The plight of the Palestinians and the oppressive nature of the Tel Aviv regime have always been a part of the political psyche of Malaysians, notably the Malays and Muslims.
Sadly, more often than not, this issue has been used to win votes, especially in the Malay/Muslim heartland, pushing the real concerns behind.
The rhetoric is sometimes mind-boggling, defying logic. It is easy to say that Israel is an illegal entity that must be destroyed, that the Jews can live anywhere in the world except Palestine and that the Jews are the enemies of Islam because the religion says so.
Add a local perspective to it and you have accusations like Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim being an Israel supporter and a Jewish agent, and his political nemesis Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad being a hypocrite because he met Israel politicians and Jewish lobbyists — all in the name of political expediency.
This column has, for so many years, come out in support of the Palestinians, but what many supporters of the cause have to accept is the reality on the ground.
And the reality is: illegal nation Israel is recognised by the UN and is the staunchest ally of world superpower the US; its military might (and that of its allies) far outweighs that of the Muslim world; and Palestinian suffering — in a modern history where many conflicts are resolved in a short time frame — has been going on for far too long.
The conflict is in its 64th year. A child born in 1948, when the first Arab-Israel war erupted, is now a grandfather. He, his children and grandchildren have lived in misery ever since and have not seen peace or experienced economic prosperity in their lifetime.
While pressure must continue to be exerted on Israel — the oppressor in the conflict — to force it to cede political concessions, we must also look and support proposals that are already on the negotiation table.
It is better for us to help end the conflict sooner rather than later and ease the misery of the Palestinians and not allow the conflict to extend to another generation.
So, local politicians using the Palestinian issue as a platform to win votes in the coming general election are plain disgusting.
Kicking out the Jews and abolishing the state of Israel — a popular rallying cry and what some Malays/Muslims here want — will never happen. Palestine has to become two states.
A peaceful Middle East with a Palestinian independent state and an Israel at ease with its Arabian neighbours have the potential to turn this part of the world that faces the Mediterranean Sea into another prosperous Arab Gulf region. Only peace can bring jobs, business, schools and a thriving economy, and eradicate poverty.
Let’s look at what is on the negotiation table. There are many failed past agreements and accords, including the Jarring mission (1967), the Rogers Plan (1969), the Reagan Plan (1982), the Madrid conference (1991), the “almost successful” Oslo Accord (1993), the Camp David summit (2000), the Taba summit (2001), the Arab peace initiative or the Beirut Declaration (2002), the Road Map for Peace and the Geneva Accord (2003), the Sharm el-Sheik summit (2005) and the still ongoing initiatives of the Madrid Quartet — the US, the EU, Russia and the UN.
Today’s peace talk has basically stalled and efforts to get both the Palestinians and Israelis to rekindle negotiations are being hampered by Israel’s determination to pursue settlement activity and a lack of strong international pressure, notably by the US, to halt new settlements in the West Bank. But a clear formula has emerged from this long process of negotiations — acceptance of the two-state solution.
This will see the establishment of an independent Palestine alongside the state of Israel, which is basically based on the 1967 borders that include the Gaza Strip and West Bank.
This formula is strongly promoted by the US and the EU, accepted by the UN and the Vatican, and slowly but surely gaining interest among the conflict-tired population of Israel and the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. In fact, the borders are in line with UN Resolution 242, which called for the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from all territories occupied in 1967.
US President Barack Obama, in a major address to the Muslim world in Cairo, Egypt, in 2009, reiterated the support of the US for the two-state solution.
He said: “For decades, there has been a stalemate, two people with legitimate aspirations, each with a painful history that makes compromise elusive. It is easy to point fingers — for Palestinians to point to the displacement brought by Israel’s founding and for the Israelis to point to the constant hostility and attacks throughout its history from within its borders as well as beyond.
But if we see this conflict from one side or the other, then we will be blind to the truth. The only resolution is for the aspirations of both sides to be met through two states, where Israelis and Palestinians each live in peace and security.”
The Muslim world welcomed Obama’s clarion call, but the US’s seeming lack of commitment to use its political influence to nudge Israel, which is in a better position to make concessions, at the negotiation table disappointed many. The Israel political leadership will not move towards a settlement without pressure from the US, and Obama knows this.
On the Arab side, the two-state solution is acceptable as presented in the Beirut Declaration, which is basically a “peace for land deal”. Among others, the declaration called for the withdrawal of Israel from all Arab territories occupied since June 1967 (which was in tune with UN Resolution 242), Israel’s acceptance of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, and a just solution to the Palestinian refugee problem.
In return, all Arab states would establish “normal relations with Israel” and consider the Arab-Israel conflict “ended”. The devil, however, is in the details — settlement issues, which Israel will not give in to, the status of Jerusalem and whether financial compensation is a “just” replacement for the refugees giving up their right to return to their homeland.
If the Arab world is willing to accept the two-state solution and make peace with the Israelis, then Malaysia is in no position to oppose. Although we would like to be seen as championing the Palestinian cause, as evident on the local political scene, we are an insignificant player in the overall picture of finding a comprehensive peace settlement in the Middle East.
Talk, like driving out the Jews and asking for bigger land for the Palestinians instead of the 1967 borders, is cheap, especially spoken from the comfort of our homes or in a political rally.
So, instead of spewing out political rhetoric, the Muslim world should strive to help end the suffering of the Palestinians.
To some, an international jihad against Israel is even a cause worth considering. War, anyone?
The Palestinians — Hamas, Hizbullah and Fatah — will fight but neither the rest of the Arab world nor members of the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation, of which Malaysia is a member, have the stomach for it.
Azam Aris is executive editor at The Edge. This article appeared in the Forum page of The Edge Malaysia, Issue 896, Feb 6-12, 2012
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