A rchive Date
[ 08-06-2003 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ Palestine ]
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[http://www.canoe.ca/Columnists/leishman.html
Palestinian hostility dims hopes for peace
RORY LEISHMAN, London Free Press
2003-06-08
With U.S. President George W. Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon looking on, Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas gave an excellent speech Wednesday, pledging on behalf of the Palestinian Authority , "Our goal is two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security."
Abbas referred to the suffering of Palestinians living under occupation by Israel since the 1967 war. He added: "At the same time, we do not ignore the suffering of the Jews throughout history. It is time to bring all this suffering to an end."
Coming from a Palestinian leader, such a frank expression of sympathy for the suffering of both the Jewish and Palestinian people is all too rare. As a mark of his sincerity, Abbas declared: "We repeat our denunciation and the renunciation of terrorism against the Israelis wherever they might be. Such methods are inconsistent with our religious and moral traditions."
Abbas followed up with an unequivocal commitment: "Our goal is clear and we will implement it firmly and without compromise: a complete end to violence and terrorism."
To achieve the Palestinian state, he pledged his government will fulfil its pledges to uphold the rule of law and restrict "weapons only in the hands of those who are in charge of upholding law and order.
"We will also act vigorously against incitement and violence and hatred, whatever their form or forum may be," he said. "We will take measures to ensure that there is no incitement emanating from Palestinian institutions."
Altogether, it was a most remarkable and magnanimous speech.
The question arises: Can he fulfil these solemn commitments?
That, to say the least, is questionable.
In response to the speech, Mahmoud Zahar, a spokesperson for the Islamic resistance movement Hamas, vowed that if Abbas is "going to collect the guns, that means a war without mercy. It's impossible to surrender our guns and to enter the Palestinian Authority jails again."
To end incitement to violence from Palestinian institutions, Abbas will have to curb the violent tongue of his nominal boss, Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat.
In a speech on May 15 marking Catastrophe Day in Palestine, otherwise known as Independence Day in Israel, Arafat declaimed against "the great imperialistic Zionist conspiracy against our Arab nation and our homeland Palestine, which reached its accursed peak on May 15, 1948. On this accursed day, the state of Israel was established."
In this incendiary speech, Arafat breathed not a word of criticism of Muslim terrorists. Instead, he declared: "Palestine is our homeland, the land of the battlefront," and he praised "the martyrs who improve the land (of Palestine) with their blood."
Who is the more authentic spokesperson for the Palestinian people: Abbas, the peacemaker, or Arafat, the militant?
Some clues can be found in a survey conducted since the end of the war in Iraq by the independent Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.
Respondents in 20 countries, plus the areas administered by the Palestinian Authority, were asked how much confidence they had in various leaders to do the right thing in world affairs.
No fewer than 69 per cent of the Palestinians said they had some or a lot of confidence in Arafat. An even higher percentage -- 71 per cent -- expressed some or a lot of confidence in Osama bin Laden.
Among Muslims, such esteem for bin Laden is not unusual. The Pew survey found he commands high rates of confidence in several predominantly Muslim countries: Indonesia, 58 per cent; Pakistan, 45 per cent; Jordan, 55 per cent; and Morocco, 49 per cent.
In this same Pew survey, Israelis and Palestinians were asked if they thought a way could be found for the state of Israel to exist so the rights and needs of the Palestinian people are met.
While 69 per cent of Israelis thought such a settlement could be found, 80 per cent of the Palestinians said it's impossible.
Clearly, Abbas, Bush and Sharon face a tough challenge: Given the implacable hostility of Arafat and so many other Arabs for the Jewish state of Israel, the prospects remain dim for any enduring peace settlement between Israelis and Palestinians.
Write Rory at The London Free Press, P.O. Box 2280, London, Ont. N6A 4G1 or fax 519-667-4528 or E-mail. Copyright © The London Free Press 2001,2002,2003
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