Opportunism
Trumps In Palestine
By Ramzy Baroud
26 August, 2007
Couantercurrents.org
The
rash and self-defeatist behaviour emanating from Palestinian Authority
President Mahmoud Abbas and his close circle in the West Bank cannot
possibly be intended for the benefit of the Palestinian people or for
their internationally sanctioned struggle for human rights, freedom
and equality. Abbas, and his self-serving Palestinian elites seem hell-bent
on exploiting the unfolding Palestinian drama to further cement their
status and position, even if such an attitude will lead to the total
decimation of any little hope of recovering Palestinian rights.
The Palestinian, Israeli
and international response -- spearheaded by the Bush administration
-- to the Hamas election victory and formation of a government under
military occupation, in January and March 2006 respectively, indicated
that democracy for all of these players falls into the category of political
opportunism: to unleash wars, rationalise illegal occupations or profit
financially. Under Abbas's rule, democracy was and remains a vehicle.
It is mostly constituted from a bizarre mix of rhetoric, unsubstantiated
by any meaningful action.
If true democracy is intended
to prevail over all threats and challenges, Abbas has failed miserably.
Like every autocratic ruler, he understands that any practical application
of democracy in the Middle East as in other parts of the world must
pass the American test, an old lesson that the region was forced to
learn time and again. Whatever serves American interests represents
true democracy; anyone who dares to challenge these interests is duly
ostracised and removed. However, friendly regimes (from the US point
of view) that fail to exhibit even a token of a democratic governance
are viewed as "moderate", as opposed to the "extremist"
others who could be very democratic, such as Hamas. Indeed, Abbas understands
the rules of the democratic game very well; well- educated in political
science and history, he has been immersed in the region's tumultuous
politics for over four decades.
While Abbas has the right
to deduce his own view of the world, he has no right to apply such deductions
to eradicate the historic struggle of an entire nation. His actions
are both unethical and unjustified, to say the least. The ageing leader
and the shady characters surrounding him will go down in history books
alongside all the rulers and elites that sided with their occupier and
tormentor of their own people in exchange for worldly profits and shallow
status. While corporate media across the world predictably fails to
acknowledge the anti- democratic nature of the Abbas-managed charade,
Israeli politicians, policy advisors and commentators are hardly discreet
about the role they expect Abbas to play: his security forces must crack
down on any dissent among Palestinians. His militants will carry out
the dirty business of kidnappings and assassinations, in line with Israeli
and American policy objectives.
In fact, Abbas's apparatus
has proved exemplary in meeting these objectives. Thus, the Palestinian
leader and his Prime Minister Salam Fayyad are being rewarded generously:
tens of millions of US taxpayers' dollars, tax funds that Israel has
illegally held from the elected Hamas government, military training
for its weak security forces and, finally, an international platform
to provide Abbas with the political validation he needs. Abbas, in return,
is throwing in a few extras, beyond the measures expected from him.
A few of his government's mouthpieces are disseminating inaccurate information
to international media equating Hamas to Al-Qaeda terrorists and Taliban
militants; some have gone as far as alleging an actual link between
Hamas and Al-Qaeda, a charge that can only contribute further to the
misery and isolation of the Palestinians.
As a reward for Abbas's active
involvement in deepening the desperation in Gaza and widening disunity
among Palestinians, he has been granted the privilege of meeting Israeli
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert once every two weeks, and also the trust
and confidence of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her boss.
Any attempt at reconciliation with Hamas, which is supported by the
majority of Palestinians, at least in the occupied territories, would
most definitely lead to the withdrawal of some, if not of all of these
advantages, a risk Abbas will not take.
But Palestinian disunity
is disastrous, not only because it's a diversion from the struggle for
freedom and sovereignty and because it distracts the international community
from Israel's illegal occupations, it also presents Hamas and Fatah
with very limited options: Hamas's isolation will likely strengthen
the more radical view among its members, which will make it difficult
to find a common ground in the future; Fatah, which is losing its popular
support by the day, would have to continue to rely on outside help and
initiatives, notwithstanding the hardly promising international Middle
East peace conference aimed at solidifying the support for Abbas against
Hamas, or at the revival of the Jordan option, linking the West Bank
to Jordan through a confederation. Talks about the latter, reported
recently in the Israeli daily Haaretz -- though the idea has been floating
for many years -- could become terrifyingly real for two reasons: first,
the internationally recognised Palestinian leadership of Abbas cannot
maintain control over the Palestinians without the active support of
regional and international actors, such as Egypt and Jordan, and second,
the same leadership has proved most capable of sinking to new lows daily.
In the months leading to
the November peace conference, Abbas is expected to further demonstrate
his trustworthiness to Israel and the US, at the expense of the Palestinian
people, who are now denied the only strong card in their six-decade
struggle for freedom: their sense of collectivity, which, despite occasional
fragmentations, always managed to survive against all odds. The day
this is no longer possible, Israel's victory will be complete.
Ramzy Baroud
is a Palestinian-American author and editor of PalestineChronicle.com.
His work has been published in numerous newspapers and journals worldwide.
His latest book is The Second Palestinian Intifada: A Chronicle of a
People's Struggle (Pluto Press, London). Read more about Baroud at his
website ramzybaroud.net
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