Articles
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- Question about the Right of Return
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| Dialogue No 15, October 2006 |
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Q 1. In light of the discussion at the 4 th International Al Awda conference, one can see there is a wide consensus that the two state solution is dead, but there is confusion as to what a one state solution would look like. What are the different visions of the one state among Palestinians and what obstacles/difficulties are there to the one, democratic and secular state-is it the issue of secularism? |
Since the unholy alliance between the colonial powers, represented by the British Sykes and the French Picot in 1916, followed by another unholy alliance for imperial interests between the British Balfour and the Zionist Weizmann in 1917, Palestine and its people were the victims of unprecedented campaign to dismember the country and uproot its people. |
| Starting from the Royal Commission of 1937, through the Partition Plan of 1947 and ending with the two-state solution professed by George Bush Junior without much conviction, the Palestinians saw their country snatched away from them in ever increasing ratios, from 10% (Royal Commission), 54% (Partition Plan), 78% (two-state solution, theoretically) to 92% (Sharon-Olmert plan). They were never consulted on any of these ‘plans’, let alone agreed. The dispossessed people because refugees, ever increasing in number because of the passage of time and because more people are uprooted everyday. |
| By all standards, it is the biggest, organized and continuous crime in modern history. The blood that has been spilled, the destruction that has been brought about, the millions of people who were uprooted, with their number increasing every day, in a process that has now lasted ninety years, and counting, is a testimony to the greatest evil ever engineered by Western colonialism and its agents. |
| But that evil has its own seeds of destruction. The Israeli settler state planted its people in the occupied West Bank (and in Gaza earlier), built Jews-only roads, provided water supply for them from stolen Palestinian water and kept the Palestinians in concentration camps, besieged by the Apartheid Wall and check points. Planting of settlers in occupied territory is of course a war crime, according to Rome Statute of 1998. |
We now approach the unintended result of recreating Palestine as a whole again. Today, in the Mandated Palestine, the Palestinians and Jews approach parity in number (or majority for Palestinians if Russians – mostly non Jews – are excluded). That is not all. Palestinians now in Palestine are only 45% of all Palestinians. The remainder, over half, mostly refugees, reside in neighbouring Arab countries and abroad. |
| Compare this with the original situation in Palestine before the onslaught of Zionism in 1917. There were only 9% Jews of the total population (compared with 91% Palestinians); they owned only 2% of Palestine land. |
What did ninety years of bloodshed produce? Israeli occupation of the whole of Palestine; on it Jews increased from 9% to about 50% of the country’s whole population. The Palestinians, the natural inhabitants of the country, numbering about 10 million, are either in exile or under occupation. And there is a State of Israel which is now the only living symbol of institutional racism and Apartheid. |
| Where do we go from here? |
| There are only two ways. The first is that Israelis annihilate physically or geographically (by the so-called “transfer”) all Palestinians remaining in Palestine, thus making Palestine Arab-rein. The second is to remove the stinge of racism from Israel’s laws, abolish Apartheid, allow everyone to live in his legally-held home. In other words, create a free democratic de- Zionized Palestine. |
| Sharon and Olmert tried and are trying to implement the first solution. They succeeded in making life hell for Palestinians in all aspects of life, including kidnapping of activists from their beds, assassinations, starvation, demolition of houses etc. But the bulk of Palestinians stays put. If this solution succeeds, it will merely ignite new wars and endless series of violence. |
The second solution, a free democratic Palestine, by all measures of decency, justice and international law, is the natural, logical solution. Unfortunately, Israel fought wars to prevent it. |
The inescapable conclusion, therefore, is that there can be no peace for any one and justice for all inhabitants without dezionising Israel and installing a free non-racist democratic Palestine. |
Sure enough, there are many obstacles, not least of which is the mounting Israeli legacy of death and destruction which makes reconciliation recedes away with every new generation. |
| Nevertheless, we should never lose hope. Who can imagine that Herzl’s plan in 1897 to plant Israel in Palestine and dispossess its people of their patrimony in about 50 years, against every principle of justice, would take place? |
It should be easier to correct and reverse this catastrophic mistake for the sake of all humanity. |
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Q 2 What is the state of the discussion regarding the Palestinian National Leadership and what are the challenges/difficulties in unifying the Palestinian people on the ground and in the diaspora around this campaign? |
Palestinian national leadership is, of course, very vital for defending the rights of the people. That is the duty of any leadership in any country. In Palestine case, the problems for leadership are compounded. |
Colonialism thwarted their efforts. Instead of “the Sacred Duty of Civilization” bestowed on Palestine by the League of Nations, the British Mandate quelled the resistance against foreign immigration and splitting the country, imprisoned and deported its national leaders. |
After the Zionist conquest of Palestine in 1948, the elimination of national leaders resumed with vengeneance. Promising young men or established leaders were assassinated in Europe, killed, imprisoned in Palestine or deported from it. |
In addition to having to contend with that, the national leadership had to lead a society of merchants and civil servants in towns (30%) and peasants in the country side (70%) during the Mandate. After al Nakba, two thirds of Palestinian people became refugees, and after 1967, three quarters have been displaced from their homes once or twice. Moreover, the Palestinians have been dispersed in over 50 countries. In-spite of all these catastrophies, 88% of all Palestinians are still living in Palestine or within 100 km from it. |
The resilience of the Palestinian people and their strong family structure, which remained intact, protected them from disintegration. Thus their resistance movement after al Nakba of 1948 culminated in forming PLO with its National Palestine Council (PNC) in 1964 to speak on behalf of all Palestinians. |
The international community recognized Palestinian rights as “inalienable” in a remarkable series of resolutions in 1974 and ever since. |
| The Israeli invasion of Lebanon 1982 and the departure of PLO to Tunis has weakened the leadership. After the ill-fated Oslo Accords, which was found to be a hoax intended to dictate the will of the strong over the weak in the absence of international law, the historical leader, Yasser Arafat, was pressured, besieged and some say poisoned. |
| His charismatic stature gave him powers, most of which are now inherited by his successor, Mahmoud Abbas. Lacking vision and a demonstrated resolve to recover Palestinian rights, and being courted by USA
and Israel as a “moderate”, he lost credibility with the Palestinian people, especially outside Palestine. Thus a vacuum of leadership was created. |
PNC is the only saviour of the Palestinian people. It has the ultimate authority on key, indeed existentional, issues. It has taken the latest key decision, that of a two-state solution, in 1988, following the first intifada. |
| PNC meetings in 1996 and 1998 to appease US President, Bill Clinton, has doubtful legality according to formal PNC records. Its members have been bloated to some 700 members with no real representation. |
Since then, and particularly this year (2006), there have been an intensive popular campaign to re-elect a new PNC, based on representative and free elections in all countries where Palestinians reside. |
People have been agitating for new elections to reflect current political ideas, to represent all Palestinians everywhere, to affirm unity of the Palestinian people and, above all, to maintain (indeed to recover) the authority to decide major issues into the hands of the people. |
| Current leadership is continuing by default (no elections or representation for two decades at least). Its main occupation at present is to defeat its political adversaries. The blame for people’s starvation, siege, death and destruction is sometimes used to gain points, rather than to face the real culprit: the Israeli occupation. |
| The desperate situation of living conditions produced a small group of Quislings who preach accepting the crumbs and make a deal only for those Palestinians directly living under the occupation. |
The majority of Palestinians think otherwise. They held meeting in several Arab and foreign countries and gave a warning to Mr. Abbas that, unless free and representative elections are held to represent the unity of the Palestinian people, to defend their rights and to be the sole authority for deciding the destiny of the people, they will take matters into their hands and make their voice heard. |
For it is inconceivable that another Oslo or another Madrid will be concocted behind their backs by an outdated leadership which does not have renewed confidence of the people. |
But the resilience of the Palestinian people, their determination to recover their rights will no doubt lead to a representative PNC with new, vigorous and young leadership. The struggle is long but its road will lead to justice. |
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