Personal Info
- Country of residence: Palestine
Information
Born in Ramallah on 8 Oct. 1946 to an Anglican Christian family; member of the GUPS in Beirut from 1967-70; member of the GUPW from 1967-72; worked at the Palestinian Information Office in Beirut from 1968-70; studied English Literature at the AUB, graduating with a BA and an MA (1970); returned Palestine in 1973 and established the Dept. of English at Birzeit University, as whose Chair she served from 1973-1978, and again from 1981-1984; was a founding member and Director of the Legal Aid Committee/Human Rights Action Project at Birzeit University in 1974; continued her studies and received a PhD in Medieval and Comparative Literature from the University of Virginia, USA, in 1981; served as Dean of Arts at Birzeit University from 1986-90, specializing in Medieval English Literature (remained a faculty member at Birzeit University until 1995); joined the Political Committees during the fist Intifada; member of the Union of Palestinian Writers; from 1991-93, member of the Palestinian Steering Committee in the peace process, Palestinian delegation spokesperson for the negotiations at the Madrid and Washington talks, and member of the Leadership/Guidance Committee and Executive Committee of the delegation; resigned from her post as spokeswoman and headed the Preparatory Committee of PICCR in 1993, then serving as its first Commissioner General until 1995; was elected PLC member for the Jerusalem constituency in 1996; appointed PA Minister for Higher Education in 1996 (until 1998, when she resigned in protest against political corruption and Pres. Yasser Arafat’s handling of the peace talks); was put in charge of the Bethlehem 2000 project; founder (in Dec. 1998) of the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH) and its Sec.-Gen. since; was appointed Arab League spokesperson in July 2001; resigned from the post in 2002 over difficulties she encountered in trying to persuade the different member states to speak with a uniform voice; among the signatories of a statement published in Al-Quds on 20 June 2002, was re-elected as PLC member (Third Way List) in the Jan. 2006 elections; her publications include The Modern Palestinian Short Story: An Introduction to Practical Criticism; Contemporary Palestinian Literature under Occupation, From Intifada to Independence and her autobiography, This Side of Peace: A Personal Account (1995). Elected as member of the PLO executive Committee at the special session of the Palestinian National Council (PNC) in August 27, 2009 in Ramallah.
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