I would like to respond to Mohamad Bydon's Nov. 21 article in The Dartmouth entitled "Re-humanizing the Palestinians." In his article, he argues that the Palestinian people are simply "demanding freedom, a homeland and a solution to their refugee crisis." I would like to assert that the legitimate Palestinian goals of "freedom, a homeland and a solution to their refugee crisis" cannot be attained if Palestinians do not simultaneously meet the equally necessary goal of recognizing the state of Israel's right to exist.
Mr. Bydon may well support a dual state solution to the current conflict between Israel and the Palestinians (he does not elaborate), allowing for both an independent Jewish state and an independent Palestinian state. Unfortunately, any support for the existence of two autonomous states is not prominent enough. The tone of his article suggests support for the Palestinian leadership who are pushing violently for an independent Arab state at the expense of a Jewish one.
In the Camp David talks in the summer of 2000, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak offered Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Yasir Arafat nearly all (91-96 percent) of the territory that he wanted, much to the chagrin of many Israelis. Mr. Arafat rejected the offer, and the failure of Mr. Barak's bold peace-making attempts cost him the leadership of Israel. Since the Barak-Arafat negotiations, Palestinian terrorists have claimed responsibility for hundreds of terror attacks.
If the Palestinians truly wanted two autonomous states, they would have immediately accepted Barak's concession of the majority of the West Bank, at least as a starting point for further negotiation. Therein lies a problem: many Palestinians do not want to create just an autonomous Palestinian state; rather, they want to create an independent Palestinian state at the expense of Israel's existence.
In addition to a desire of the Palestinian movement to de-recognize Israel politically, the Palestinian education system is raising a generation of children who have no knowledge of Israel's existence. At this time, PA schools do not acknowledge the existence of a nation called Israel. This year, the Center for Monitoring the Impact of Peace reviewed 58 different textbooks used in elementary and secondary schools within the Palestinian Authority. Not a single textbook mentioned Israel -- its land, its cities, its citizens -- in the text or on its maps. Instead, the books refer to Israel as the lands within the "Green Line," "the interior" or "the 1948 lands." As such, it is not possible for Palestinian schools to promote the possibility of peace. The notion of a relationship presupposes a reciprocal dialogue between two parties. If Israel does not exist to the Palestinians, how can any kind of relationship ever be possible?
It is ludicrous to suggest that any state, Israel included, should negotiate with a movement that calls for the demise of the state. That said, Israel needs to walk the fine line between being anti-Palestinian and opposing Palestinian terror. Israel, as the democratic power in the area, holds the responsibility to repeatedly attempt to engage the Palestinians in negotiations and peace talks. As such, Israel can play its part in the beginnings of mutual recognition. At the same time, however, Israel has no responsibility to maintain soft policy on Palestinian terror and violence.
This includes evidenced intended violence. On Jan. 6, Karine A, a Palestinian cargo ship was discovered carrying 50 tons of arms. Two days later, Omar Akawi, the captain of the ship, admitted that the weapons were indeed intended for the PA. In this case, Israel's mission is most difficult: it must curb the violence while remaining committed to the ideal of a lasting peace settlement.
In order for the Palestinians to gain and keep recognition from Israel, I would suggest that they begin by following in the footsteps of another Arab leader, King Abdullah of Jordan. On Nov. 10 of last year, he told the British government that he hoped the Arab world would acknowledge Israel's existence in exchange for the creation of an autonomous Palestinian state.
Mutual recognition is the necessary first step towards any possible Arab-Israeli agreement. In light of Israel's existing commitment to talking with the leaders of the PA and Arab nations, the responsibility now lies with Arab leaders to follow King Abdullah's lead towards continual unconditional recognition of Israel. Without this step, any other concessions towards peace will fail.
