The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is influenced a great deal by foreign
aid contributions for the simple reason that the two parties are heavily
dependent on these contributions in all respects. Israel, which is
relatively less dependent on foreign aid, receives direct and indirect
economic support from the United States and European Union, in addition, of
course, to material support in the form of military assistance.
One can speak of two reasons Israel receives this monetary backing: first
is the commitment that Europe has made to the survival of Israel as a form
of compensation/support after the suffering of the Jewish people in Europe
during World War II, but second and more important is the political
self-interest that drives both American and European support. Israel plays a
political and strategic role in the region that the United States and
European countries believe advances their interests. Thus, most of the
foreign aid that Israel receives is based on a mutual understanding over
common interests, which enhances the durability and long life of that aid.
Palestinians, as the weaker party, are more dependent on foreign aid.
Their assistance comes in part from Arab oil-producing countries, Saudi
Arabia in particular, but also from the European Union and the United
States. It comes at times in the form of government support for the
Palestinian Authority, and at other times is extended through international
development agencies to the Palestinian Authority or to Palestinian civil
society organizations.
An analysis of the foreign aid that comes to Palestinians is more
complicated because it is more varied. This aid is not based on perceived
mutual interests, but rather on humanitarian grounds or as an attempt to
influence the politics of the Palestinian people, whether internally (by
trying to direct the public debate in a certain direction) or by bluntly
trying to bend the political positions taken by the Palestinian people and
their leadership. This stands true for foreign aid coming from Arab and
non-Arab donors alike.
This characteristic, as well as Palestinian aid's diverse disbursement,
makes it less sustainable, more occasional and consequently less valuable
and less influential. One can think of two periods that clearly illustrate
the role of foreign aid in the conflict. When the Palestinian resistance was
at its height in the 1970s and early 80s, Arab oil-producing countries
wished to neutralize the growing political weight of Palestinians in
pan-Arab politics, for example, and manipulated their monetary support
accordingly. Later, from 1996 to 2000, the international donor community
dangled foreign aid as a carrot and stick before the Palestinian Authority
to influence its negotiating positions.
After the signing of the Oslo accords, attempts to tie foreign aid to
improving the relations between Palestinians and Israelis (dubbed
"people-to-people" programs) proved to be artificial. Foreign aid to
Palestinians has played a crucial role in humanitarian support and
development. However, the best outcomes for this aid have been restricted by
the ongoing political conflict and the constraints placed on the Palestinian
economy by the Israeli occupation and reoccupation. The naive aims of
politically motivated support also devalued the foreign aid effort as a
whole.
In the final analysis, attempts to use foreign aid as a means of
consolidating the peace process have not been successful by any measure. The
reason, of course, is not that making peace doesn’t require foreign aid, but
that without accompanying political effort, foreign aid cannot compensate
for defects and deficiencies in the structure of the political process
between Palestinians and Israelis. -Published 22/3/2004©bitterlemons.org
Ghassan Khatib is coeditor of bitterlemons.org and
bitterlemons-international.org. He is minister of labor in the Palestinian
government and for many years prior was featured in the press as a political
analyst.
Israel - Palästina:
Zur Notwendigkeit einer internationalen
Intervention