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c economist suntribune faith and values saturday april 27 2002 israelbound local mennonites wont be put off by violence danger by carol cooper special letitia wise is spending her sec ond wedding anniversary on israels west bank her husband wont be with her but while there she will be deepening her commitment to their marriage along with markharh resident heather steckle ms wise of newmarket will be part of a 12- member delegation from christian peacemaker teams cpt headed for hebron bethlehem and jerusalem late in may ms wise and ms steckle are parishioners of the rouge valley mennohite church associate pas tor of the church pieter niemeyer of mount albert heads the group each delegate pays 2700 for the experience for ms wise a scarborough pre school teacher serving on the dele gation will expose her to a type of work she would like to share with her husband part of what we want to do as a couple is to be involved with mis sion work she said my husband knows he likes it but id like to have a footwetter before jumping in for a term of a year or more gaining handson experience with cpt work is one of the purpos es of the delegation said mr niemeyer whos preparing for his third trip to the west bank as a cpt reservist he dedicates one month a year to doing the agencys work overseas as well as volunteering moretinie at home these delegates are people cqmimttedtopeacethey wantto see how cpjworks to determine j whetiier they will also work iwith title organization in memture during its lohaystay in the region the delegation plans to trav el lip meet with palestinian peace activists in bethlehem israeli peace groups in jerusalem and participate injthe work of the fulltime cpt team posted in hebron were on the side of the peace makers both palestinian and israeli said doug pritchard cpts canadian coordinator according to mr pritchard peace groups from both sides have said the way to ensure peace in the region is to end the israeli occupa tion of palestinian territory that occupation is illegal under the geneva convention and more than 50 un resolutions have called for them to withdraw he said l the work of the cpthebrqn tearri varies from week to week and could include accompanying staff photosjoerdwitteveen signed a statement of personal responsibility accepting the risks of being wounded disabled killed or taken hostage like the others ms steckle finds strengths in her beliefs said the outdoor education co ordinator for willowgrove farm im- not afraid who knows what might happen im secure that if i do die i get to go to a better place heaven as an experienced cpt- delegate mr niemeyer is especially aware of the situations they could encounter on a previous trip he saw a jour nalist being shot in the back of the head with a rubber bullet it goes -without- saying that there is risk hesaidbut that is not to saywewill go blindly into a dangerous situation our role is not to get ourselves killedouffbie is riot jo be martyrs but we cannot allowthe fact that there is danger to be thedetermin- ing factor of our involvement said mr pritchard were there because there is a war on were there because were called to take some risks on the conviction that we are witnesses to a better way of resolving conflict oh a- past delegation mr niemeyer and two other cptdele- gates escorted- a 12yearold palestinian girl home during a brief lifting of curfew she had been caught at a relatives house in an israelicontrolled area for 17 days by a 24houraday curfew that moment stands out for him in his work as a cptreservist to me thats prpvidirig security- and safety to people he said both mri niemeyer and his wife the parentsqf three young children -beueye- cpt work is a calling and bad things happen when good peo- pieter niemeyer is joining a peacemaker team going to israel in may he was photographed in the rougevalley rle stand by hesaid menndnitechurdionreesorroadmm7rkl r bxolike r palestinian children to school ensuring delivery of water to palestinian homes or sitting in front of israeli bulldozers as they attempt to confiscate palestinian land to expand jewish settlements mr pritchard said our main role is to try and pro tect ordinary unarmed civilians who are trying to live their lives in the midst of this territory while its under military occupation he said cpt workers have also ridden the number 13 bus in jerusalem one largely used by israelis and bombed two weekends in a row and have vis ited israeli soldiers in hospital the team documents any with pacifism as part of menrionite tradition mr the human rights violations they are risk their lives for peace and security posted on the cpt website and reported through press releases so those interested can contact politi cians and press for change the aim is violence reduction mr pritchard said were not medi- atorsor lawyers were attempting to reduce the violence in the streets to give local peacemakers the secu rity and the space theyll need to negotiate a final peace a call for a broader commitment to peace was the genesis of christian peacemaker teams in 1984 theolo- gian and social activist ron sider noted to the mennonite world conference in france that soldiers sidep asked if those attending the confer- ence were willing not only to refrain from fighting but also to risk their lives to stop warfare formed in 1986 by a joint cadiahamericansteering com mittee as a result of that challenge cpt now has 125full- and parttime workers when asked fulltime maintain a presence in conflictrid den places around the world mr niemeyer ms wise and ms steckle all understand the dangers that could befall them they have ms wises husband is supportive he never tried to talk her but of her decision ms wise said as welliasexperienciiig mission wbrkheexpects to learn rhore about a different way of life were just so involved in our own lit tle world shesaid compassion for mbse living in yi61entcircurnstances- also moti vates msstecmeshe hasjapqng- held interest irf the holy land and teams l her heart- goes outftouwse living there she said for more information about christian peacemaker tearns orto help sponsor a delegate call 416- 4235525 v f i club cjojlswt 146 old kennedy rd markham 905 4770894 happy mothers pay gd g f fit happy mothers payj ajl aic will deceive a eree aa4e or bowilin an shoje rental n anyvwednesdyin weonih irvvkiavi nxe i3e1npitini i 30w1ibnio tc- i vt vi one ri3ees3jiclaerea4aeecmft norcasw subject t- lanc- avillaciilltr r- 1 imoi bicthdar speciaes vtytyiti ijiii j