‘It’s like an open-air prison’: Former Al Jazeera journalist reflects on his time in Gaza

A former Al Jazeera journalist says Pacific support for a ceasefire can make a difference to the escalating violence unfolding in Gaza, and he’s encouraging people to continue to call for peace in the region.

Tuki Laumea, who’s a Samoan BAFTA-nominated documentary director and co-founder of Nine Islands Media, spoke with Levi Matautia-Morgan on 531pi’s Pacific Mornings this week about his experiences in the Middle East.

Laumea directed films across Africa, the Middle East and Europe for Al Jazeera English for five years, including a documentary in Gaza called Born in Gaza in 2010.

Watch the full interview with Tuki Laumea below:

He says he was saddened to see Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu and Micronesia among 10 nations who voted against a United Nations Assembly motion calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, while Tonga and the Marshall Islands abstained from supporting it, which overwhelmingly passed with 153 votes on Wednesday (NZ time).

“My first reaction was 'kalofae, what’s going on?' I’ve also spent a lot of time in the Pacific, and I know a lot of that support for Israel is due to Christianity.

“But we need to look at it on the basis of a human level, as Pacific people we need to look at what is right and what is wrong.”

He says the struggle of indigenous people to overcome occupations can give Pacific communities a unique perspective on the conflict in Israel.

“You know as indigenous people or Samoans, Māori, Pasifika, we all understand what it's like to be colonised and that is exactly what's happening to them.

“For me, what I felt when I went in there was a realisation that what’s happening there has happened to all indigenous people.”

Tuki Laumea working on a film in Aotearoa. Photo/ Nine Islands Media

Laumea says while the international media can tend to summarise the conflict down to statistics and political debates, but his experiences filming in Gaza showed him the very real human impact.

“I’m obviously not a Middle East expert or have a PHD in it … but I can speak from my own experiences there and the things that I learnt there.

“Going in there was one of the most surreal experiences I've ever had.

“It’s like going into a huge open-air prison, because whatever they bring in is controlled by the Israelis whether it’s the internet, water, electricity, their food and medical supplies.”

And his advice to those concerned about the escalating violence is to remain engaged and vocal.

“It can be just reduced to numbers and facts but if we start to realise that these are people, who are just like us, then we can start to understand it and make a difference.

“We need to keep talking about, keep talking to your friends about it, keep posting about it.

“And we need to just support whatever is right on a basic human level.”