Nov. 20, 2013 PALESTINIAN PEOPLE RESILIENT, DETERMINED

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Nov. 20, 2013 PALESTINIAN PEOPLE RESILIENT, DETERMINED TO LIVE, MUSTAFA BARGHOUTI TELLS SABEEL CONFERENCE Jerusalem “Palestinians are people who are determined to live. Their resilience and determination are powerful,” Dr. Mustafa Barghouti told the Sabeel International Conference here Nov. 19. Participants heard from Barghouti, Secretary General of the Palestinian National Initiative and member of the Palestinian Legislative Council. More than 200 participants are attending the event 19-15 November 2013. Sabeel is the Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center in Jerusalem. Barghouti called the peace process currently underway “unfortunately, a cover for Israeli actions of land appropriation.” “While peace talks happened during the last 20 years and while they are happening today, the same process is going on, the process of shrinking the space and the land for the Palestinian people,” Barghouti said. “The map of the West Bank today is an example of how impossible it is to build a state if these Israeli processes continue,” he said. “Many people ask why the Israeli community turns to electing racist parties? The reason is that they are benefiting from occupation. They are making a profit from occupation,” Barghouti said. “When I use the word `apartheid,’ many Israelis object,” Barghouti said, “but then I ask these Israelis to give me an alternative word describing the situation. The segregated roads and highways are unprecedented in human history. Israel segregated and separated Jerusalem from the Palestinian territories,” he said. Barghouti described the current level of Israeli violence. “People suffer a lot at checkpoints but what is missed by the international media is the depth of the violation of human rights.” “We are countering the occupation with a very noble movement” of nonviolence, Barghouti said. “There is a new stage of nonviolent resistance where people are determined to really break down this system of repression.” “We encounter severe violence,” Barghouti said. “Even when international supporters come and demonstrate with us, they are also severely punished. Frequently you hear about Palestinian violence; nobody is speaking about this Israeli horrible violence,” he said. “But we are not giving up. The people’s resilience and determination are powerful, Barghouti said. “The Palestinians are not victims though of course we suffer. But I want you to see Palestinians as people who are determined to live,” he said. “We Palestinians want to be like everybody else. We want to succeed. We want freedom, independence and equality.” Reporter: Ann Hafften Sabeel Media Coordinator: Nicolas Atallah phone: 0547854578 .

Copy Link

Recommended publications

Democratizing the PLO
PRIO POLICY BRIEF 03 2012 Visiting Address: Hausmanns gate 7 gate Hausmanns Address: Visiting NO Grønland, 9229 PO Box (PRIO) Oslo Institute Research Peace Democratizing the PLO Prospects and Obstacles - 0134 Oslo, Norway Oslo, 0134 Visiting Address: Hausmanns gate 7 gate Hausmanns Address: Visiting NO Grønland, 9229 PO Box War (CSCW) Civil of Study the for Centre While the PLO has been recognized both by the international commu- nity and by Israel as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, the organization remains undemocratic. Its leadership is not elected. The PLO represents the secular resistance groups of the past, - 0134 Oslo, Norway Oslo, 0134 not the political reality of today. In 2011, however, an agreement was reached between the main Palestinian political groups to hold elections for the PLO. It is planned that these elections will include all Palestini- ans, regardless of their location, in accordance with the principle of ful- ISBN: 978 ISBN: www.prio.no ly proportional representation. Recent Arab uprisings for democracy make regional conditions favourable for the holding of such elections. - 82 - 7288 Meanwhile, Western governments fear that the PLO could come to be - 408 dominated by Islamists who do not recognize the State of Israel. In the - 5 (online); (online); past, such considerations have discouraged the PLO from opening up 978 for democratic reforms. However, the fall of President Hosni Mubarak - 82 - in Egypt has acted as a warning to PLO leaders that sustaining an un- 7288 - 409 democratic and secular PLO could hit back with a vengeance. - 2 (print) Dag Tuastad Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) The Legitimacy Crisis tation might be in the context of Palestinian Palestinian people at large.
[Show full text]
The Palestinians: Background and U.S
The Palestinians: Background and U.S. Relations Jim Zanotti Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs August 17, 2012 Congressional Research Service 7-5700 www.crs.gov RL34074 CRS Report for Congress Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress The Palestinians: Background and U.S. Relations Summary This report covers current issues in U.S.-Palestinian relations. It also contains an overview of Palestinian society and politics and descriptions of key Palestinian individuals and groups— chiefly the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the Palestinian Authority (PA), Fatah, Hamas, and the Palestinian refugee population. The “Palestinian question” is important not only to Palestinians, Israelis, and their Arab state neighbors, but to many countries and non-state actors in the region and around the world— including the United States—for a variety of religious, cultural, and political reasons. U.S. policy toward the Palestinians is marked by efforts to establish a Palestinian state through a negotiated two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; to counter Palestinian terrorist groups; and to establish norms of democracy, accountability, and good governance within the Palestinian Authority (PA). Congress has appropriated assistance to support Palestinian governance and development amid concern for preventing the funds from benefitting Palestinian rejectionists who advocate violence against Israelis. Among the issues in U.S. policy toward the Palestinians is how to deal with the political leadership of Palestinian society, which is divided between the Fatah-led PA in parts of the West Bank and Hamas (a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization) in the Gaza Strip. Following Hamas’s takeover of Gaza in June 2007, the United States and the other members of the international Quartet (the European Union, the United Nations, and Russia) have sought to bolster the West Bank-based PA, led by President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.
[Show full text]
Contextualizing Palestinian Political Succession
Viewpoints No. 130 After Abbas: Contextualizing Palestinian Political Succession Hillel Zand Wilson Center December 2018 1 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Until Death Do Us Part “It’s possible that this is my final meeting with you. No one knows how long [I] will live. No one can force a political plan upon me that I don’t want. Only what I want will happen; I will not end my life with betrayal!”1 These are the words reported to have been spoken by Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas at the Fatah Revolutionary Council’s meeting in March 2018. While details of the Council’s meetings are normally publicized, those from this most recent meeting were not. What is clear, however, is that the ailing, 83-year-old Abbas is keen on orchestrating what Palestinian leadership will look like immediately after he no longer holds the presidency. Equally clear is that, almost fourteen years into his four-year presidential mandate, and despite the fact that more than 60% of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza want him to resign, Abbas will only yield power upon his own death or incapacitation.2 The question of Palestinian succession remains an enigma, one characterized by speculation and hypotheticals, largely due to the legal ambiguousness that faces Palestinian politics. Numerous analysts have posited possible presidential contenders — from the establishment to the radicals to the wild cards — and ranked their likelihood of accession.3 Yet the identification of potential successors is immaterial in the absence of a more robust contextual framework. The most significant questions surrounding the issue of Palestinian succession are not about who could succeed Abbas, but rather, what will be the conditions in which the successor accedes to power and what factors will determine their success.
[Show full text]
Palestinian Factions
Order Code RS21235 Updated June 8, 2005 CRS Report for Congress .Received through the CRS Web Palestinian Factions Aaron D. Pina Analyst in Middle East Religious & Cultural Affairs Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division Summary Palestinian factionalism continues to dominate the political landscape in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The manner in which competing nationalist, socialist, Islamist, and democratic-minded Palestinians vie to control the direction of any future Palestinian state may influence United States objectives in the region. These include ending anti- Israeli violence, supporting Palestinian reforms, and bolstering Palestinian democratization and civil society. Some factions are designated foreign terrorist organizations by the State Department. One of these, Hamas, is building on recent electoral successes and may soon join the Palestinian parliament. This report describes the dominant Palestinian factions, and will be updated as events warrant. See also CRS Issue Brief IB91137, The Middle East Peace Talks. Overview Recent and upcoming Palestinian local, municipal, and legislative elections are drawing the attention of policymakers to Palestinian factions.1 The purpose of this report is to describe dominant Palestinian factions and some of the challenges that factions present. For decades, Palestinian factionalism has dominated the political landscape in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. With Hamas, a dominant faction, faring well in local and municipal elections and poised to gain parliamentary representation, the United States and Israel, in all likelihood, will be faced with a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) in a position of political authority. Also, during the current Palestinian uprising that began in September 2000, violence and terrorism against Israelis has been conducted not only by Hamas, but also factions related to the PLO, and Fatah in particular.
[Show full text]
Is the EU Losing Credibility in Palestine?
> > POLICY BRIEF ISSN: 1989-2667 Nº 50 - JUNE 2010 Is the EU losing credibility in Palestine? Daniela Huber The Israeli attack on the Gaza Flotilla and the resulting diplo- >> matic reverberations have engendered clear international agreement on one subject: that the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip has to be lifted. The EU’s foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, was HIGHLIGHTS quick to condemn the attack and urged Israel to lift the blockade, call- ing it ‘unacceptable’ and ‘counterproductive’. This move would be a • The EU should actively first step to improving the deteriorating living conditions in Gaza. But it must be remembered that the Middle East Quartet contributed support a Palestinian to the current impasse through its political boycott of the elected reconciliation process, Hamas government and, perhaps more crucially, of the National Uni- resulting in elections without ty Government, which would have provided an opportunity for Pales- further delay tinian reconciliation. • The EU has lost credibility The divide in Palestinian society prevails. In 2009, national elections as a normative actor since originally scheduled for January 2010 were postponed to an unknown its political boycott of date. This postponement counted with the EU’s silent support. Now Hamas: it should re-energise President Abbas has also delayed the municipal elections planned for its approach to democracy July 2010. The elections had already been boycotted by Hamas and promotion, focusing on were to take place in the West Bank only. Palestinian civil society capacity building The postponement of the elections comes in the wake of the Flotilla attack with mounting calls for Palestinian unity to bring about an end to the blockade of the Gaza Strip.
[Show full text]
The Palestinian National Initiative and Dr. Mustafa Barghouti
Factsheet: The Palestinian National Initiative and Dr. Mustafa Barghouti Factsheet Series No. 80, Created: May 2010, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East The Palestinian domestic political landscape has been tarnished by partisanship, infighting and corruption. Yet as with the politics of any nation, there is a spectrum of views and opinions on the domestic agenda, foreign policy, and vision for the future. Most Western media depict a simplistic choice in the Palestinian political scene between caricatures of a “moderate, pro-Western” Fatah, and caricatures of a “violent, extremist” Hamas. This skewed two-choice perspective has been reinforced by Israeli and North American political discourse and has become increasingly institutionalized by the functional and political separation of the Occupied Palestinian Territories between the West Bank and Gaza. In fact, Palestinian political discourse is nuanced, dynamic and engaged – a fact illustrated by the emergence of sophisticated political alternatives despite the pressures of the occupation and international patronage. Are Palestinians interested in new political options? Why? The 1993 Oslo Agreement created the Palestinian Authority (PA) as the Palestinian political entity to develop state institutions and represent Palestine in negotiations with Israel and the international community. The PA was dominated by Yasser Arafat’s Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) which transformed itself from a predominantly military organization into the political coalition Fatah. The post-Oslo period also saw the creation of the Palestinian Legislative Council and the Palestinian National Council – allowing the Palestinian people to engage in democratic politics for the first time as a coherent national group. Fatah dominated the PA and marginalized other political positions: Arafat’s tenure tolerated widespread corruption and PA leaders tended to marginalize the Legislative and National Councils.
[Show full text]
Palestinian Defiance
A Movement of Movements?—17 mustafa barghouti PALESTINIAN DEFIANCE Interview by Éric Hazan Could you tell us about your origins and early trajectory? was born in Jerusalem, in 1954, but I spent my childhood here in Ramallah. My family is from Deir Ghassaneh, a village about fifteen miles away, near Bir Zeit; but after 1948, my father became the municipal engineer for Al Bireh, adjoining Ramallah. The IBarghouti family, a large one, has always been very political, very active. Under the Mandate, my grandfather and his brother were jailed by the British. During the 1950s, the whole village was part of the left opposition to Jordanian rule. It was the beginning of the Nasserite movement, of Pan-Arabism; the influence of the Jordanian Communist Party and other left forces was also very strong. I grew up surrounded by internationalist, progressive literature—our family’s viewpoint was always shaped by opposition to social injustice, rather than by nationalism. My father used to speak to us of his Jewish comrades in Tiberias or Acre. All through my childhood, I heard talk of prisons. I’ve been told that the first time I went to a prison I was two years old, taken to visit one of my uncles who’d been jailed—for political reasons, of course. Then during the 1960s there were many waves of mass demonstrations and protests. You were fourteen at the time of the 1967 war. What were its effects for you? Those few days reshaped me. I felt a huge amount of responsibility. My childhood ended then.
[Show full text]
Palestinian Views on War and Peace with Israel
A NATION DIVI DED PALESTINIAN VIEWS ON WAR AND PEACE WITH ISRAEL DAVID POLLOCK A Nation Divided Palestinian Views on War and Peace with Israel David Pollock THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY www.washingtoninstitute.org Policy Focus 165 First publication: June 2020 All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. © 2020 by The Washington Institute for Near East Policy The Washington Institute for Near East Policy 1111 19th Street NW, Suite 500 Washington DC 20036 www.washingtoninstitute.org Design by Sensical Design Cover photo: Mohamad Torokman/Reuters Contents List of Figures iv Acknowledgments vii Introduction and Overview 1 I. Long-Term Trends, East Jerusalem, and Policy Implications 1. Long-Term Trends and Patterns 17 2. Evolving Options in East Jerusalem 47 3. Policy Implications 72 4. Methodology 78 II. Decade of Divisions: Chronological Analysis 5. Political Climate Changes During Obama’s First Term, 2009–13 87 6. Kerry’s Peace Initiative, 2013–14 97 7. War in Gaza and Its Aftermath, 2014–16 107 8. Interregnum, 2016–17 117 9. President Trump and the “Deal of the Century,” 2017–20 120 iii Figures A.1. “Two states for two peoples” (West Bank) 5 A.2. “Two states for two peoples” (Gaza) 5 A.3. Reality on Israeli settlers, Palestinian refugees (West Bank) 6 A.4. Reality on Israeli settlers, Palestinian refugees (Gaza) 6 A.5.
[Show full text]
Middle East Brief 60
Judith and Sidney Swartz Director Prof. Shai Feldman Many Roads to Palestine? Associate Director Kristina Cherniahivsky The Potential and Peril of Multiple Associate Director for Research Strategies Within a Divided Palestinian Naghmeh Sohrabi, PhD Senior Fellows National Movement Abdel Monem Said Aly, PhD Khalil Shikaki, PhD Dr. Peter Krause Myra and Robert Kraft Professor of Arab Politics Eva Bellin scene from the Palestinian prisoner swap for Israeli Henry J. Leir Professor of the Economics of the Middle East A soldier Gilad Shalit embodies the greatest political Nader Habibi challenge facing the Palestinian national movement today: Sylvia K. Hassenfeld Professor of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies internal division in both organization and strategy. On Kanan Makiya October 18, 2011, at the Muqata in Ramallah—the compound Junior Research Fellows of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas— Abigail Jacobson, PhD Peter Krause, PhD civilians from across the region gathered to greet the roughly Shana Marshall one hundred Palestinian prisoners released to the West Bank from Israeli captivity. On its surface, the welcome ceremony appeared to be a symbol of national unity, as both Abbas and senior Hamas official Hassan Yousef delivered speeches. Furthermore, both Hamas and Fatah flags were confiscated at the entrance to the Muqata, and officials handed out two other national flags to be waved at the ceremony: the red, green, white, and black Palestinian flag, and a flag promoting Palestine as the 194th state of the United Nations. Unfortunately for the Palestinians, rather than masking the significant divisions within the national movement, this thin March 2012 veneer of unity only highlighted them.
[Show full text]
The Palestinians: Background and U.S
The Palestinians: Background and U.S. Relations Updated March 18, 2021 Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov RL34074 SUMMARY RL34074 The Palestinians: Background and U.S. March 18, 2021 Relations Jim Zanotti The Palestinians are an Arab people whose origins are in present-day Israel, the West Bank, and Specialist in Middle the Gaza Strip. Congress pays close attention—through legislation and oversight—to the ongoing Eastern Affairs conflict between the Palestinians and Israel. The current structure of Palestinian governing entities dates to 1994. In that year, Israel agreed with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to permit a Palestinian Authority (PA) to exercise limited rule over Gaza and specified areas of the West Bank, subject to overarching Israeli military administration that dates back to the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. After the PA’s establishment, U.S. policy toward the Palestinians focused on encouraging a peaceful resolution to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict, countering Palestinian terrorist groups, and aiding Palestinian goals on governance and economic development. Since then, Congress has appropriated more than $5 billion in bilateral aid to the Palestinians, who rely heavily on external donor assistance. Conducting relations with the Palestinians has presented challenges for several Administrations and Congresses. The United States has historically sought to bolster PLO Chairman and PA President Mahmoud Abbas vis-à-vis Hamas (a U.S.- designated terrorist organization supported in part by Iran). Since 2007, Hamas has had de facto control within Gaza, making the security, political, and humanitarian situation there particularly fraught. The Abbas-led PA still exercises limited self-rule over specified areas of the West Bank.
[Show full text]
Eueom Fr West Bank and Gaza 2005
WEST BANK AND GAZA PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS 9 January 2005 EUROPEAN UNION ELECTION OBSERVATION MISSION FINAL REPORT Contents 1 Introduction 2 Executive Summary 3 Recommendations 4 Political Overview and Results 4.1 Background to the 2005 Presidential Elections 4.2 Political Overview of the 2005 Presidential Elections 5 Legal Framework 5.1 The Election Law and Other Relevant Documents 5.2 The Electoral System 6 Election Administration 6.1 Administrative Structure and Responsible Bodies 6.2 Late Formation of District Election Commissions 6.3 Impact of the Israeli Occupation on Conduct of Electoral Administration 6.4 Ballot Printing 6.5 Appointment of Polling Station Commissions 6.6 Transparency and Decision-Making 7 Voter Registration 7.1 The Voter Registration Process 7.2 The Use of the Civil Register to Supplement the Voters List 7.3 Palestinian Prisoners in Israeli Prisons 8 Registration of Candidates 8.1 The Registration Process 8.2 Complaint Against Official “Party” Candidates 9 The Election Campaign 9.1 Campaign Regulations 9.2 Freedom of Movement 9.3 Jerusalem 9.4 Abuse of Public Resources 9.5 Campaign Financing 10 Media 10.1 Media Landscape 10.2 Legal Framework 10.3 EUEOM Media Monitoring 11 Voting, Counting and Tabulation 11.1 Overview of Observation Reports 11.2 Freedom of Movement 11.3 Jerusalem 11.4 Incidents and Other Concerns 11.5 CEC Decision to Amend Voting Procedures 11.6 Ink 11.7 CEC Publication of Results 12 Annexes 12.1 Observation Reports by Region 12.2 Observation Statistics: Polling Station Reports 12.3 Observation Statistics: Comparison of Regular Polling Stations and Special Polling Stations 12.4 Final Election Results This report was produced by the EU Election Observation Mission and presents the EU EOM’s findings on the Presidential elections in West Bank and Gaza.
[Show full text]
Page 1 T I M E L I N E O F P O L I T I C a L
TIMELINE OF POLITICAL EVENTS IN THE PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES 1948 Israeli War of Independence / Palestinian nakba (catas- trophe). The founding of the State of Israel results in the exodus of approximately 700,000 Palestinians. 1959 Founding of Fatah in Kuwait. 1964 Founding of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) during the 1964 Arab League summit in Cairo. 1967 Founding of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). 1967 Six Day War results in the occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip, and the Golan Heights by Israeli forces. 1968 Battle of Karameh: Jordanian military forces and Fatah militants stand their ground against Israeli forces. The battle results in increased popularity for Fatah. 1969 Split of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP)—predecessor of PFLP. September 1970 Black September: Heavy clashes between the Jordanian military and the PLO in Jordan result in the expulsion of PLO factions from Jordan. October 1973 Yom Kippur War / October War: 1974 Release of the PLO’s Ten Point Program, calling for the establishment of a Palestinian authority on “every part of the Palestinian territory that is liberated.” 1975–1990 Lebanese civil war. 200 Timeline of Political Events 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon eradicates most PLO forces from southern Lebanon and Beirut. The PLO leadership relocates to Tunis. 1982 Founding of the Palestinian People’s Party (PPP) as Palestine Communist Party (PCP). 1987–1993 The first intifada: Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza engage in demonstrations, civil resistance, and low-intensity violence against the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza.
[Show full text]