Palestine – Racist and Apartheid Policies Plague Peace Proposals
Mahmoud Abbas – President of Palestine and the Palestinian Authority – Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Movement (PLO) and Fatah – the PLO’s largest faction – has doomed to the garbage bin any possible peace proposals that might be offered by Israel’s new National Unity Government – following his latest outburst in the Lebanese newspaper An-Nahhar:
“We won’t agree to recognize something called the Jewish state. Why wasn’t this issue raised when Israel negotiated with Jordan and Egypt?”
Abbas’s highly inflammatory remark is just one of many similar statements that have been made in the past.
Abbas has clearly indicated that he has no intention of mitigating his view that there is no place for a Jewish State in its biblical and historical homeland – nor in the Palestinian Arab state that he now heads that was internationally recognized on 31 October 2011 with Palestine’s admission to UNESCO as its 195th member state.
His comment only shows that nothing has really changed in the racist policies adopted by the Palestinian Arabs since their rejection of the 1947 United Nations Partition Plan proposing the creation of a Jewish state and an Arab state in what was then left of Mandatory Palestine following the creation in 1946 of the Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan – now called Jordan – on 78% of the territory initially slated for reconstitution of the Jewish National Home.
What is even worse and very worrying is the deafening silence from the international community to Abbas continuing along this racist and apartheid path.
Abbas apparently seems perplexed that the issue of a Jewish state was never raised in negotiations when peace treaties were negotiated between Israel and Egypt and Israel and Jordan.
The answer is very simple.
Neither Egypt nor Jordan had enshrined in their constitutions or their policies any provision remotely approaching clause 20 of the PLO Charter:
” The Balfour Declaration, the Mandate for Palestine, and everything that has been based upon them, are deemed null and void. Claims of historical or religious ties of Jews with Palestine are incompatible with the facts of history and the true conception of what constitutes statehood. Judaism, being a religion, is not an independent nationality. Nor do Jews constitute a single nation with an identity of its own; they are citizens of the states to which they belong.”
Neither did Egypt or Jordan expressly embrace the policy of Hamas – the Islamic Resistance Movement – as espoused in Article 11 of its Charter:
“The Islamic Resistance Movement believes that the land of Palestine is an Islamic Waqf consecrated for future Moslem generations until Judgement Day. It, or any part of it, should not be squandered: it, or any part of it, should not be given up. Neither a single Arab country nor all Arab countries, neither any king or president, nor all the kings and presidents, neither any organization nor all of them, be they Palestinian or Arab, possess the right to do that. Palestine is an Islamic Waqf land consecrated for Moslem generations until Judgement Day.”
Yet Hamas is a movement that Abbas is desperately seeking to bring into a future unity Government under his control
Until the PLO and Hamas unequivocally revoke and abandon these racist policies Israel has no other course but to insist that recognition of Israel as the national homeland of the Jewish people is a non-negotiable demand that is not to be compromised under any circumstances in any future negotiations with Abbas.
The campaign of Boycott Divestement and Sanctions (BDS) – promoted and actively supported by Abbas and the Palestinian Authority has been properly described as:
“a negative and one-sided campaign aimed at demonising Israeli Jews irrespective of their political views on the Palestinian question.”
Penalizing individual Jews financially and economically by boycotting the purchase of their goods and the provision of their services is racist and discriminatory. Yet many in the international community continue to warm to such policies – rather than expressing a total loathing and revulsion at such attempts to deny the right of Jews to be treated equally with their Moslem and Christian counterparts in the lawful pursuit of their right to freedom of trade and commerce.
Last played on the Palestinian Authority’s air waves on 12 May – and at least 24 times before then – is a song which contains the following lyrics:
“We commit and promise to stand behind you, oh Mahmoud Abbas, until Judgment Day. I am returning to you, the purest land, oh land of the free. No matter how long the nights of exile, I am returning to you, oh land. From Rafah to Rosh Hanikra (northern Israel) our coast, and Beit Shean (Israeli city). Above your soil, oh my land, is a picture of Garden of Eden. From Rafah to Rosh Hanikra our coast, and Beit Shean. Above your soil, oh my land, is a picture of Garden of Eden. From Rafah to Rosh Hanikra, north and south, are the picture’s borders. From Haifa (Israeli city) and Tantura to the [Jordan] valley (i.e., all of Israel). I am returning to you, the purest land, oh land of the free.”
Abbas has also made it abundantly clear that he will not tolerate any Jews living in any Palestinian Arab State.
The dissemination of such sentiments may be justified as part of the individual’s right to freedom of expression.
However when such views are promoted and actively supported by the President of a State – the bona fides of the President and that State to sue for peace must be seriously questioned.
Given these recent expressions of open racism and official Government support of on-going efforts to isolate and denigrate Jews – one can confidently predict that nothing Israel offers will ever be acceptable to the Palestinian Arabs.
Palestine presently has a tenuous hold on Gaza and about 40% of the West Bank.
Statements and policies like those identified above ensure that these present areas of Palestinian statehood are not likely to be expanded any further.
Abbas needs to shape up – or ship out.
David Singer is a Sydney Lawyer and Foundation Member of the International Analysts Network
On the other hand, Shirlee, why not witness the hollow, baseless so called “argumentation” promoted by the palestinian camp !!! Tangible reality, however, is and shall continue to give you the satisfaction that Israel is not at all impressed with the vacuous palestinian rhetoric and that she gets on with the job of ensuring that its neighbouring Jew hate-mongers shall never get their way. The rest of the world, as well , will see and accept that a safe, secure Israel, a fair arrangement in the region will not be dictated by a bunch of criminals and their seriously disturbed mouth pieces.
So far we are doing very well and don’t forget “..Adonai li vlo ira !!”.
David and Paul, please give it up. You’ll get nowhere with Ben. He’s a Troll and why his comments are being posted is beyond me
Hello MR Singer
I had asked about the historical, legal, political basis for the claim of “reconstituting the Jewish homeland”. Not the Leagu of Nations Mandate – incidentally the Palestinians fought against the mandatory rule but were suppressed by the British with the collaboration of the Zionists – trained by Orde Charles Windgate.
Ben
The documents I cited constitute the legal right of the Jews to reconstitute the Jewish National Home in Palestine.
If you don’t want to accept those documents as comprising the legal basis in international law – then feel free to support the Palestinian Arabs who think likewise. It has brought them nothing but grief.
Hello Mr Singer
There is a “lawyer’s answer” here. The documents cannot conjure up a “national home” for people of various nations. They are essentially conferences to settle inter-imperial rivalries and claims and to divide up the territories of vanquished empires.
Do they meet the standards of justice ? I have been through the conference excuse before and the clauses put out – usually by Zionist lawyers – on inspection turn out related to administraive matters. And most of the are post facto to the beginning of the Zionist project.
If you could name the articles and clauses which so create the ” reconstitution of a national home” for such a diverse range of nationalaties, I would be interested in studying them.
I have previously given you the basis of Israel’s legal claim which is based on the following:
1. the decisions reached at the San Remo Conference in 1920,
2. Articles 94-97 of the Treaty of Sevres 1920
3. the unanimous decision by all member states of the League of Nations to the creation of the Mandate for Palestine and in particular Article 6 of the Mandat for Palestine
4. Article 80 of the UN Charter
Are you seriously suggesting that Lebanon,Syria and Iraq be returned to Turkey because what happened after World War 1 were only “administrative matters”?
I wish the Jewish leftists would read the charter of the leadership of the Palestinians which not only calls for the destruction of Israel, the hypocrites call for an ” Islamic State of Palestine” making it the 58 member of OIC yet they [ and many leftists Jews] begrudge a Jewish State .
http://www.mideastweb.org/hamas.htm
If anyone really believes the Palestinians , Arabs and Muslims would live happily ever after if Israel gave them back Jerusalem and evacuated all settlements . Haven’t these [ naive] optimists seen how Palestinians , Arabs and Muslims treat one and another . Get Real.
The PLO recoignised Israel in 1993. So what is the justification for another obstacle ? Is Jewish defined as religion or ethnicity ? If the lattter, a nation state is based on citizenship not ethnicity. And where does the recognition levae the Muslim, Christian and Druze population within Israel ? Or the compensation for Palestinians massacred and expelled from Israel ? Or the “eternal, unidivided capital ” ? Will it not have the implication of second class status to non-Jewish Israelis ?, The possibility of their expulsion and the complete annexation of Jerusalem ?
For goodness sake, Ben, stop your propaganda feeds on the basis that J-Wire commentators are ignorant. The PLO did not -repeat DID NOT – recognise Israel. Arafat said he recognised Israel, but recognition of Israel was never put before and endorsed by the Palestinian National Convention. The PLO does not recognise Israel and its charter still calls for the “liberation of Palestine” (the destruction of Israel) “through armed struggle”. The PA, led by a “President” whose term of office finished 3 years ago declares that it will not allow a single Jew on its territory and when it controls all of the territory west of the Jordan only those Jews who were living there during WW1 could remain. The, oh so democratically elected Hamas, which won local elections has postponed them when they were due, demonstrating that in mohammedan lands democracy, denounced by islamists, means one man, one vote, one time. Just a few facts to keep in mind Ben: there is no such people as Palestinians – they were politically contrived by the KGB in 1964; there is no occupation because there never was a polity called Palestine; Judea and Samaria were over-run by Arab armies and Israel wiped the floor with them in a defensive war, regaining the land promised to them through international instruments; the remainder of the mandate was supposed to be partitioned, but the Arabs rejected that UN recommendation; no other displaced group – like Jews from Arab lands – has permanent refugee status nor a right of return, so the Fakestinians have no such right either. Start dealing with facts Ben, rather than Pally agit-prop.
Hello Paul
ABBAs said he will not permit Israeli citizens to reside in PA territory. They can reside as Palestinian citizens. URi Davis has honorary Palestinian citizenship. More on the legal issues latter.
Ben
You continue to mislead and deceive J Wire readers..
This is what Abbas has said:
“Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas announced on Saturday that when a Palestinian state is established, it will have no Israelis in it.
“We have frankly said, and always will say: If there is an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, we won’t agree to the presence of one Israeli in it,” Abbas told reporters in Ramallah.”
http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=200935
Abbas – holocaust denier and Jew-hater extraordinary apparently continues to fool people like you.
Get real.
Hello David – as you clearly said, the statement was “israelis” not “Jews”. Jews can stay as Palestinian citizens.
Ben – stop trying to weasel out from under.
You wrote:
“ABBAs said he will not permit Israeli citizens to reside in PA territory. They can reside as Palestinian citizens”
The quote I gave you by Abbas makes it very clear that there is no substance to your claim
Here are Abbas’s remarks once again for your edification:
“We have frankly said, and always will say: If there is an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, we won’t agree to the presence of one Israeli in it,” Abbas told reporters in Ramallah.”
http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=200935
Ben
There are 57 Islamic States that are joined together in the Organisation of the Islamic Conference. 23 Arab states are members.
If the Moslems can have 57 Islamic States – is it too much to recognise one Jewish state?
The whole basis of granting self determination to Arabs and Jews in the conquered Ottoman empire was that 99.99% of the territory was set aside for the Arabs and 0.01% for the Jews.
Put simply – an Islamic or a Jewish state is a state where Moslems or Jews constitute a majority of the population.
Abbas cannot agree to accepting a Jewish state because he heads the PLO which still believes that The Jews have no right to reconstitute their national home in any part of former Palestine.
Whilst that mindset continues any settlement of the 130 years old conflict between Jews and Arabs is set to continue.
Hello Mr Singer
The basis of the creation of Israel is the Balfour declaration made over the heads of the Palestinians. The 99% territory for Arabs does not discriminate on the basis of religion/cultural affinity but on nationality. The Jewish right to re-consitute their homeland is a piece of colonial fiction used to justify the expulsion of the Palestinians from their country. I have repeatedly asked Zionists for the historical,legal, political basis of this claim.
Jews have existed for millenia from Morocco and Spain to Russia and China. Their members range from North African berbers to Yemeni Himyar to Indian Cochinites and Shanivar Teli to Ashkenazim to Ethipian falashmura. Such a diverse linguistic, national grouping has a common homeland! Not to forget conversions into and out of Judaism for centuries.
What your argument says is the Palestinians must legitimise the basis of their colonisation and dsiplacement. The Jewish majority in israel was achieved by colonisation, masascres and dispalcement.
Ben
The legal basis for the creation of Israel was:
1. the decisions reached at the San Remo Conference in 1920,
2. Articles 94-97 of the Treaty of Sevres 1920
3. the unanimous decision by all member states of the League of Nations to the creation of the Mandate for Palestine
4. article 80 of the UN Charter
The Palestinian Arabs have never recognized this body of international law – as is made very clear in article 20 of the PLO Covenant which states:
“The Balfour Declaration, the Mandate for Palestine, and everything that has been based upon them, are deemed null and void.”
This is their prerogative but it has brought them nothing but disaster and will continue to do so until they abandon the law of the jungle and accept the rule of international law.
Opposing any recognition of a Jewish state in the face of such clear expressions of international law by the international community guarantees the continuation of a conflict that has now gone unabated for 130 years.