US aid embargo pulls plug on Palestinian ‘Sesame Street’

An iconic Palestinian children’s program modelled on the popular US show Sesame Street is under threat following America’s decision to freeze nearly US $200 million of aid to Palestine following its accession to the UN cultural body, UNESCO. The Palestinians have long sought to establish a sovereign state based on Israel’s 1967 borders, which would include the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. However, after decades of peace talks failed to produce a result, President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas sought to kick start the process by applying for full UN membership on September 23, 2011.

In October 2011, the Palestinian drive for statehood was advanced further when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) voted to admit Palestine. With 107 voting yes, 14 voting no, and 52 abstaining, it was the first time Palestinians had achieved full membership status within a UN body. However punitive action from the US, which is firmly against Palestinian statehood, followed swiftly, as US aid essential to the maintenance of hospitals, education, and government ministries was cut off. From 2008-2011, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) gave $2.5 million to the Palestinian Sesame Street – known in Arabic as Sharaa Simsim – covering nearly the entire budget, the program’s executive producer, Daoud Kuttab, said. USAID was scheduled to issue another $2.5 million grant to Sharaa Simsim to last until 2014. But in early October, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Ileana Ros-Lehtinen introduced a bill that would require the UN to adopt a voluntary budget model where countries selectively fund UN agencies rather than according to a set formula. Under the new bill, a hold has been placed on $192 million in funding to USAID for programs in the West Bank and Gaza. Ros-Lehtinen confirmed this was in reaction to the Palestinian appeal to the UN to admit it as a full member state. The US and Israel oppose the move, saying a Palestinian state can only come about through negotiations. Sharaa Simsim debuted in 1996 and has produced five seasons since. The main characters – Haneen, a red-headed orange Muppet, and the green rooster Kareem – have become household names for Palestinian children. Actor Rajai Sandouka, who plays the rooster Kareem, is working as a freelance theater actor and drama teacher while he waits for the latest freeze to be lifted. He says kids recognize his voice when he is on stage, whatever role he is playing. Sharaa Simsim was supposed to start production of a new series in October, but Kuttab says the show will now not air in 2012. "If we had funding, we would be writing scripts, we would be reviewing scripts, we would be hiring filmmakers to produce the videos," said Kuttab. Sharaa Simsim’s executive producer says he is using some last-minute funding from the Palestinian Authority to tape small-scale children's programs. Core staff are working on reduced salaries, and freelancers are off the payroll. $40 million of the funding was restored by Congress in December, but it is unlikely any will go to the show. Many essential social programs have applied for funding, including healthcare and humanitarian projects, said a USAID official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of ongoing Congressional debates. Source