Please post your comments here. This posting is mandatory. In about a paragraph or two summarize the substance of the discussions and the conclusion. Also list the demands that the group came up with in order to preset to the quartet. Only one of the posting should have the list we do not want posting after posting listing the list.
21 Comments:
The list of demands the pro-Palestinian group came up with is:
1. An internationally recognized Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza, as well as all of Jerusalem.
2. Return of Golan Heights to Syria.
3. The right of return granted to all those of Palestinian origin currently living outside of Israel/Palestine.
4. Building of roads connecting West Bank and Gaza.
5. Free travel and no checkpoints along the borders between Palestine and Israel.
6. Possession of all Israeli settlements in Gaza and the West Bank.
7. $100 billion in international aid.
8. Denuclearization of Israel.
9. UN peacekeeping force to ensure smooth transition when creating Palestinian state.
10. UN committee to oversee the implementation of our demands.
11. Reparations from Israel for damaged infrastructure/ethnic cleansing.
There were additional demands made that I did not write down in my notebook so if anyone else has them, please post them as well.
Jen Westfall - Jordan
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The Pro-Palestinian meeting was very interesting. We decided that with Hillary Clinton having been murdered by the Israeli’s, it would be the perfect opportunity to push hard for serious concessions from Israel as well as large requests to the international community such as $100 billion in aid. That being said, there was a great deal of a consensus between nearly all of the parties involved despite the presence of fringe elements such as Islamic Jihad. There was little to no talk of a single-state solution and therefore the creation of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state was almost universally recognized to be pre-imminent goal to which all other demands would emanate. As the representative for the Palestinian Diaspora, one of my main goals was to demand the immediate right of return for Palestinian refugees along the lines of U.N. General Assembly Resolution – “ 11. Resolves that the refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbors should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return and for loss of or damage to property which, under principles of international law or in equity, should be made good by the Governments or authorities responsible.” I also thought it was extremely important to demand the repossession of all illegal settlements in the occupied territories as well as reparations for damaged infrastructure and the toll caused by ethnic cleansing.
It was a cliché during the early stages of the Arab-Israeli conflict that the Arabs never missed an opportunity to miss an opportunity. I can say that after taking part in this meeting, the same cannot be said about this latest Pro-Palestinian undertaking. While some of the demands placed at the feet of Israel and international community can undoubtedly be labeled as bold, the show of unity between the parties was unprecedented. As discussed, there were some fringe elements and other parties such as Iran and Hezbollah that would normally threaten the focus and reasonability of the discussions, yet there was clearly the absence of intent to settle personal scores with Israel other than those of the Palestinian people.
Jason Tarasco
Palestinian Diaspora
The discussion of the Pro-Palestinian entities was much more productive than we would have ever expected. Each of the hard-line groups (Hezbollah, Hamas, Muslim Brotherhood) were abnormally quiet during the time. Perhaps they were just happy to see the culmination of their labors against our southern aggressors, but we would have expected them to be more vocal about issues such as recognition for Israel, etc. Only during the media interviews did we finally see talk on this subject.
Lebanon is excited about the future of this issue. We will give full support to the new nation of Palestine, and will offer troops to patrol the borders if their new government thinks it necessary. We give them in accordance with the agreement of the Arab League countries in support of the new nation-state. The talks perfectly captured the spirit of the ideals we have been working for all along. The decision by the Palestinian groups to ask for reparations from Israel for their unlawful destruction of infrastructure and homes within the West Bank and Gaza is a legitimate request and will be backed by Lebanon.
-J. Peter Letteney
The Government of Lebanon
The meeting of Pro-Palestinian factions was characterized by a general consensus that the current events have provided an optimal opportunity to pressure Israel and the global community for the acceptance of a series of demands. The most important demand put forth was the recognition of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state. Although I was able to over-hear the disgruntled ramblings of some of the hard line groups such as Hezbollah and the Muslim Brotherhood, I was pleased by the general consensus that all the parties were able to make on the list of demands. I was especially pleased that my demands for the creation of dual-citizenship status for the Arab-Israeli population was not only heard but became an important part of our demands. I was also able to place on the list of demands that there be changes made to the “democracy” in Israel which will allow for full individual and collective rights for Arab citizens living in Israel. (Both of these demands do not appear on the above list).
Despite the significant progress that was made, I believe that talks must continue so that the Pro-Palestinian factions can create a greater consensus regarding their actions. Although we had general agreement on what our demands would be, we did not discuss let alone come to a consensus on what our actions would be if our demands are not met. In order to ensure that are demands are taken seriously and that change is brought about in an acceptable time frame, I believe we need to come up with a general list of actions to be taken so that we can maximize our leverage over any opposition. Instead of fragmenting upon the first sign of resistance we must stand together in collective action.
-Jacob Wishko
-Azmi Bishara – Representative of the Arab-Israeli population
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Due to the current circumstances surrounding Israel the actuality of creating a sovereign Palestinian state is very good and we Pro Palestinian groups are negotiating from the best position we have ever had. The general consensus was for Israel to return occupied land including Jerusalem, monetary compensation in addition to the funds that had been withheld as well as a call for the international community to provide security for the Palestinian state, which must include troops from Arab and Muslim countries.
It is also my hope that I can get some substantial backing from the incoming administration and possibly procure some financial assistance for the Palestinian cause.
Arab American Lobby (Chris Eberle)
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Upon meeting with the rest of the Palestinian Group, we succeeded in constructing some awfully serious demands regarding Israel's future behavior and a hefty list of "chores" to be completed on their behalf. Palestine seemed to be under the pity of every nation present, as clearly shown by some of the large monetary demands we will seeking from Israel for the reconstruction of what they destructed in their many years of occupation in the region. Also, less we forget the aid that we are in the process of lobbying for with the Quartet.
Time will only tell if such groups as Hamas and Hezbollah will comply with the inevitable demands of Israel to come under a truce, though their comments in their interview tuesday did not look very promising. This dilemma was not discussed in the meeting, however, and I certainly hope it could be touched upon in the future meetings to come.
-Andrew Wilber/President Mubarak of Egypt
Myself as well as many other representatives from arab states and organizations met in order to show our support on Palestine's side before leaders were to meet with the quartet. We discussed the demands that Palestinian's should request when meeting with the quartet. Many of these demands are important in order for Palestinian's to survive as their own state independent for any type of Israeli control. We are hoping the quartet can see these demands as being important and necessary and that they will support Palestine as well after all that Israel has done in order to weaken their ties with the US and its allies. This is a crucial time for Palestine to work towards having these demands met and our country will be backing them 100% in this period of winning their rights back from Israel. This may be the only chance Palestine has for years to come to get the oppurtunity to have any of these demands met and hopefully they will be sucessful. We will be providing any financial aid to Palestine that it may need in order to become a state of its own and to help its people and government strive in the future as well.
Teresa Knag, Saudi Arabia
As I mentioned in a previous post, (which can be found here) I would have liked to see more organization and preparedness as part of the groups efforts. We camt to some really interesting demands, but I felt as though they were scattered and not prioritized. The lack of prioritization led to a messy meeting with the quartet, at which is became hard to make legitimate negotiations. Perhaps next meeting it would be nice to prioritize the list and come to only a few concrete foundation-building demands upon which we can make more demands later. It doesn't make sence to take everything at once. If we were granted everything we demanded, even upon negotiation, implimentation and adaptation takes time. Also, this way we know what to focus on when we meet with larger groups. If we look scattered, no one will take us seriously. But if we have a few concrete demands, there are fewer distractions. As the government of Lebanon noted, the extremist groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood Hezbollah and Hamas were particularly quiet durring the meeting. It makes me question thier validity when they make appearances on local and global news stations.
In addition, as the Leader of the Arab League I would like to remind you that we need to not just look at what a local shift this event has caused. We need to look to the US and EU for support, as thier support for Isreal now is at an all time low. In addition, it may be hoo of us to use this oppertunity to remind these nations what kind of pain we have been experiencing in the Middle East for such a long time as a result of irresponsible Israeli action, such as the killing of US President Hillary Clinton. Try and make appearances on news stations and promote a positive view of Arabs and Palestinians alike.
-Frances Meres
Prime Minister of Egypt,
Leader of the Arab League
I felt that as the first meeting between the pro-Palestinian states in the region since the recent episode in Israel, the talks went surprisingly well. I was very glad to see that we were able to easily agree on demands which for the most part were universal wishes among all of us-save for the radical groups involved in the discussion. Although we came up with very valid and legitimate requests of the international community, I feel that we should not have ended the meeting with just a long list of demands. We should have agreed upon a timeline at which each demand would be implemented. For example, the crucial process denuclearizing Israel would take more time than say, the end of Jewish settlement building. There should also have been discussions among the parties involved as to what our reaction would be if certain prime demands were not met, such as the return of Israel's illegaly stolen land Golan Heights to its rightful owner-Syria.
This time was of essence to Arab leaders everywhere, as the support for Israel is at an all time low. However, I feel that the time could have been used more wisely. Hopefully, upcoming talks will prove to be more organized and more accomplishing. Further meetings with the quartet in which most of our rightful demands are ignored will not be tolerated. We have stood too long and too weak in the face of unquestioned support for Israel and we will do so no longer.
Yardena Schwartz, President of Syria
This meeting was a fascinating opportunity to garner the opinions of both the Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad factions in relation to the day's negotiations and their repective group's possible adherance to any International agreements made as a result.
In a blow to the eventual peace process, both Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah vowed in a joint statement "...never to capitulate to a negotiated end of the conflict and insists on continuing the armed struggle against the Zionist Crusaders, regardless of consessions made."
In response to any resulting agreement from the demands set forth by the Pro-Palestinian group, Islamic Jihad's representative asserted that even Israel's acceptance of every demand would not be enough to satiate his movement- "...these so called Arab governments are giving into Western pressure (to negotiate with Israel) and we won't allow that to happen. We won't stop until all of the land of Israel is returned to the Palestinians."
-Brendan Taubman Al Jazeera Correspondent
HAMAS
Operating from a new position strength, the pro-Palestinian group found plenty of common ground to build on and will be able to present a united front against Israel and the international community. Negotiation with Israel and the international community will only prove fruitful if the pro-Palestinian group continues to work together and recognizes that the opportunity for a Palestinian state will not last forever. Although Hamas originally tried to mobilize the Arab states and organizations with Palestinian sympathies for all out war against the 'Zionist entity', we are willing to accept a ceasefire with the Israelis during the creation of a Palestinian state. This does not mean we are ready to recognize Israel or its right to exist. At this time, Hamas will not renounce its ultimate goal of the complete destruction of Israel.
Palestinian Islamic Jihad
The meeting of pro-Palestinian groups was marked by an unusual consensus and culminated in a long list of demands. These demands are a step in the right direction but are not adequete. First off, the demands are too lenient. Only an independent state in West Bank and Gaza? This is an insult, after the suffering we have been through the past 60 years. Do you not remember the pain from Israeli aggression and occupation? Did you not see the carnage upon our Lebanese brothers this last summer? This most recent act of terror has shown the Americans the reality that we have understood since 1948: the Zionists will stop at nothing, they have no qualms with slaughtering innocent children and women if they get in the way of their plot to occupy eretz-israel.
The way forward is through the coordinated forceful reclamation of Islamic land by the rightful owners. If we establish a West Bank/Gaza state we will be subject to the same harrassment as we are humiliated by now. We must strike while the iron is hot, while Israel is weak and has no support. At the end of this jihad we will have restored not only all the land but dignity and respect to the Palestinian people, inshallah.
the Muslim Brotherhood
The pro-Palestinian meeting was effective in generating a list of demands from both Israel and the international community. While my brothers and I are not in favor of the recognition of Israel, these demands will serve as a starting point for where we eventually hope to be. The Muslim Brotherhood favors any movement to end the unfair policies and continued discrimination against our people in the Middle East; therefore at this point in time we are willing to listen to any relevant negotiations. In terms of a "two-state solution," we cannot favor a policy that allows Israel to remain. Our goal, as stated by our founder Hassan al-Banna is "reclaiming Islam’s manifest destiny; an empire, founded in the seventh century, that stretched from Spain to Indonesia" and Israel is a major obstacle to this.
While the group did touch on important issues regarding the "Palestinian question" negotiation with the occupier should have been out of the realm of possibilities. We have seen an abrupt turnaround of US foreign policy in the region, and all we do is continue our talk. I am pleased the government of Iran, the proud Muslim Brotherhood, and the honorable Islamic Jihad stood by our side during what should have been the time of our greatest triumph.
We have recieved at last, concessions from the Israelis, as they saw their primary benefactor suddenly dissapear. At their greatest time of weakness, we chose to negotiate. This plan has marked the Arab position for decades. Negotiation will get us nowhere so long as Israel remains in her imperial position. I am doubtful the Golan Heights will ever be returned to our friends in Syria.
I believe, in time, our friends will realize the inherent weakness of the Israeli position in the present day. Until that time, Hezbollah will remain committed to fighting the occupier, and resisting an imperialism which has lasted for far too long.
Joseph DeAngelis.
Representative for Hezbollah
There seems to be a rather extensive demand list from the Pro-Palestinian group and it is simply a manifestation of Olmert's ignorance that led to it. Nonethless, the two state solution seems to the best manner to promote peace in the region. The demands made by the Pro-Palestinian group are not all outragous. The settlements in Palestinian lands are violations of international law and the Palestinians have the right to a sovereign state devoid of an Israeli military presence. The $100 billion dollars in international aid seems rather exhorbitant; however, it will take a great deal of financial support from the US, Israel and the rest of the world to create a Palestine that will be conducive for peace in the region.
Ha'aretz
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