published news about Arab athletic clubs, games (with
British and Jewish teams) and British sports. It followed the activities of the
Arab Palestine Sports Federation which since
1933 started to organize a tournament called Dir’ al-Malek Ghazi (Armor of
King Ghazi – after King Ghazi of Iraq).
Al-Difa’ was the mouthpiece of
the Istiqlal Party which was known for its nationalistic and Arab unity orientation. In September 1934, the club of Shabab al-Arab (The Arab Youth) was founded in Haifa by
Mu’tamar Ashabab (The Youth Congress). It enthusiastically followed the details of this occasion, unleashing
the reasons behind its emergence:[17]
The readers remember that there was a club in
Haifa known as the Salisi (Salesian) [Salezianسالزيان]. It included elite of Haifa’s intellectual youth. During the
celebration something happened that touched the national dignity. The youth got
upset, they left the Salesian and established a club which was named Shabab
al-Arab [the Youth of Arabs]. Members of this club asked to be under the
auspice of the Youth Conference which accepted their request to strengthen the
links between the youth.[18]
At the time when Filastin brought news
about the Orthodox clubs in Palestine, on the other hand, Al-Difa’
focused in its news on Islamic Sports Club in Jaffa probably for two reasons:
first, both headquarters were in Jaffa, second: Al-Difa’ viewed Filastin's
support for the Orthodox clubs (in
support for the Orthodox issue) as a sectarian cohesion (for Filastin's editor,
Issa al-Issa was a Christian Orthodox) , so Al-Difa' (owner and editor -Al-Shanti
was a Moslem) decided to show its support for the Jaffa ISC. However, the
support of these two journals to these two clubs eventually was a boost for
Palestinian sports in general.
Political situations had their impacts on the
relation between Arabs and Jews. The sentiments of hatred dominated different
aspects including sports. It is important to understand in this regard that
Palestinians did not see Jewish immigrants to Palestine primarily as refugees
from persecution, as they were seen by most of the rest of the world. They saw
them instead as arrogant European interlopers who did not accept that the
Palestinians were a people or had national rights in their own country,
believed that Palestine instead belonged to them, and were coldly determined to
make that belief into reality.[19] Athletic
competitions did not go without conflict. Al-Difa’ brought this news in
November 1934, which constituted the degree of hostility between the two communities when students of the Scottish College team in
Sarafand and the Arab Sports Club - from one side - fought with the players of
the second Maccabi and Hapoel teams in Tiberias because the former refused to
stand a minute of silence for the death of the Baron Rotchild before a game
between the Scottish College and the second Maccabi-Hapoel team.[20]Most
of this news was intentionally
directed to demonstrate the sentiments of rejection toward Zionism.
Far from
political conditions and conflicts, it is worth mentioning that in many
cases Arabs and Jews showed desire for sportsmanship, friendship and good intentions in competing
with each other. However, in general, Jewish sports in Mandate Palestine were
operated to achieve Zionist national goals (Kaufman), while the Arabs exploited
sports in order to face these goals as
great dangers.
The Zionist officials viewed establishing
athletic federations and committees as a means of achieving overall Zionist goals
of establishing and legitimizing Zionist claims to Palestine. These official
organizations helped represent Palestine as "Jewish," both regionally
and internationally, and were seen as instrumental in achieving the
leadership's national and political goals. In 1933 the Zionists applied for the
membership in the International Olympic Committee, accepted in 1934. In June 1935, under the
title (Palestine and the Olympic Games) Al-Difa’ stated that:
In Athens, the Greek capital,
a Mediterranean Olympic Games from 28th through 30th of
this month will be held. The news showed that “Palestine” will participate in
these Games, with a delegate that represents all kinds of sports. We have been
informed that twelve Jewish athletes will travel to participate in these Games;
claiming that they represent Palestine. We will not be surprised if we will be
informed that these young people had raised the Zionist Flag, claiming that it
represents the flag of Palestine. Who is responsible for delivering this information
about these people to the Greek government?[21]
The Zionists were not against the use of sports for political purposes if it was
in their interests, on the other hand they were against it if it constituted a
threat to them or to their interests. Ironically, a Jewish journalist
Shimon Samet writing: "Perhaps at first a small group of Arab sportsmen
would be found, a group that would listen to our voice and claims that sport
and politics should not be mixed and that the good and mutual relationship
between sportsmen of both nations could bring about the improvement in the
friendship in general,"[22]
Definitely, the lag of Arab sports behind the
Zionist sports, and the lack of the awareness of the High Arab Committee HAC
(whose main focus was on national- political issues, rather than other issues)
about the importance of sports were responsible for such misinformation. Unfortunately, many
including politicians, intellectuals and
even editors of Palestinian newspapers (including al-Difa’) were not
aware about the potential and importance of sports; they viewed them as an
entertaining activity that has no content or goal.
Many towns and villages suffered the lack of
sports football fields. Al-Difa’ published few articles by its editor and
readers calling the Municipality of Jaffa to allocate a land for building a
football court:
The Lebanese Government agreed to establish a
soccer field in Beirut which will cost 25.000 Syrian Liras and will be paid by
the municipality. We could ask the following question: What did our municipality
board do to establish a soccer field? Did
it enlist this issue in its budget! Why would it neglect such important issue
at the time when the city of Jaffa is in a desperate need for a soccer field.[23]
It is
worth mentioning that boxing, wrestling and weightlifting started in Palestine
in the twenties in social-athletic clubs such as Islamic Sports Club and
Orthodox Club in Jaffa and Carmel Club in Haifa. These sports developed rapidly
in the thirties and forties.[24]
The first boxing club was established in September 1933 – The Club of Boxing
and Sport in Haifa [Nadi al-Mulakama war-Riyadah] (later the name was changed to
al-Ghazi Club). This club was founded by the famous boxing champion Adib Kamal
(or Adib Turki) he was the champion of Syria Lebanon and Palestine. In order to
encourage and promote sports in this club Al-Difa’s correspondent wrote:
At this club I met with a group of selected
athletes, I heard gratitude words about the Ghazi Club. I met with the head of
this club Mr. Adib Bey Kamal, I found him enthusiastically concerned about
establishing this club especially boxing in Haifa. The citizens were fascinated
by the performance of the players in the game which took place a week
before, in which Adib Kamal defeated Khawaja Kransisco the Romanian champion. [25]
The visits and reporting about different clubs
by the correspondents of this newspaper (and Filastin) was popular at
that time and continued until 1948. It was intended to encourage and promote
clubs performance and activities. However, these reports were characterized with
exaggeration and rhetoric style.
Athletic Scouts Exhibition – July 1935
The period 1931-1936 witnessed remarkable
cooperation between youth, scouting and sports movements in Mandate Palestine.
The youth component was the common denominator among these three activities.
Issa al-Sifri points out that a historian of the national movement needs to address
the Palestinian youth movement, because it was the first organized youth
movement in an Arab country.[26]
The Arab Palestine Sports
Federation in coordination with the scout leadership and the Youth Congress,
decided to hold an athletic skills exhibition on al-Bassa esplanade in Jaffa in
July 1935. One of the main challenges the organizing
committee faced was the negative attitude the British Mandate had toward this
exhibition, at the same time when it was supporting and facilitating the Jewish
sports.
Concerning the manner in which the exhibition challenged British
authorities, the day after the games al-Difa' newspaper suggested how
"masculinity," defense, and sportsmanship were related:
What we intended to do is to develop
sportsmanship and military training in the young generation. This spirit raises
us from the low level (at which we live) to a world of ethical orientation
(nobility of character). They deprived us of military training yet permitted it
to themselves. They closed the doors to physical strength and wellbeing.....[27]
1936 - 1944
Due to the consequences of the Great 1936-39
Revolt, the sports activities became semi-paralyzed; some clubs were
exposed to closure, their members were arrested. The Orthodox Club in Jaffa was
confiscated, its building became a headquarters for the British troops.
A group of British soldiers and police invaded
the Islamic club in Jaffa, before going up, they ordered the soldiers to
surround the building from all sides in order to prohibit the passers to enter
or exit the building. Two officers carrying guns went up and ordered everyone
not to move and to raise their hands for searching. After searching the police arrested everyone who has been in the club. They
closed the doors and stamped it with the red wax.[28]
Expressing its sympathy with the Orthodox
Club, the Islamic Club in Jaffa offered its supports through a letter that was
published in Al-Difa’:
Dear Brothers, Head and
Members of the Orthodox Youth Club (OYC) , The Board of the Islamic Sports
Clubs (ISC) in Jaffa offers its apology for the decision of the government
taking your club as a dorm for its
soldiers, which could hinder your activities in the field of sports and
cultural. We had the honor to cooperate with the Orthodox Club – which had a
supreme position and respect among other national clubs in Palestine. It is
unfair that this club to be ended by such a decision taken by the government.
The board of our club conveyed and decided to send a letter of protest to the
Governor of the south province. Thus, the Islamic Club welcomes all the members
of the Orthodox Club asking them to consider the IC as their club; they have
all the privileges as members until the board of the Orthodox Club could
follow up and end this case. The board of the IC will offer the OC a room
especially for its meetings.[29]
Despite the tough political situations, the PSF
continued existing. Al-Difa’ continued publishing reports and news about
some games here and there. The function
of PSF was totally paralyzed at the end of the 1930's. Few of its members
joined the Jewish-dominated Palestine Football Association such as Shebab al-Arab, Islamic Sports Club Haifa, Qawmi Club in
Jaffa, and Orthodox Club in Jerusalem. At
that time when football suffered the absence of the PSF, boxing (though not
connected to PSF), was promoted to take
place among other sports. Al-Difa’ brought tons of news about matches in boxing. At the same time that Jewish sport
was making progress by exploiting the opportunities presented by the 1936–1939
Revolt -- by increasing its matches and competitions with the British Mandate
teams -- Arab sports and sports coverage suffered a recession.
Al-Difa’ participated in supporting the victims of the floods in Syria
in September 1937. It published news about the Arab Workers Union in
Haifa and its organization of a match in boxing and wrestling between Jam’yyat
al-Ummal al-Arabiya (The Workers Union), Islamic, Orthodox, Shabab al-Arab
and Urouba Club. The income of these matches had been allocated for supporting of
the victims in Syria. [30]
Due to the stagnant conditions of Palestinian
sports at that time, and the extinction of the Arab PSF, some of Arabs athletic
clubs such as Shabab al-Arab, Islamic Sports Club and Tirsana in Haifa, Qawmi
Sports Club in Jaffa, Orthodox Club and Arab Sports Club in Jerusalem joined the
Jewish-dominated Football Association. With the outbreak of WWII and
introduction of new emergency laws, the British ordered the closure of almost
all Papers. Only Filastin and Al-Difa’ were able to survive by
adopting a moderate nationalist tone and publishing closely censored news
(Musallam, 2008).[31]At that period, a tangible
change occurred in the sports news in Al-Difa’, the challenging nationalistic
tendency in criticizing the Jewish domination disappeared, sports news became
more informational than analytical and critical. It is worth to mention that Filastin
was submitted at the same time to the same pressures as Al-Difa, but it
maintained its national attitude toward the Jewish domination in sports by
publishing more challenging articles.
1944 - 1948
By 1944, aspirations of bringing Arab clubs
under one umbrella were coming together. The clubs were many and varied. The
Palestine Sport Federation (different than the APSF which was mentioned
previously) in Haifa, for example, included 43 teams from different kinds of sports.
Coincidentally, a football match was planned between the Egyptian army team and
the Jewish-dominated PFA. But the Egyptian team refused to visit Palestine
unless the Arab clubs also organized a team to play against them. This
motivated the Arab clubs to establish their own regional federations so they
could also compete against the Egyptian team, like Jaffa, Jerusalem and Haifa federations. In
May, a team was formed to compete with a selected British Army team (which
defeated the Arab Selected Team 1-0). Those small federations in different regions
and different kinds of sports could be considered a nucleus for the future
(re-established) Arab Palestine Sports Federation.
The re-establishing of the Arab
PSF in September 1944 is considered to be the main stimulator for the sports
media. Sports news started to be organized in Zawihat al-Difa' Al-Riyadiyya
(Al-Difa' Sports Column). It became
comprehensive, inclusive and well organized. Full coverage was given to the PSF,
its activities, and its meetings by regional
and branch committees.[32] It followed the news about all the matches
and the championship tournaments. Al-Difa' published news about the
visits of the Arab teams from Arabic countries to Palestine; in turn it gave
full reports about the visits and matches of Palestinian teams and athletes to
these countries. This kind of news reflected the national cohesion and interdependence
between the teams in Palestine and neighboring Arab countries.
PSF
attempted to bring the British Mandate teams to its side, gaining the
opportunity of the worsening of their ‘relations’ with the Jewish teams because
of Jewish frustration and anger at the British authorities’ refusal to allow
Jewish Holocaust refugees from Europe to enter the country, a fierce armed
struggle, agreed upon by most of the community’s circles, was conducted against
the Mandate regime’s representatives.[33]These
matches intensified during the period 1945 - 1947, and had been reported in Zawiyat Al-Difa' Al-Riyadiyya (Al-Difa' Sports Column). They were described with
sentiments of pride, as if competing with British Mandate teams was one of the
main goals of Palestinian sports. Unfortunately, many Arabs viewed the British more as friend than opponents.
Before
the re-establishment of the Palestine Sports Federation sports column started
to be edited by Khaireddin Abu Jibeen. It became accommodated to numerous and various
information. [34] A quantitative and
qualitative changes occurred after the re-establishment of PSF. Sports news were
published comprehensively, on a daily bases. It included reports about PSF
meetings, its activities and decisions. A strong link
between PSF, athletic clubs and this column was clearly noticed. The column became a mirror which
reflected the nationalistic sentiments in sports until the end of 1947. In order
to maintain the national links between Palestine and Syria. Palestinian athletes did not hesitate to offer
aid to their brothers in Syria. Al-Difa’ participated in this process by
calling the clubs to make contributions – donations to the Syrian people (when
French troops occupied the Syrian parliament in May 1945 and cut off Damascus's
electricity. Training their guns on Damascus's old city, the French killed 400
Syrians and destroyed hundreds of homes).[35]
Al-Difa' expressed its frustration when the Jewish-dominated Olympic
Committee - as a representative of Palestine - received an invitation to
participate in the
Olympic Games in London in 1948:
We have been informed
that the general secretary of the government of Palestine received and official
invitation for Palestine's participation in the next Olympic Games which will
be held in London the next year. It has been mentioned that his honor transferred this application to Palestine Olympic
Committee. We ask, whom this committee is
consisted from? Do the Arabs have a part in it? Or the Jews alone will
represent Palestine in these games. We have the right to take part in it,
because we represent the majority of the population in this country.[36]
Conclusion
Palestinian national
sentiments and activities were manifested in many aspects of Palestinian life
including sports. Al-Difa' intentionally reflected these sentiments. It could
demonstrate the development of sports in Palestine, and manifest the link between
sports media and political conditions in Palestine.
In general sports reports in
Arab journalism in the thirties and the beginning of 1940's were similar to
their Jewish counterparts: short, random and shoved to the newspaper margins.
From a content aspect, the majority of notices were merely partial reports of
soccer game results. Similarly prominent is the absence of news on
international world sports. The newspapers' political character and partisan
attribution clearly reflected upon the way they treated sports teams.[37]
However, after the re-establishment of APSF in 1944 sports reports took new
turn. A new sports column was organized, it included domestic and regional news
with no international reports. The
development of sports news in Al-Difa' was dependable on the development of sports
and the media in general.
The
detaining of most of the Palestinian documents after 1948 by the Israeli
authorities caused a huge problem in registering history as well as conducting
historical research on this subject. Therefore, Al-Difa’ (beside Filastin,
Carmel and others) could be regarded as a substantial source for writing
sports history in British Mandate Palestine.
Issam Khalidi, an independent scholar living in Monterey, California, is author of “History of Sports in Palestine 1900-1948” in
Arabic, “One Hundred Years of Football in Palestine” in Arabic and
English, Soccer in the Middle East - edited (Routledge), as well as
various articles on the subjects of sports included at www.hpalestinesports.net
Notes:
[1]Mujar Al-Bahri, A Quick Journey into
Palestinian Journalism, This Week in Palestine, issue 196, August, 2014. http://www.thisweekinpalestine.com/details.php?id=1739&ed=115
[2]Yusuf Khuri, ed, Al-Sihafa al-‘arabiyya fi
Filastin, 1876 – 1948 [The Arabic Press in Palestine, 1876 – 1948] (Beirut:
Institute for Palestine Studies, 1976).Quoted in Rashid Khalidi, The Iron Cage, The
History of the Palestinian Struggle For Statehood, (Boston: Beacon, 2006).
[3]Mujar Al-Bahri, A Quick Journey into
Palestinian Journalism.
[4]IssamKhalidi,
“Body and Ideology: Early Athletics in Palestine: 1900 – 1948,” Jerusalem
Quarterly 27 (2007): 44 – 58.
[5] Issam Khalidi, Al-Akhbar al-Riyadiyyeh fi
Sahifat al-Difa', Sports news in
Al-Difa’, Hawliyyat al-Quds 9 (2010): 27 – 38.
[6]Historians of Palestinian journalism before the
end of mandate Palestine in 1948 have identified three distinct periods or
stages of evolution in this industry: the 1920s, the 1930s and the period
between 1940 and 1948. According to political and sports developments in
Palestine, the evolution of sports news in Al-Difa’ could be divided
into three stages: 1934 – 1936, 1936 – 1943, 1944 – 1948.
[7] Issam Khalidi, Body and Ideology: Early
Athletics in Palestine (1900 – 1948).
[8]The Zionist leadership viewed
establishing athletic federations and committees as a means of achieving
overall Zionist goals of establishing and legitimating Zionist claims to
Palestine. These official organizations helped represent Palestine as
"Jewish," both regionally and internationally, and were seen as
instrumental in achieving the leadership's national and political goals. For
example, in 1924, the leadership of the Jewish Maccabi athletic organization
attempted to gain membership in the International Amateur Athletic Federation.
This initiative ended in failure as it was determined that Maccabi did not
represent Arab, British and Jewish sportsmen in Palestine equally.However, this
unsuccessful attempt did not discourage Maccabi leader Josef Yekutieli, who in
the beginning of 1925 attempted to gain Maccabi membership in the Federation
Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). Yekutieli decided to employ a
different tactic this time: he first established the Palestine Football
Association PFA. The federation's inaugural meeting was convened in the summer
of 1928. Immediately, after being accepted in FIFA, the Jewish leadership started
to dominate the Palestine Football Association by ensuring that Jews were the
majority in it. This was accomplished by such strategies as imposing the Hebrew
language and incorporating the Jewish flag in the federation's logo.
[9] Mustafa Kabha, "The Palestinian press and
the general strike, April - October 1936: Filastin as a case study,"
Middle Eastern Studies, 29:3 (2003), 169-189.
[10] James Dorsey, "Constructing National
Identity: The Muscular Jew VS the Palestinian Underdog"April 9, 2015.
https://www.rsis.edu.sg/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/WP290.pdf
[11]RashidKhalidi, The Iron Cage, The
History of the Palestinian Struggle For Statehood, (Boston: Beacon, 2006),
p. 9.
[12]Rashid Khalidi, The Iron Cage, p.21.
[14]Issa Al-Sifri, Filastin al-Arabiyya baina
al-Intidabwal-Sahyouniyya [Arab Palestine between the Mandate and Zionism],
Jaffa, 1937. p.
[15] Issa Al-Sifri, Filastin al-Arabiyyabaina
al-Intidabwal-Sahyouniyya.p. 215-216.
[17]The Arab Palestinian Youth Congress (Mu’tamar
al-Shabab al-‘Arabi al-Filastini) was established in Jerusalem in 1931. It
was active in youth, scouts, sports and political activities, and was famous
for its nationalistic trends. It had its first conference in 1932, the second in
1935. See ‘Isaal- Sifri. Filastin al-‘Arabiyya bayn al-Intidabwal-Sahyuniyya
[Arab Palestine between the Mandate and Zionism] (Jaffa: Maktabat Filastinal-Jadida,
1937), 194–201.
Salisi Club was belong to the Salesian schools founded
by the Salesian Fathers, a Catholic convent founded by St. John Bosco in Turin
in Italy in 1840.In an
interview with Khalid Ijjawi (Tarikh al-Haraka al-Riyadiyya al Falastiniyya
fi al-Shatat, Damascus, 2001), Jabra Az-Zarqa explained the reason behind
this separation: After one of its winnings, the leader of the team asked the
players to shake hands first with the Italian consul and then with Ya'coub
al-Ghusein - president of the Youth Congress." They felt that Salisi Club
was more attached to the Catholic convent and to Italy than to Palestine.
[19]Rashid Khalidi, The Iron Cage, p.120
[22] Shimon
Samet, Ha'aretz, April 17, 1936. Quoted in Haggai, Harrif, Galily, Yair, “Sport
and Politics in Palestine, 1918-48: Football as a mirror reflecting the
Relations between Jews and Briton”. Soccer and Society, Vol. 4, No.1,
Spring, 2003, pp.41-56
[24]What was noticed at
that time that Al-Difa’ published few reports about horse racing, which
was popular at that time. However, it did not warn about the dangers of this
kind of sports as Filastin did.
[26]Issa Al-Sifri, Filastin al-Arabiyyabaina
al-Intidabwal-Sahyouniyya. p. 194.
[31] Adnan Musalam. Turbulant Times in the Life of the Palestinian
Arab Press: The British Era, 1917 – 1948.
http://admusallam.bethlehem.edu/publications/Turbulent_Times.htm
With the
outbreak of the Arab rebellion in 1936, emergency regulations required that all
papers submit galley proofs for censorship (Musallam, 2008).
[32] The branch committees included soccer,
basketball, heavy games (weight lifting, box and wresting), table tennis, track
and field, and tennis.
[33] Haggai Harrif, GalilyYair, “Sport and Politics
in Palestine, 1918-48: Football as a Mirror Reflecting the Relations between
Jews and Briton”. Soccer and Society, Vol. 4, No.1, Spring, 2003,
pp.41-56
[34]Khaireddin Abu Ajibin was born in 1924,
graduated from Rashidiyya School in Jerusalem, and then from Arab College in
Jerusalem. He worked as a teacher in Kulliat Athaqafa in Jaffa then in
Hasan Arafa School in Jaffa. He was a member of the Jaffa committee of the PSA.
In 1944 he became the editor of Zawiyat
al Difa’ al-Riyahdiyya (Al-Difa' Sports Column). He was one of the founders
of the Najadah organization (a semi military organization, fought in
1948 against Zionist military groups).
After 1948 he left to Egypt, then to Kuwait.
The Palestine Olympic Committee was founded in
1933, and joined the International Olympic Committee in 1934. The Committee was
controlled by Maccabi sports
organization and oversaw only sports in the Jewish sector, which was a minority
in Palestine in those days.
[37]IlanTamir, Yair Galily, The Human Factor in
the Historical Development of the Media: Israeli Sports Pages as a Case Study,
The International Journal of History of Sport, Volume 28, 2011 - issue 18.
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