2084 The Requirements for Peace in Palestine
UUs for Justice in the Middle East

"3.7 million Palestinians are not citizens of anything. They live under a foreign military dictatorship and martial law. Palestinians must become a Zionist in order to be accepted." -- Hussein Ibish

Dr. Hussein Ibish, Communications Director for the American - Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), delivered a riveting address calling for Peace with Justice for Palestine. His analysis of the enduring conflict between Israel and Palestine identified several key problems: the gross inequities between civil and political rights of Palestinians and Israelis, the fact of Israeli domination, and the failure of political leaders to articulate a clear vision. If these three fundamental issues are not effectively addressed, Dr. Ibish outlined three possible scenarios.

The following is a summary of Dr. Ibish's presentation:

The inequities in Palestine are untenable, and include control of land and water rights, different standards in education, and a serious lack of civil rights for Palestinians.

Land is a primary concern with a remarkable absence of justice. Israel owns and controls 93 percent of the land, reserving its use only for Israeli Jews. Palestinians have no rights to own state land even if they are citizens of Israel, and are forced to relinquish their rights while the 400,000 Jewish settlers are protected and enjoy special status. This provocation must be addressed before there can be reconciliation, and an end to the conflict.

Water, essential to survival and a decent quality of life, is strictly rationed only for Palestinians, not for Israelis, who have an abundant supply not only for personal needs and irrigation, but even to supply their swimming pools.

Israel's domination of Palestine during the past 35 years has fueled the devastating conflict, and it will continue to plague the region until the occupation is ended. Despite the demographic facts -- 4.8 million Jewish and 4.8 million Palestinians live in one country -- yet it is Israel that rules and has all the power. All Jews are Israeli citizens, yet only some of the Palestinians living in Israel have citizenship with all the rights and privileges.

Occupation means having to ask permission from the military to move, what roads to travel on, what law they live under, and whether one has the right to vote for the government in power. This situation would lead to conflict in any country, not only in the Middle East. The structure that has been imposed on the Palestinians makes conflict inevitable, and the conflict will escalate until an appropriate scenario is adopted and enforced.

Of the three possible scenarios that will effect change, only one is acceptable if justice is pursued, and there is to end to the disenfranchisement of the Palestinians. The first is a continuation of the status quo with Israeli domination, clearly not a consideration. The second is a change in structure and balance of power, recognizing two states - Israel and Palestine with full and real sovereignty. The third raised the frightening possibility of ethnic cleansing, which could become a reality here just as it did in Bosnia, unless there is sincere and effective intervention by Palestine, Israel, and the United States political leadership.

Justice and lasting peace will only triumph with the adoption of a two-state solution. This is the only realistic policy that will produce equality between citizens. Concrete actions by the three players are fundamental to end one-state domination and consciously refuse ethnic cleansing.

What are the failures that have created the current situation? Dr. Ibish outlined the following points.

The media has played a major role in personalizing the problem. The message is that the problem is with Arafat, and it is he who is responsible for the suicide bombings. While Arafat is responsible for "incompetent diplomacy" relying on ambiguous language vulnerable to interpretation that appears to support Hamas and other groups on the Left, he is in a clear trap. He is trying too hard to employ language that will not alienate the radicals. He is also responsible for the failure to provide a consistent and clear vision to Israelis that does not threaten them.

Moderate Palestinian leadership exists in the elite circles. They recently took the important step in publicly denouncing suicide bombing as a reaction to Israeli political and military domination. The leader must make public statements about the immorality of suicide bombings. It is in everyone's interest to state that suicide bombings are both "immoral and idiotic," and it would thwart the "occupiers" from feeling justified in their retaliation methods.

A second failure is Israel's refusal to end the occupation and recognize that Palestinians will not accept anything other than full sovereignty. Israel has successfully understood the role of the media, spending hundreds of thousands of dollars in their campaign to inform and persuade both domestic opinion and international.

A third failure addresses the intransigence of the governing American political elite. President Bush's "uncritical support for Israel" stems from several things. If he is to be re-elected he must attempt to appease the lobbyists, including the "fanatical Christian Right and the defense contractors." The former are rabidly anti-Semitic, while the latter do not want their lucrative contracts for helicopters, tanks, and attack aircraft to be affected by a change to peace.

Bush has failed to articulate a set of principles and create a set of policies that support a just settlement of the issues. By contrast, the American public is in favor of a Palestinian state, although it clearly holds both sides responsible for the crisis. Recent polls reveal that they are in favor of using U.S. aid money to Israel as leverage for change.

Reporter Caroline Jondahl; Web Designer Julie Albanese

General Assembly 2002 · Program Grid 2002 · General Assembly Home