Wednesday July 21, 2010

I've Been Thinking:

From the pictures and video I've seen, the new Gaza multi-floor, indoor, Western style shopping center looks very impressive.

The air conditioned mall houses clothing stores, food shops, designer stores, and all the products of international investors like Adidas and Lacoste.

Tens of thousands of people visited during in the first two days the mall was opened. It was a very impressive grand opening. Many probably came because of the air conditioning - a welcome respite from the sweltering heat of Gaza. Others may have come because it is the first shopping mall of its kind in Gaza. But make no doubt about it, the cash registers were ringing up sales.

The difficult part of this whole picture is rationalizing the international image which presents Gazans as a poor and suffering population in need of medical and monetary aid and this high end, upscale portrayal of Gazans.

We need better information. We need to know where the aid is and where the money is going. We need to know what really happens in Gaza.

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