PA daily article opposes media interviews with parents of Martyrs; expressions of joy are often made from shock
Many Palestinian parents of Martyrs are shown on PA media outlets celebrating their children’s Martyrdom. However, this article shows that attitudes towards this type of celebration are mixed within Palestinian society.
Headline: “To be gentle with the families of the Martyrs”
“‘I instruct you not to exhaust my mother with questions meant to win over the sentiments of the spectators and nothing more.’ This is a quote from the ten commandments of Martyr Baha Alyan, which he publicized a year ago, through the media, in which he demands they behave gently toward his mother while trying to get her to talk about her feelings regarding his Martyrdom (Shahada)… The loss of someone dear who has died, whether naturally, as a Martyr, or in an accident, causes the same result – the eternal absence of someone dear from [the lives of] his relatives. This is most difficult, even though death is an established fact in this life.
Before Martyr Al-Baha’s message…, which warns of taking advantage of feelings during the journey of loss, and the warning he directed to media people, there were many calls from experts to cease doing this, but to no avail. This, even though reason obligates the investigator to [rely on] data and facts, and professional ethics require checking in advance whether or not they [the interviewees] are fit to be interviewed, out of concern that they are still in a state of denial and shock from the incident, which usually occurs after [receiving] notice of the loss…
According to psychology, and those who work in the mental health field, the feelings accompanying the loss might be contradictory due to the shock, and this is what causes doubt as to the effectiveness of an unprofessional interview, at a time when what they most need is to accept the notice of the death and receive assistance, which will help them pass safely through the stages of loss… this is the job of psychologists, and not of those hurrying to take pictures of a bereaved person shedding tears, or of the irrational cries of joy made by many Martyrs’ mothers.
Let us allow the families of the Martyrs to cry when they need to, and we will hear the stories of those they lost with no interference and at the right time, without visiting them. Let us treat them gently, because what we are asking them to speak about is a person who has left and will never return, and this is a mental wound from which it takes time to heal. Let us be gentle with the Martyrs’ families, and give time to their wound.”
Jerusalem line 78 bus terror attack - On Oct. 13, 2015, two Palestinian terrorists, Baha Alyan (22) and Bilal Ghanem (23) boarded Israeli bus no. 78 in Jerusalem's Armon Hanatziv neighborhood with a gun and a knife and attacked passengers, killing 2 and wounding 4 Israelis. Alyan was shot and killed by an Israeli security guard at the scene and Ghanem, a Hamas operative who served time in Israeli prison in 2013-2014, was wounded.
Headline: “To be gentle with the families of the Martyrs”
“‘I instruct you not to exhaust my mother with questions meant to win over the sentiments of the spectators and nothing more.’ This is a quote from the ten commandments of Martyr Baha Alyan, which he publicized a year ago, through the media, in which he demands they behave gently toward his mother while trying to get her to talk about her feelings regarding his Martyrdom (Shahada)… The loss of someone dear who has died, whether naturally, as a Martyr, or in an accident, causes the same result – the eternal absence of someone dear from [the lives of] his relatives. This is most difficult, even though death is an established fact in this life.
Before Martyr Al-Baha’s message…, which warns of taking advantage of feelings during the journey of loss, and the warning he directed to media people, there were many calls from experts to cease doing this, but to no avail. This, even though reason obligates the investigator to [rely on] data and facts, and professional ethics require checking in advance whether or not they [the interviewees] are fit to be interviewed, out of concern that they are still in a state of denial and shock from the incident, which usually occurs after [receiving] notice of the loss…
According to psychology, and those who work in the mental health field, the feelings accompanying the loss might be contradictory due to the shock, and this is what causes doubt as to the effectiveness of an unprofessional interview, at a time when what they most need is to accept the notice of the death and receive assistance, which will help them pass safely through the stages of loss… this is the job of psychologists, and not of those hurrying to take pictures of a bereaved person shedding tears, or of the irrational cries of joy made by many Martyrs’ mothers.
Let us allow the families of the Martyrs to cry when they need to, and we will hear the stories of those they lost with no interference and at the right time, without visiting them. Let us treat them gently, because what we are asking them to speak about is a person who has left and will never return, and this is a mental wound from which it takes time to heal. Let us be gentle with the Martyrs’ families, and give time to their wound.”
Jerusalem line 78 bus terror attack - On Oct. 13, 2015, two Palestinian terrorists, Baha Alyan (22) and Bilal Ghanem (23) boarded Israeli bus no. 78 in Jerusalem's Armon Hanatziv neighborhood with a gun and a knife and attacked passengers, killing 2 and wounding 4 Israelis. Alyan was shot and killed by an Israeli security guard at the scene and Ghanem, a Hamas operative who served time in Israeli prison in 2013-2014, was wounded.
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