To regain world support

by Musa Keilani

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is unruffled by the setback to his "unilateral disengagement" from the Palestinians as a result of his failure to cobble a new coalition government with the Labour Party. He has pledged to implement his plan, no matter what.

Why does he feel so confident? Why is there a sense of urgency on his part to press ahead with dismantling Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip while strengthening and expanding the existing settlements on the West Bank? Why does he dare to claim that his plans for more than 1,000 housing units for settlers have implicit American backing and why does the White House remain silent?

The reason is fairly clear: Sharon knows the US administration would not withdraw its support for Israel, regardless of what it does, in an election year. US President George Bush would not pick a fight with the Israeli prime minister no matter what, ahead of the November presidential elections. Sharon wants to get his plan going and push it behind the point of no return before the US president, whether Bush or his challenger John Kerry, dares to comment on Israel's steady moves to undermine the internationally accepted "roadmap" for peace in the Middle East that implies the creation of an independent state.

Sharon received a boost when the Israeli supreme court on Thursday cleared what could have been a hindrance to his plans. The court upheld the attorney general's decision not to indict Sharon on corruption charges involving a failed real estate deal in 1998. The court, in fact, rejected a bid of Sharon's rivals in parliament to overturn the attorney general's decision. It is also surprising that the attorney general himself ignored a recommendation from Israel's state prosecutor that Sharon be charged with accepting bribes from a contractor.

We should remain alert against Sharon's machinations with the Palestinians in the months ahead, since he is armed with the conviction that neither Bush nor Kerry would dare criticise Israel in the run-up to the elections; criticising Israel means antagonising not only American Jewish voters but also inviting the wrath of the financially and politically powerful, influential Israeli lobby in Washington, as well as its Christian fundamentalist supporters.

It is distressing for us, in Jordan, to be aware that the things are going wholesale wrong for the Palestinian struggle. Israel is steadily imposing its own version of peace in Palestine and it does not have room for independent state. Its policies are aimed at driving out as many Palestinians as possible from the West Bank through making life miserable for them. The "separation" wall is one of the key tools Sharon is using to make life unbearable for the Palestinians in the name of Israel's "security".

One could not but be aware of Sharon's theory that Jordan is the "alternate" homeland for not only the Palestinians in the West Bank but also for the Arab community in Israel. We could not accept any assurance given to us by Sharon or any US official that Jordan would not be affected by a possible Palestinian exodus from the West Bank. If Jordan, at the receiving end of the exodus, will not be affected, who will?

Into this scenario is thrown the growing dissent in Palestinian ranks against Yasser Arafat's style of governance. For decades, the Palestinian people had known of the corruption and administrative inefficiency in the circles around Arafat, but they put up with it hoping that Arafat would somehow lead them to liberation. However, given the geopolitical conditions that prevail today, the Palestinians need to clean up their act in order to secure the international support they require if they are to realise their objective of independence.

Maintaining the oligarchy that is based on taking for granted the support of the Palestinian people and Arabs at large is no longer tenable for the Palestinian leadership. Arafat has to show the world that he and the circle around him have woken up to the reality that the world has grown increasingly sceptical about their ability to bring transparency to their administration. This does not bode well for the future of the Palestinian struggle. It only feeds Sharon's contentions that he does not have a credible Palestinian partner to pursue peace.

Arafat's firm stand against reform in his administration is working not only against himself but also against the people he represents in the struggle for liberation. He should realise that he has not moved ahead with time and it has become inevitable that he should revamp his administrative structure, removing dead wood from wherever it exists and bringing fresh blood into the leadership. Failure to do that would mean only one thing: clearing the way for Sharon to implement his unilateral plans that aim at swallowing the Palestinian land while the Palestinian people remain left behind, squabbling among themselves over reforms and the need to shape their liberation movement according to the imperatives of the changing times.

It does not, in any way, mean compromising the Palestinian's territorial and political rights. It only means creating a unified Palestinian leadership transparent in every aspect and speaking in one voice, demanding their rights, with no room for compromise.

That is the only means for them to regain the world support they once enjoyed. They have to assure the world that they are capable of sustaining themselves as an independent entity rather than running a corrupt regime.

This article was published in the Sunday, August 22, 2004 edition of the Jordan Times. It is used here with permission.