American University International Law Review Volume 16 | Issue 1 Article 1 2000 Permeable Fences Make Good Neighbors: Improving a Seemingly Intractable Border Conflict Between Israelis and Palestinians Barry A. Feinstein Mohammed S. Dajani-Daoudi Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/auilr Part of the International Law Commons Recommended Citation Feinstein, Barry A. and Mohammed S. Dajani-Daoudi. "Permeable Fences Make Good Neighbors: Improving a Seemingly Intractable Border Conflict Between Israelis and Palestinians." American University International Law Review 16, no. 1 (2000): 1-176. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Washington College of Law Journals & Law Reviews at Digital Commons @ American University Washington College of Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in American University International Law Review by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ American University Washington College of Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PERMEABLE FENCES MAKE GOOD NEIGHBORS: IMPROVING A SEEMINGLY INTRACTABLE BORDER CONFLICT BETWEEN ISRAELIS AND PALESTINIANS' DR. BARRY A. FEINSTEIN ° DR. MOHAMMED S. DAJANI-DAOUDI'** I. INTRODUCTION ........................................... 3 II. BORDERS IN GENERAL .................................... 4 II. OPEN BORDERS IN GENERAL ........................... 12 * A number of people who assisted in the preparation of this article deserve commendatory mention, particularly Naomi Kessler-Feinstein. Ryan Mallek. Ilana Shainhouse, David Kessler, Seth Jaffe, Gina Bark, Laurent Vaughan, Andrew Elbaz, and Brian A. Valenzuela. We also wish to proffer our appreciation to Pinhas Inbari, Rami Nasrallah, and Ziv Heilman for their special input. A particular word of thanks is extended as well to Professor Marsha Gelpe. The opinions expressed herein by the authors reflect their personal views alone and in no way are meant to represent official positions of any Israeli or Palestinian institution or entity, governmental or otherwise. ** J.S.D., LL.M., LL.B., B.A., Political Science and International Relations; Senior Lecturer, School of Law, Netanya Academic College; Adjunct Lecturer, Faculty of Law, Tel-Aviv University. Formerly Visiting Professor of Law, McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific, Sacramento, California (twice); Visiting Scholar, School of Law (Boalt Hall), University of California, Berkeley; Assistant to the Israel Ambassador to the United Nations. *** Ph.D., International Relations, with a specialization in International Political Economy; Ph.D., Government. M.A.. Social Sciences, majoring in Economics and Political Science; B.A., Mass Communications; Director, Technical Assistance and Training Department, Palestinian Economic Council for Development and Reconstruction (PECDAR). Formerly Senior Consultant to the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation of the Palestinian National Authority on economic development planning and institution building; Technical Consultant and Advisor in Governance and Public Administration for ministries, agencies, and institutions of the Palestinian National Authority; Chairperson, Department of Political Science and Diplomatic Studies, Applied Science University, Amman, Jordan. AM. U. INT'L L. REV. [16:1 IV. THE ABOLITION OF BORDERS ........................... 15 V. CLOSED BORDERS IN GENERAL .......................... 26 VI. PSYCHOLOGICAL AND HUMAN ELEMENTS ............ 28 A. THE IRISH EXPERIENCE ...................................... 40 B. ISRAELIS AND PALESTINIANS ................................. 48 C. LEARNING TO COOPERATE ................................... 51 D. EDUCATION, SOCIALIZATION, MASS MEDIA, AND CULTURE PRESERVATION ................................................. 55 VII. PALESTINIAN STATE .................................... 62 VIII. MENTALLY IMPRINTED BORDER PERCEPTIONS ..... 65 IX. OPEN/CLOSED BORDER PARADOXES ................... 70 X . ECO N O M ICS ................................................ 82 XI. INDUSTRIAL PARKS, JOINT VENTURE PROJECTS, FREE/FOREIGN TRADE ZONES, PRIVATELY FINANCED INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS .................. 88 XII. TRANS-BORDER REGIONALISM AND COOPERATION .............................................. 97 A . IN G ENERA L ................................................. 97 B. EUROPE ...... ....................................... 101 C. M EXICO-UNITED STATES .................................. 109 D. JOINT ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN EFFORTS ...................... 122 E. ASYMMETRICAL RELATIONS IN A COOPERATIVE ENVIRONM ENT ............................................... 126 F. INTERDEPENDENCY OF THE PALESTINIANS AND THE ISRAELIS 137 XIII. LAW ENFORCEMENT .................................. 145 X IV . CON CLU SION .......................................... 159 Cohen and Levi both approached the rabbi in an attempt to resolve a festering dispute between them. After Cohen relates to the rabbi his side of the story, the rabbi pronounces to him: "You are right". Following Levi's rendition of the facts as he sees them, the rabbi declares to him, "You are right." Once the two have departed, the rabbi's assistant turns to the rabbi and asks, "Rabbi, how can they both be right?" To this question, the rabbi responds: "You are also right." -old Jewish story 2000] PERMEABLE FENCES M.4KE GOOD NEIGHBORS I. INTRODUCTION The conflict between Palestinians and Israelis is one of the most complex of our time. Both sides feel that they have a legitimate, exclusive claim over the same piece of land in the Middle East. Both have their own perception of history and events, a history and accumulation of events that they feel justify their respective contentions and actions. After years of bloodshed between the two, it began to appear that both sides finally accepted the other's existence and right to exist and the fact that the other side is here to stay.' As a result, the two sides entered into negotiations aiming at a peaceful settlement to their dispute. Although this peace process between the two is occasionally punctuated by acts of extremists who are constantly attempting to undermine it by igniting violence, it is imperative that the leaders and their populations not get swept away by such outbursts of violence which have the potential of turning the Middle East clock back decades. Rather, it is vital, despite many setbacks along the way, that both sides continue to proceed courageously on the rocky path toward peace. While at times this conflict appears insoluble due to mutual fears, suspicions, tensions, animosities, threat perceptions, and years of distrust, it is worthwhile to recall that this is not the first instance in which bitter enemies have faced each other at the negotiating table and forced themselves to overcome their hatred and apprehension toward the other side. Today's world is witness to many former battlefield adversaries who have become economic partners, strategic allies, and even the best of friends. For example, the cases of Germany and the other Member States of the European Union (EU), and of the United States and Mexico, Japan, and Britain, stand out and lend encouragement to the Middle East that the idealistic dream of lasting, true peace and coexistence can become reality. One of the crucial matters that must be discussed, even in the midst of many hindrances along the way to peace between the Israelis and Palestinians, is the ostensibly impossible task of 1. See, e.g., Kenneth V. Stein, Start at lome. JERUSALI-AM POST, Nov. 30, 1999, at 8. AM. U. INT'L L. REV. [16:1 determining the nature of the borders between the two sides. II. BORDERS IN GENERAL Typically, examinations of borders were limited to the consideration of particular aspects relating to them, such as their anthropological, geopolitical, military, and strategic ambits, and the2 influence of borders on controlling or ending international conflicts. Although border issues are germane to any analysis of social or economic interplay, political systems, or legal jurisdiction,' social scientists, historians,4 lawyers, economists, or sociologists rarely examined the border's function in modern political life.' Over roughly the last decade, however, borders increasingly have entered the forefront of political, popular, and scholarly consideration.' Relationships between societies and between states demonstrate the crucial nature of borders.' Borders create physical boundaries between distinct units, circumscribe political boundaries of authority 2. See Gad Barzilai & Ilan Peleg, Israel and Future Borders: Assessment ofa Dynamic Process, 31 J.PEACE RES. 59 (1994) (linking the focus of border studies on the physical dimension because of the belief that border disputes cause international war and conflict). 3. See Liam O'Dowd & Thomas M. Wilson, Frontiers of Sovereignty in the New Europe, in BORDERS, NATIONS AND STATES: FRONTIERS OF SOVEREIGNTY IN THE NEW EUROPE 1, 7 (Liam O'Dowd & Thomas M. Wilson, eds. 1996) [hereinafter BORDERS, NATIONS AND STATES] (explaining that border studies provide information about the forces shaping and redefining the state). 4. See MALCOLM ANDERSON, FRONTIERS, TERRITORY AND STATI FORMATION IN THE MODERN WORLD 1 (1996) [hereinafter ANDERSON, FRONTIERS, TERRITORY]. The background to this field, however, has been covered extensively philosophically and historically. See id. It has also been dealt with anthropologically. 5. See Malcolm Anderson, European Frontiers at the End of the Twentieth Century: An Introduction,