Between the Great Wall of China and the Cursed Ram Wall, Two Walls Separated by Time... But United in Pain

The Great Wall of China was never just a pile of stones stretched across the mountains; it was a reflection of an era that feared invasion, choosing to take refuge behind walls. After long centuries, millions stand before it today to take photos, having transformed from a tool of isolation and war to a silent witness to a bygone history. 

Thousands of kilometers away, at a time that is supposed to be more civilized, the Ram Wall north of occupied Jerusalem stands as a witness to a tragic reality experienced by Palestinians. A reality that has not yet ended; a reality in which the wall is built not to be recounted in history books, but to be lived every day.

The Ram Wall, that gray concrete barrier, is a wall that stops dreams before it cuts through streets, dividing geography as it divides life. It was built by the occupation under the pretext of "security," but what it has left on the ground is a lack of human security; security of access, security of communication, and security of living with dignity.

Just as the Great Wall of China once separated the empire from the other, the Ram Wall today separates the Palestinian from his family, the student from his university, the patient from his hospital, and the worker from his livelihood.
 However, the fundamental difference is that the Great Wall protected the borders of a state, while the Ram Wall besieges an entire city, turning its residents into strangers in their vicinity.

In China, thousands of workers were buried under the stones of the wall during its construction, paying a heavy price that became part of a closed history, whereas on the Ram Wall, dozens of young men lost their lives, and the blood of hundreds was shed in search of a meager livelihood drenched in blood. There is a constant anxiety here; pain does not belong only to the past, but resides in the present with all its weight.

The irony is that the Great Wall of China has become a global symbol, its parts illuminated at night and its doors opened to visitors, while the Ram Wall closes its doors in the faces of the land's owners, turning the city into an isolated island.

The former has become a tourist attraction funded by nations for its preservation, while the latter has become a humanitarian burden paid for by Palestinians with their lives.

Both walls were written in stone, but the difference is that one was written and ended, while the other continues to be written through suffering. 

The Great Wall reminds the world that fear does not create a lasting civilization, and the Ram Wall reminds us that walls, no matter how high they rise, cannot erase a person's right to life and freedom.

Perhaps a day will come when these walls are removed, or turn into lessons told to future generations; until that time, the Ram Wall will remain not just a concrete structure, but an open wound story about a people living behind the wall, waiting for a future to be written without walls and a life without constraints.