The Palestinians; The Right of Return and the Right of Choice
By Sami Jamil Jadallah • May 21st, 2009 at 19:02 • Category: Analysis, Israel, Nakba and Right of Return, Newswire, Palestine, Zionism
Today, May 15th marks the 61st anniversary of the Nakba, or Exile of Palestinians from their homes, villages and farms: driven out by the raging Jewish terrorist groups in their mission to establish the State of Israel. 45 years also passed since the establishment of the PLO as the Palestinian Liberation Organization dedicated to the liberation of Palestine from Zionists. Rather than liberation and the realization of the Right of Return, the PLO and its leaders of Arafat, Abbas and Qurai exchange the "Right of Return" for the "Right to Manage" the Jewish Occupation of what remained of historic Palestine, of course minus Jerusalem, minus all the land taken for Jewish Settlements and Jewish Roads and the Apartheid Wall and the more than 615 Israeli Security Checkpoints. 15 years passed since the signing of Oslo and the present Palestinian leadership continues to negotiate, failing at every step, failing to even achieve minor relief for the millions of Palestinians, such as the removal of one single checkpoint or allowing a dying mother to pass through to go to a hospital. If the past is an indication of the future, then the Diaspora Palestinians will have a long time to wait. Perhaps the best thing they can do is to exchange the "Right of Return" for the "Right of Choice".
Forty years of PLO leadership, tens of thousands dead, several hundred thousands faced forced exiles from Kuwait, tens of billions stolen and unaccounted for, civil wars in Jordan and Lebanon, and the best thing that could come out of this leadership is Oslo, where the PLO through the Palestinian Authority became contract manager for the Jewish Occupation, thus relieving Israel of the financial and legal obligation it has as an occupying power. Added to this catastrophic failure is more than 15 years of negotiations with Israel that saw drastic shrinking of what is remaining of Palestinian land while Israel continues with its ever expanding military and settler occupation. If anyone thinks that this leadership could succeed in achieving the return of some 5.5 million to what is now Israel, they should think twice. This leadership and this Palestinian government sitting in Ramallah or Gaza could not and does not have the power or the authority to remove one single dirty Israel checkpoint, let alone help a dying mother get to a hospital on the other side of this security checkpoint or allow a ton of fuel for besieged Gaza.
To the millions of Palestinians in exile who had to endure horrific difficulties for the last 61 years, living in refugee camps with open sewers, exposed to the cold, heat and rain, denied basic rights of residency if not citizenship, with no jobs, no futures and in the case of Lebanon denied basic human rights to some 40 professions and jobs; even denied building materials similar to those living in Israel’s besieged Gaza. The dream of going home to Jaffa, Haifa, Safad, Ramleh and Lod will always be there, simply no compromise on the Right of Return. Under Oslo, the brilliant Palestinian Trio of Arafat, Abbas, Qurai and the PLO gave up the "Right of Return" for the "Right to Manage" the Jewish Occupation for and on behalf of Israel.
Without financial support from Arab Gulf Countries and with dried up financial support from Palestinians who were forced out of the Gulf as a result of Arafat and the PLO support of Saddam and his invasion of Kuwait, and having recklessly and criminally wasted tens of billions of the people’s money either in fraudulent investment or tens of billions stashed away in French and Swiss banks by the leadership for their own use, Arafat and the PLO were desperate to conclude a deal with Israel at any cost and under any condition, undermining the smart, intelligent and diligent efforts of the late Dr. Haider Abdul-Shafi, who was leading the negotiations under the Madrid Conference. The Palestinian Trio of Arafat, Abbas, and Qurai – afraid of losing control to an upstart leadership from inside of Palestine – decided to open their own back channel and negotiate a separate deal with Israel that preserved their leadership and self-serving interests while deferring key and important issues to Palestinians such as Jerusalem, Palestinian Refugees, and Jewish Settlements and borders to a later date. Of course Israel was desperate to have someone like Arafat put an end to the "Intifada" and to have some one like Arafat take over the financial obligations of the occupation and the civil administration of the West Bank and Gaza, freeing it to keeping control over the land, the Jewish settlements and all security matters. The Palestinian Trio of Arafat, Abbas and Qurai were that willing to be administrative and financial partners.
Taking advantage of Oslo and the reckless stupidity of the Palestinian negotiators, Israel made good and effective use of "facts on the ground" and the deferment of key issues such as Settlements, Jerusalem and borders as it went about creating more facts on the ground. Ever expanding settlements, expanding "security zone" to protect these settlements, taking over more and more land for the "security" of the settlements, taking more additional land for the protection of settlers through the creation of "Jewish Only Roads" the use of which is limited exclusively to Jews. Israel expanded its activities and control in the West Bank, while the Palestinian Authority; "self governs" and became a willing party to administer ever shrinking Palestinian territories continuing to negotiate managing the occupation for 15 years.
The most likely scenario is for the PLO and the Palestinian Authority to succeed in allowing the "Right of Return" to several thousand Palestinians who left during and after the 67 War and allow them to return to whatever remains of the West Bank in the "autonomous Palestinian areas" within Eretz Israel, while concluding a partial financial deal with Israel for and on behalf of the Palestinians exiled in 47 and 48. This financial compensation will go to the treasury of the PLO and the Palestinian Authority, to the pockets and bank accounts of the leadership, leaving the people out in the cold. The other part of the financial package will go to the Arab countries of Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Egypt as compensation to create and establish permanent settlements for those refugees living in these countries. Some countries like Europe, the US, Canada, Australia and some countries in Latin America may offer to accept several thousand refugees giving them permanent home away from Palestine as a favor to Israel.
Knowing Israel and how its leaders think and based on the recent establishment of several Jewish and Israeli organizations with the purpose and mission to seek compensation for those Jews who left the "Arab world" similar to compensation paid to Jews who lost their properties in Europe, Israel will be the winner. Most likely the Arab countries will be asked to foot the bill for the compensation of Palestinian refugees, perhaps with Israel paying a small and nominal share if any. Israel on the other hand will make sure it gets a substantial share of the money set aside for the Palestinians and will use this money to compensate Jews who lost properties in the Arab world. In the final settlements, Israel will get the lions share of compensation, perhaps in amounts exceeding $150 billion for its Jews while the Palestinians will end up getting the crumbs, whatever's left over after the PLO, the Palestinian Authority and the Arab countries agreeing to "resettle" the Palestinians such as Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt get their cut and share. For sure Israel will make like a bandit, getting hundreds of billions in compensation for its Jews while refusing to allow the Right of Return or pay compensation for those it exiled in 1947-1948. The Arab countries of the Gulf will end up paying compensation to Jews who left their homes and properties in the Arab countries as part of the settlement with Israel paying almost nothing but getting most.
That is why there is an urgent need for the Palestinians of the Diaspora to organize in more than just websites, annual conferences and sharing of email messages. They need to organize into a legal entity or entities that will have the right of "legal" representation of those Diaspora and exiled Palestinians supported by the best and brightest legal minds in the world, making sure they have the right to sit at the table, the right to self representation, independent of the PLO or the Palestinian Authority or the Arab League. Time is short and is not on the side of those exiled and they need to put their act together before it is too late and before they are sold out in a regional bazaar.
The Palestinians should have individual rights and choices of either choosing to go back and live in Israel as citizens of the state; return and live in the "autonomous areas" set aside for Palestinians (Palestinian Authority) within Eretz Israel, or get a direct financial package with the right to chose where they want to finally settle. The United Nations should offer the people their choice to go wherever they choose in the world. America and Europe should open its doors to these new immigrants. Yes, Diaspora Palestinians should and must have the individual Rights of Return or the individual Rights of Choice. The Palestinians should also learn the lessons of the Holocaust, where the Holocaust became a business, a bonanza for Israel and the lawyers leaving the victims with hardly anything. We must make sure that the Nakba and the Jewish Occupation does not continue to be a financial bonanza for the Palestinian leadership while the victims continue to live in misery and constant humiliation and insecurity. On the other hand, Israel must not be rewarded for its crimes and must pay dearly to the victims, the exiled Palestinians. Financial rewards or compensation will never be enough for 61 years of suffering, exiles, humiliation and murder.
Sami Jamil Jadallah is Palestinian-American born in El-Bireh, Palestine, an international business and legal consultant, and a veteran of the US Army. His comments are posted at his website http://www.jeffersoncorner.com.
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Sorry but i didnt like this artcle. Allthough good points were raised about the corrupt PLO and their stupidity and the threats Palestinian face due to the zionist – arab government alliance against the Palestinian cause, i cant help but feel that the author has lost hope. That is something you can never do if your a supporter of the right of return. It is that kind of attitude that makes people settle for whatever they can get when in reality they have a right to so much more. It is like some Palestinians in Jordan who considered King Hussein as some sort of hero because they were given citizenship in Jordan, they thought this was done as a noble thing for them, to get them out of refugeehood, when in reality it was done to help Jordan who needed educated people and help israel as well by giving these Palestinians a new citizenship with the hope that it will make them forget Palestine. With that citizenship also came efforts by the Jordanian government to erase the "Palestinianness" of the Palestinians with Jordanian citizenship, such as making it easier for those who claim they are pure jordanians to recieve good jobs, and by creating negative attitudes about Palestinians so people will simply think its easier to not say they are Palestinians, and by creating the attitude that it is UnCool to go to demonstrations/events in support of the Palestinian cause (such as during the latest war in Gaza, negative attitudes were created by making it seem those that go to such demonstrations are the "uncivilized people" with no "prestige") and by banning nakba events etc etc, the list is so long. My point is NEVER SETTLE FOR ANYTHING LESS THAN WHAT YOU ARE ENTITLED TO WHEN IT COMES TO PALESTINE.
Bella, I do understand the very good points you make, but I don't see it that way at all. There is no renouncement of the ROR and in fact, I believe that it is a strategy to implement alongside the call for ROR. Before the Gaza war (planned in advance) was set, (and I have the stuff to document that there was Washington insistence to do something before the expiration of Abu Mazen's term, which was precisely the timing of everything) there was a Palestinian Strategic Initiative that was "supposed" to start. It was setting all the demands on the table in a time framework, making Israel come up with the goods or be responsible for unilateral Palestinian moves. (I will publish the PSI papers as well, but I have them all on PDF and I have trouble copying them to another form) There was no renouncement of anything, but a pressing insistence on the demands that already exist, because so far, Israel has reneged on all agreements. Included in the things that must be obtained are the compensation (in spite of return, and especially in addition to it) for losses.
There needs to be a "threat" coming that Israel will now have to start footing the bill for the occupation, the PA won't be able to do it any longer, as well as footing the bill for the damage they have caused to lives and property. It is an all-inclusive thing. They think that they are only on the receiving end, and they are wrong.
Bella, I do appreciate your statement and concerns. However I believe that NO organization whether UN or PLO or Israel can ever deny such an absolute right as that of return. That right will always remain as an individual right that does not die with time or with certain UN resolutions or by agreements. Having said that, I also believe that Palestinians do not, or need not spend their lives in refugee camps to secure or keep their legal rights of return. The fact that a Palestinian lives in Malibu Hills or Ba”ka’ refugee camps makes no difference as far as the right of return. My main concern and fear is realized today in a statement made by Nabil Abu-Rudina, spoke person of Palestinian Authority presidency who confirmed under the new peace plan, not more than 100,000 Palestinians will be allowed back to historic Palestine under a “family reunification plan” while the rest of millions will be allowed back into what remains of Palestine. Keeping in mind that the 400,000 Jewish settlers will continue to occupy 45% of the land while the rest and poor miserable Palestinians will occupy the rest of the West Bank. My fear is that the PLO was never ready and in fact it made it impossible for any organization to represent the Palestinians and sue for the Right of Return. If Jews who left Europe after the war were able to reclaim their properties why can’t the Palestinians do the same thing? I am raising the need for being smart and organized before it is too late. I am afraid that the Diaspora Palestinians will be the biggest losers when the dust settles down. As I see it, the Jews who left the Arab countries will be the first to get compensated or allowed to recover their properties, then the Palestinian Authority, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon will share most of the remaining funds and the Palestinians will again be on the loosing end. There is nothing to be emotional about. It knows the games and the rules of the games and make sure you are a winner. We have been losers for such a long time, because we allowed fools and stupid idiots to take the lead. Never understood with the hundreds of thousand of professionals around the world we have to leave our fate in the hands of paid officials whose priority is not to recover our rights but run to the bank. If you think the PLO is competent to represents the Diaspora Palestinians then you, and I and the more than 6 millions are in deep, deep trouble. The Zionists took the world to the cleaners under false pretention, whey can't we make them pay dearly for all that they did? What is wrong with that?
Sami Jamil JadAllah, There is nothing wrong with that, dont get me wrong, I believe in the right of return as well as a huge amount of compensation to the Palestinian people, nothing less than that can be seen as an option. I just dont believe that one should be ruled out by the other and if one is to be ruled out then i choose compensation to be ruled out since there is no money in the world that are more important than regaining the right to return back to Palestine. Oh and as for the PLO, i wish it will be dismantled sooner rather than later. It has made so many misstakes and harmed the Palestinian cause so much that i almost consider it an enemy to Palestine, no i certainly do not believe that the PLO will recover our rights, aT least not in its current form. I believe a new PLO needs to be formed and also with a new name due all the corruption this current one carries. New name and new people that is. We now need to focus on cleaning up the mess of the PLO which will be hard as long as we have the Abbas gang leading the Palestinians. However when we see a new entity formed it must be the complete opposite of the PLO. I believe Hamas also needs to be reformed because they too have brought harm on Palestinians in the past when they used suicide attacks. Armed Resistence should only be used against soldiers and those that are armed, not civilians even if these civilians happen to be zionists living on stolen land. Suicide attacks and other attacks on civilians gave the enemy a propaganda tool against us so in the media people talk about "suffering of both sides" when in reality these two sufferings can not even be compared. Another thing the PLO were lozy at was PR, i mean look at the zionists who use representatives who wear nice clothes, speak good english and managed to portray themselves as those that are right and people that others could relate to, compare that with Arafat who looked like he never took a shower and spoke with such a lozy english accent that made people wanna destroy the tv everytime he was on, its the same with Abbas. Mostafa elbarghouti would do a far better job when it comes to promoting the Palestinians in the media than fateh ever could, it is like they were payed to not only work against our cause but also to portray Palestinians in bad light.
Mary Rizzo, thanks for clarifying it. It seems i missunderstood what was meant. Anyway, i have in the past succesfully copied a PDF document to Word so it should work. The structure of the document might be diffirent though.
@Bella –
Hi Bella (lovely name!)
I know that sooner or later I have to copy the PDF and try to work with it. The content is good.
in the meantime, take a look at this:
http://wikileaks.org/wiki/CRS:_Israel_and_the_Palestinians:_Prospects_for_a_Two-State_Solution%2C_December_10%2C_2008 (then download the pdf, not the PSI one I mentioned) Dated 10 December… check the timing out.
It's a congressional report basically "advising" Israel. If you look at it carefully, some terrible things jump out.
Here's the Abstract:
Abstract
This report reviews the prospects of a two-state solution in the context of possible signs of progress and doubts raised in U.S., Israeli, and Palestinian circles during the Annapolis process (including questions of urgency). After outlining possible alternatives to a two-state solution, the report analyzes the policy challenges facing either an urgent or a more deliberate U.S. approach to promoting a two-state solution-including implications for Congress-on matters such as foreign aid, security assistance, Israeli settlements, and the treatment of Hamas (a militant Palestinian group that is a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, or "FTO").
But what do they mean by "urgent" approacch and "treatment of Hamas". Hm… take a look at these paragraphs:
One reason that proponents of the peace process might believe that immediate action is necessary
is their concern that the current political consensus favoring the peace process within Israeli,
Palestinian, and U.S. circles is tenuous–particularly in light of upcoming leadership transitions
in the United States (January 2009) and Israel (February 2009) and conflicting claims between PA
President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas to Palestinian leadership.14 With the rise of Hamas's
influence in Palestinian affairs, difficulties in maintaining strong consensus for negotiations in
Israel, and challenges in getting top U.S. leaders to make sustained efforts to confront the many
thorny issues that divide Israelis and Palestinians, the coming to power of a peace process skeptic
among any of the three principal sides could stall negotiations for years.
During the time of Oslo in the 1990s, a vast majority of the Palestinian people in both the West
Bank and the Gaza Strip clearly accepted Yasser Arafat and the PLO as their legitimate
representatives. Problems with internecine violence, divisiveness, and popular discouragement
stemming from perceptions of widespread political corruption existed from the beginning of self-
rule in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, but with Arafat's death, the failure of the peace process
until now, and the rise of Hamas, these problems have worsened. Although PA President
Mahmoud Abbas has taken Arafat's place, his legitimacy as a leader of the Palestinian people is
not comparable, and the Fatah party he leads is riven by internal divisions. In light of Hamas's
rise, some wonder if the pragmatic secular nationalistic positions Fatah claims to take, including
support for a two-state solution, have a political future.
Leaving Hamas out of a negotiated outcome could lead the United States to pursue one of the
following courses of action. One would be to trust that the Palestinian people would rally to
Abbas's support in the event he reaches a final-status agreement with Israel, ratifying the
agreement in a referendum or in some other manner regardless of Hamas's objections. Another
would be to help the PA and/or Israel prepare for containment of Hamas or for military action
against it. It is possible that a combination of both courses of action could be used.
There are several risks involved with both courses of action. Entrusting the fate of a final-status
peace agreement to a divided Palestinian public after so many years spent striving for resolution
could lead to an unpredictable and perhaps demoralizing result (along the lines of the 2006 PA
elections that brought Hamas to power).58 Even if the Palestinian public backs Abbas, Hamas
could seek to nullify the popular will through force. Containment of or military action against
Hamas could backfire, leading Hamas to broaden and/or deepen its control of Gaza and possibly
also the West Bank. Even military success could come at great cost, given Hamas's entrenchment
in Gaza and its possible attack capabilities against Israel (either with rockets or through direct
attacks on IDF personnel or civilians). By supporting the use of force against Hamas, the U.S.
could also open itself up to charges that it is the primary aggressor, possibly eroding the U.S.'s
international credibility as an "honest broker" and guarantor with regard to the peace process. If
any of these risks materialize, Congress could face requests for heightened economic and security
assistance in a climate in which discerning whether potential aid recipients and their actions are
hospitable to U.S. interests might become increasingly difficult.
Dear Mary. Thank you for the link, i opened it and read some of it but to be honest i didnt read most of it, i simply find it useless to read what someone who wants a joint IDF-PA force attacking hamas has to say. If thats his solution then i cant waste my time reading his opinions. We all saw the sucess of destroying hamas in the Gaza war. Hamas came out with more support than before and the only thing israel managed to crush was families, houses and schools. What an achievement! Something to keep in mind is that such reports may say that the aim of a certain mission is to do one thing when in reality the true aim is to achieve something entirely diffirent, in this case it could possibly be to strengthen Hamas. When fatah planned a coup against hamas which lead to hamas taking over the strip we were led to believe the enemy thought this was a disaster when in reality it was exactly what they wanted, this way the siege could be fulfilled, a massive war could be started and hell could be brought on Gaza. The same people who adviced fateh to do the coup knew they wouldnt suceed and that hamas would find out and counter it. Both of them went in to the trap set up for them. At the same time they dont want all Palestinians supporting hamas in order to keep the Palestinians divided so they help the PA with things here and there such as the salaries in order to keep the situation as they want and change it at their will. Its all such a mess but we cant loose faith. As for me, i have a strong faith in Allah/God and justice, i know that evil empires do not last forever, justice will be served and sunshine will come no matter how crazy things seem now, we simply can not think we have lost. I pray for my country Palestine everyday as well for others who face injustice and for this world in general, it gives me hope and i will not allow anything destroy my faith in justice, God willing. And when i see blogs such as this one, i know for sure that we cant loose. Look at all the bright minds telling it like it is in a world where the truth has been made the lie and the lie has been made the truth. Being on the "right side" (by zionist definition) and simply surrender to someone who is stronger saves one a lot of headaches in these days, yet we so many soldiers of justice here refusing to loose their dignity. Zionists pay some arabs/muslims to write zionist trash , yet here we have people of the world writing the truth only for the sake of it being the truth, Palestine does not pay anyone to get people on its side yet people come willingly because they feel it is where truth lies without the propaganda, exaggeration and lies, simply the truth and it will beat zionism because the truth is more powerful than the zionist power and money.
Dear Bella, thanks for that fantastic comment.
I understand that it might look like a waste of time to see these documents, but on the other hand, they are there to demonstrate some things that later may be important, since the US has allowed the weapons to be used solely for "defence" purposes, in showing that it wasn't true and that the US had actually encouraged an "urgent" solution that included aggression makes them complicit and they are on record of it.
The one I am studying right now is even worse, if possible. In it, it states that Israel and the US knew it wasn't Hamas firing the rockets.. therefore the pretext is thwarted. Here are the actual segments of text:
For the first five months, the cease-fire held relatively well. Some rockets were fired into Israel,
but most were attributed to non-Hamas militant groups, and, progressively, Hamas appeared
increasingly able and willing to suppress even these attacks. No Israeli deaths were reported
(although there were injuries and property damage), and Israel refrained from retaliation.
Nevertheless, each party felt as though the other was violating the terms of the unwritten ceasefire.
Hamas demanded unsuccessfully that Israel lift its economic blockade of Gaza, while
Israel demanded also unsuccessfully a full end to rocket fire and progress on the release of
Israeli corporal Gilad Shalit from Hamas’s captivity.
then
Rocket launches, while still occurring, have decreased markedly. Since Israel’s unilateral ceasefire
began on January 18, 2009, there have been about 40 sporadic rocket launches into southern
Israel, far fewer than occurred on average per day just before Operation Cast Lead. Moreover,
Israeli officials believe that smaller militant groups, such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Al
Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, and not Hamas, have fired the rockets, as they did during the cease-fire
(although it is possible that Hamas is enabling or acquiescing to these attacks while preserving
deniability). The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) maintains that air strikes took out half of Hamas’s
rockets and other munitions stockpiles as well as a substantial number of rocket launchers and
Hamas military commanders who had been in charge of the launches. The IDF also admits that its
estimates are inconclusive.
This is important! They knew and admit and it's on record in a policy study paper that was financed by the US Congress so that they could vote in the Defense Program for Israel and pass the Memorandum of Understanding and also decide to not let money in for "reconstruction" that would be in any way connected to handling by Hamas. You see, they admit that the Hamas was not even the reason, and the pretext becomes evident and the result, yes, desired in advance for whatever reasons (and you point them out well) still has the end effects. In law they say that this is "vitiated", that there is a defect at the form or from the outset and the very fact that they themselves harm Palestine saying they are trying to rid it of Hamas, but admit Hamas was not firing the rockets.. well… the implications are enormous.
You are right that you can't lose. and I know the day will come when your country if free and so will we all be then!
Win the contest! The State of Palestine Quiz
Mary. Thanks for all the info. Only the ignorants believe the reason for the war was the hamas rockets as if israel didnt kill, injure and destroy before this war or before hamas got control of Gaza. There was no hamas in 1948, yet it didnt stop the zionist terrorists from expelling about 800 000 Palestinians from their homes and massacring thousands. Since when did israel ever did a real reason to comitt crimes? All they need is someone else to blame it on in order to feed the ignorant masses some lies to silence them.
Solomon2, is that the best zionists can do? I mean come on!!. Truth is not on zionism side therefor zionists must resort to such silly propaganda that even a child can refute. You have to do much better than that in order to "proove" there is no and never was any Palestine and Palestinian people. MUCH BETTER I TELL YA. The quality of zionist propaganda is so poor its unbelivable. Only an extremly ignorant person would come up with those questions. I hope they didnt strengthen your belief in zionism cuz if they did then you should know that those questions only proove how thin the ice on which zionism is built on is.