Posted By Liam Bailey wordsworth22@tesco.net
CNN has recently shown footage from
inside a Palestinian refugee camp in
Lebanon - which makes for grim
viewing. The interviewer said the
people were living in sub-human
conditions within the camps, and it
was clear that if anything, that is an
understatement.
The Arab League has taken the refugee
disaster into account when it
unanimously endorsed the revival of
Saudi King Abdullah's 2002 Arab peace
initiative. The League, at its summit
meeting on March 28-29, also issued a
joint statement calling on Israel to
accept the terms of the initiative,
which contains a reference to U.N.
General Assembly Resolution 194
stipulating all Palestinian refugees
be granted a return to their homes.
Those not wanting to return should be
given suitable compensation.
Israel will not accept this.
Therefore, in its original form the
initiative will always present an
impasse. The initiative also talks of
finding a just solution to the
Palestinian refugee problem. Among the
solutions fielded is allowing the
refugees to return to the territories
which would become a Palestinian state
if the initiative were agreed upon -
and again, giving compensation for the
lives they were not allowed to live.
This seems to present a solution but
it is never elaborated: no figures are
mentioned and no guarantees are given.
This needs to be done if Palestinian
negotiators are to take the
initiative’s chances of achieving an
agreement seriously, and not only on
the refugee issue, but every issue
covered by the initiative
The initiative offers Israel a sweet
deal, in return for a full withdrawal
from territories occupied after the
1967 war, the creation of an
independent Palestinian state with
east Jerusalem as its capital, and
full right of return or suitable
compensation for all refugees. The
normalization of relations would be a
fundamental benefit that Israel would
get - which means full recognition of
the Jewish state by all states in the
Arab League, i.e., practically all
Arab states. This is something which
hadn't been on the table before it was
offered at the Beirut Arab League
summit in 2002. For states which have
never had anywhere close to normalized
relations with Israel - most notably
Syria and Lebanon - this is
understandably a hard pill to swallow
and something they will not do easily.
The refugee issue is a sore point
for both sides. Palestinians, even in
the current generation, are
understandably angry at Israel forcing
their brethren off family or ancestral
land and into squalor. No Palestinian
negotiator will accept any agreement
that does not make up for the denial
of a potentially good life and years
of sub-human conditions that
Palestinian refugees have been forced
to endure. This issue has the
potential to destroy the chances of
the Saudi initiative to bring peace
and every future negotiation.
That is why the compromises and
solutions being offered need to be
brought to the forefront, replacing
the long-running cycle of gesture and
counter-gesture, never anything more
than empty words. For instance, when
the initiative advocates an Israeli
pullout from the territories occupied
after 1967, some would argue that this
is now impractical because of Israel's
settlement building and the necessity
to ensure future security for their
population.
They suggest that a land swap will
be necessary, giving land back to the
Palestinians equivalent to what was
taken in 1967. Nice in theory, but if
the initiative is to be presented as a
serious option for peace, it is time
to take the suggestions to the next
stage. Those who need to know such a
swap will be necessary - the Israeli
Government - already do know and have
known for a long time. It is not
necessary to reiterate it; instead,
suggestions should be made by both
sides about which land could be
swapped.
The same goes for the refugee issue.
It is no use regurgitating the
possibility of open-ended
compensation, which in reality could
and should have been given as soon as
it was clear that Israel could never
allow the refugees to return home,
soon after the Arabs were expelled in
the 1948 war for Israel's
independence, or any time from any of
the governments thereafter. If Israel
is serious when it claims its only
desire is to live in peace beside the
Palestinians, then, to allay some of
the anger Palestinians feel and go
towards making up for the refugees
loss, what better gesture than to
promise them the very least of what
they deserve, and state a clear figure
to compensate all refugees as a
precursor to negotiations on the new
initiative?
If compensation was promised, then
negotiations could perhaps proceed in
an atmosphere of mutual respect and
trust, as opposed to resentment and
doubt. Negotiations should concentrate
on hammering out the final borders for
a Palestinian state, and with
normalized relations all round. By
necessity, this would also mean a
promise by Israel to knock down the
security wall where it impedes on the
Palestinian state. The two state
solution is the only viable
suggestion. It's time to make it a
reality.
*Liam
Bailey is a U.K. freelance journalist
and publisher of the War
Pages blog. You can contact him by
E-mail.
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