The arrest of the Palestinian poet, photographer, and activist, Dareen Tatour in 2015 came as a shocking result of her posting words of resistance in a recital of her poem "Resist, My People, Resist" on her Facebook account, which was considered, by Nazareth's Israeli court, an act of terrorism and incitement.
Her poem, translated by an Israeli police officer with no background in translation, was used as an evident snare to put her in Damon prison for a period of up to 24 months followed by house arrest and a restriction from using the internet.
In 'Detaining a Poem', Tatour says:
"One day,
they stopped me,
shackled me,
tied up my body, my soul,
my everything."
Following this arrest, Tatour produced several poems to describe her frustration and anger at the injustice committed against her. She commanded her readers, in 'Beware', to:
"Write, in injustice, what you want
As you want it—
For injustice is blind
And the judges are wreathed in the color of darkness"
This spoke out against not only the injustice done unto her, but to the other Palestinian women abused by Israeli courts and prosecution. Over the last 50 years- statistics report, an estimated 10,000 Palestinian women have been arrested and/or detained under Israeli military orders. And in 2018, there were 52 women and 1 minor female detained in Damon, one of the two prisons specifically for women, the other being Hasharon.
Even though these two prisons are specifically for women, they do not meet the legal standards to satisfy their gender-specific needs under international law. Prisoners are entitled to family visits, health check-ups, and basic care, yet under Israel's custody, a constant violation of human rights occurs in prisons.
Tatour hosted a talk through her Instagram account where she spoke about the numerous human rights violations committed against her and the 34 incarcerated women she met while in prison.
"Eleven of them were mothers," Tatour exclaimed, "but they were prohibited from embracing their kids, even seeing them". She added during her talk on how the Israeli Prison Service (IPS) always neglected the prisoners medically and has denied them access to any kind of healthcare. Dareen also brought up the case of Israa Jaabis, a 31-year-old Palestinian woman arrested right after she was left with first, second, and third-degree burns in an accident on half of her body that took 8 of her fingers.
"Israa was prosecuted for 11 years and she needed multiple surgeries to live normally and to go back to her son. But, she was denied the necessary care, and now she's fighting with her life." Tatour continued.
For most of her talk, Tatour introduced each woman she met in prison, how long they have to serve, and how badly they are injured. Based on what Tatour mentioned, it is suspected that 30 percent of the prisoners were severely injured, yet Israeli authorities have failed to provide them with the necessary healthcare to keep them nourishing. It also seems that they are doing so intentionally to tear down the resistance of such powerful women and break their fighting spirit. That's why Tatour feels it is important to free each one of them because they are not mere numbers.
Until now, Tatour continues her fight against Israeli discrimination geared towards incarcerated Palestinian women through her photography and poetry. For instance, she uses both to raise awareness about their continuous struggles and as a therapeutic medium whenever she's angry or frustrated.
"The pen is my pal and the camera is my friend," Tatour says, "they're the only ones capable of understanding me and helping me through all the intense emotions I feel. They give me a sense of peace and transport me to a world of my creation."