Hey everyone,
In this email i have 2 articles and some comments from me.
1. In blue is an article about violence in Gaza with background information, not just condemnation of the violence (www.haaretz.com)
2. In purple is an article by a palestinian explaining what the leaders (sharon and abbas) are faced with (www.bitterlemons.org) .
3. In red some comments from me (www.idonthaveawebsitesoiemailmyopinionstoyouandcallitchinuch.co.il)
What is a young person in Gaza to do?
By Danny Rubinstein
The most important and urgent task awaiting Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), who returns to the territories this week, is enforcing law and order in Gaza. Lawlessness in the Gaza Strip has reached new heights following the Israeli withdrawal, with widespread murder, kidnapping and extortion. Without law and order, one doubts it will be possible to hold elections in Gaza for the Palestinian Legislative Council, which are scheduled to take place three months from now. Preliminary elections (primaries) are set to take place within the Fatah movement in one month's time, in order to choose the movement's candidates for the general election.
At first glance, this task does not seem that involved. Public opinion in the Strip supports Abu Mazen's efforts. During the period of Israeli military presence and settlements in Gaza, the Palestinian street accepted with understanding the existence of militias and armed cells that attacked Israeli targets, and even revered their members. But after the withdrawal, the public wishes to distance itself from these militias. "There is no more Netzarim, no Gush Katif and no Philadelphi route, and no one needs you to walk around with weapons in the streets," is the message contained in a series of public statements regarding those whom the Palestinian media term "resistance fighters."
The Palestinian Authority has tens of thousands of arms-bearing men in Gaza, so if Abu Mazen has public backing, he seemingly should not have any problem meeting the demands of Israel and the rest of the world by executing, quickly and without delay, the mission of disarming the various militias.
Why, then, does he not do so? What is so complicated about this task that he hems and haws and defers it, and instead tries to appease Hamas and the members of other militias?
It turns out that things are not so simple. During the five years of the intifada, the various militias became an inseparable part of everyday life in the Strip. This is true not only of groups affiliated with Hamas and other political movements, but also of the gangs that are for all intents and purposes private armies, which do not accept any external authority. Often these are local gangs, or even the militias of large extended families.
A young person growing up in a large refugee camp such as Jabalya, Rafah, Khan Yunis or Dir al-Balah simply has nothing to do when he finishes school. He has almost no chance of finding work. Approximately 30,000 students complete their studies each year at the universities and colleges in Gaza, but only some 3,000 of them are likely to find any sort of work. Almost always, this will be a low-ranking position in a government ministry of the Palestinian Authority. There was a time when a young person from Gaza could go to work in Israel or find a job in one of the development projects that the PA had begun to build in the Strip (such as the airport, seaport, and construction of residential housing). But over the past few years, he has had almost no choice but to join gangs of young people like himself, who purport to be fighting Israel and battling corruption in the Palestinian regime. This is the only way he can find any sort of financial or social support and feel that he is worth anything. Some of these young people receive low salaries from the security organizations, and some engage in smuggling, protection rackets or other acts of a criminal nature.
Practically the only chance of finding work in Gaza is through a power group - in most instances, through the Fatah-affiliated Tanzim. Most of the acts of violence in Gaza - the kidnappings, the armed raids and the takeovers of public institutions - take place against a background of demands to the Palestinian Authority and power struggles within Fatah for money and jobs. Last week, 240 Fatah activists in Rafah announced that they were leaving the movement, offering these grounds as the reason. Similar phenomena may be found in the West Bank, but in closed-off and poverty-stricken Gaza, the situation is much more severe. Thus Abu Mazen cannot make do with issuing an order to his soldiers to dismantle the terror infrastructure. He has to alter the way of life that has taken root in the Gaza Strip over several years.
A PALESTINIAN VIEW
In need of each other
by Ghassan Khatib
Although President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon come from two different and contradicting schools of political thought and practice, they now find themselves in a position in which they need each other.
Sharon, who has always been against the kind of peace process that Abu Mazen has been advocating for the last 20 years, is approaching election year. It is of overriding concern to him that he show that his unilateral withdrawal from Gaza is making a positive difference to Israelis. This is an especially acute need, since for the sake of the Gaza disengagement Sharon alienated some of his traditional right wing support, without necessarily getting enough support in return from his traditional left wing opponents.
Abu Mazen, on the other hand, was elected on the premise that a political approach will yield greater reward for the Palestinian people than violent confrontations. For that purpose, Abu Mazen has also given up some of the traditional social and political bases of Fateh's power on the Palestinian scene. He now needs results.
The international atmosphere, meanwhile, seems conducive to a different kind of process from previous ones. The outside world, especially the countries that have invested both politically and financially in resolving this conflict, appears to feel that the two leaderships are facing serious internal difficulties but that the previous excuses for avoiding their obligations no longer exist. In Palestine, there is a viable and serious partner that has successfully contributed to the security situation by fulfilling a major requirement, i.e., ending, to an almost full extent, Palestinian violence against Israelis in spite of continuing Israeli practices in violation of international law. In Israel, the successful implementation of the unilateral disengagement from Gaza has brought the Israeli leadership face to face with its further obligations under the roadmap.
The most important indication of a successful summit would be a joint declaration stating the intention by the two sides to move from the current unilateral approach into bilateral and peaceful negotiations on the basis of the roadmap. The two parties should reiterate their commitment to the Sharm Al Sheikh understandings, i.e., to end the violence and end collective punishments against Palestinians including the sweeping arrest campaigns, assassinations, house demolitions and restrictions on movement.
The main challenge that will then face the Israeli prime minister is to stop the policy of settlement expansion, including in East Jerusalem. The most important challenge for the Palestinian president will be to incorporate all the opposition factions as well as the militias of the ruling party, Fateh, within the legal system through democratic elections. Such elections will represent a commitment by these groups to end the unlawful use of arms and instead practice politics through legitimate parliamentary means.
An undertaking to return to bilateral negotiations will mark a historic turning point. The two leaders will need time, political will and international support to undertake their mission. But this is what leadership is about, and the first step has to be to create a spirit of partnership and joint interest by committing to mutual recognition and respect.
There are already high expectations for this summit, since it comes after Israeli success with disengagement and Palestinian success in maintaining a ceasefire. Both peoples, as well as the international community, will be looking for strategic results that go beyond immediate needs, however important these are.- Published 10/10/2005 (c) bitterlemons.org
Ghassan Khatib is coeditor of the bitterlemons family of internet publications. He is the Palestinian Authority minister of planning and has been a political analyst and media contact for many years.
A small commentary on my feelings at the moment...
Disengagement was a massive media success - the cameras showed soldiers respectfully removing people from their homes, settlers responded by respectfully leaving their homes. No camera showed the palestinians until a small group of people burnt synagogues.
This is the problem with the media, it missed so much.
Synagogues were left behind on purpose, probably so the cameras would catch palestinians burning them - and the palestinians played their part to perfection. My take on that whole situation is this - if a torah is removed from a synagogue, and it is no longer used as a synagogue, then effectively the small group of people were burning an empty building. After 30+ years of occupation, a little building burning is hardly rebellion, its barely even a venting of frustration.
The international cameras caught settlers leaving, soldiers crying, but a general resignation to the disengagement. It missed protest cities erected afterwards, ex-settler children not having the correct provisions in place for their education - In short, it missed an entire movement of people still feeling the pain of disengagement. Whether you agree with them or not, the disengagement story isn't over anywhere but in the media.
I'm pissed off with the U.S (who isn't). If they really care about Israelis and Palestinians and not just political victories, why aren't they leaning on the Israelis to get out of the west bank. Why arent they putting money into Palestinian welfare. If the 1st article is true, then what the Palestinians need amongst other things for disarming militants is jobs.
I am of the opinion that America is quite happy with the disengagement as their trophy victory in the Middle East. Whilst they are off dealing with Iraq and the numerous other conflicts they have their noses in - Israelis and Palestinians are suffering.
How will this whole conflict be resolved?
Will the occupation of the West Bank end any time soon?
What will the future Palestinian State look like?
These kinds of questions aren't being asked in the international media...they are only interested in body counts and explosions. If i was to have a point, instead of just some random thoughts thrown together it would be this - Often we are caught up in the media's agenda, and we need to extract ourselves from it. I toyed with the idea of sending a completely apolitical article and discussion, I didn't think you would be as interested in it. But Israel is not only made up of conflicts, and its especially not only made up of violence. Keep this in mind when reading the news - We are missing so much (blatant aliyah connotations)
As always, get in touch with your response(s)
Benji
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