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Die Rettung der
Palästinenser:
Gewaltlosigkeit
Wir behaupten, dass das
politische Schachspiel herumgedreht werden könnte, wenn die Palästinenser
beginnen würden, das demokratische Spiel zu spielen...
The Palestinians' Rescue:
Non-violence
Akram Baker and Gordon Woo
The continuation of the violent status quo in the
Palestinian-Israeli conflict is not inevitable. Nor are the parties so
exhausted that they are ready to accept any "solution." Despite what
diplomats and pundits may say, next to nothing is being done to end the
conflict. And disregarding conventional wisdom, we believe that the power to
end the conflict lies with the Palestinians.
Democracy, or the claim of democracy, is what counts these days in
Washington and the capitals of Europe. A cornerstone of democracy is the
right to non-violent public protest. As vehemently as coercive violence is
condemned and punished as terrorism (even when it is legitimate resistance),
so peaceful protest is widely recognized and accepted as a legitimate
expression of democracy. The use of military force to suppress non-violent
protest is universally deplored, not least in the U.S., as a violation of
human rights and democratic principles. Mowing down non-violent protesters
shames the name of democracy. Yet once protests turn violent, the right to
self-defence excuses the worst excesses of military repression.
In chess, the term "Zugzwang" describes a situation where a player has been
so out-thought that no good move is left. After suffering years of
collective punishment at the hands of the Israeli occupation, Palestinians
may feel trapped in this hopeless position. Every move in the Intifada has
been countered effectively by the Israeli military, escalating the conflict.
We suggest that the political chessboard can be turned around if
Palestinians start playing the democracy game. The political vacuum that
would arise from any cessation of violence would be inherently unstable, and
would have to be filled with democratic protest. Of course, there are
numerous alternative protest actions. A successful, non-violent Intifada
requires strategic thinking just as much as any military campaign.
There is a coherent strategy - were the Palestinians able to follow it -
which would lead to the end game of a just peace as broadly envisaged in the
Quartet "road map" and fulfilling the rights of the Palestinian and Israeli
peoples. This strategy is fully democratic in that it is based on finding a
non-violent balance between Israeli and Palestinian public opinion. It is
the opposite of surrender.
The Israel-Palestine conflict is stuck at an equilibrium point of
tit-for-tat violence. For as long as Israeli civilians are attacked, Israeli
public opinion will favour a robust military response. Conversely, for as
long as the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory persists,
Palestinian public opinion will favour a continuation of the armed struggle.
However, an alternative equilibrium point exists: one of mutual
non-violence, which can be supported strongly by both the Israeli and
Palestinian publics. The way to reach this political haven is through a
series of gradual steps, each of which is carefully planned and constructed
to maximize the consensus for non-violence on both the Israeli and
Palestinian sides.
To illustrate the principle, Israeli public opinion would condone the
shooting of armed fighters and even stone-throwing youths, but abhor the
murder of wheelchair-bound protesters at a checkpoint. The worldwide
democratic backlash against any Israeli military overreaction, as perhaps
captured on video, would provide impetus for further non-violent steps
toward peace.
Implementation of a strategic campaign of non-violence requires
organization. Ideally, a popular Palestinian leader might inspire this. But
even without the presence of such leadership, modern communications make
mass coordinated action easier to organize than during previous campaigns of
non-violence. For example, in 2000, British government policy on a fuel tax
was reversed by a leaderless group of truck drivers, armed not with guns or
bombs, but with cellular telephones.
The Palestinians need to realize that no government, Western or Israeli, is
going to do them any favours. Forget the talk and look at what is happening
on the ground. Israel has consolidated its grip on the Occupied Territories
and feels no real pressure to relinquish them. Israeli settlement activity
has accelerated at a horrific pace, soon to doom the two-state solution to
the dustbin of history. The vaunted Quartet has been immobilized and
neutralized (mostly by its own lack of resolve). The Palestinian leadership
has to accept the fact that while armed resistance (except suicide bombings)
is legally sanctioned, it has brought the Palestinian people nothing but
misery these past three years, and has done nothing to advance their goals
of independence.
The US and Europe also need to recognize that just "stopping the Palestinian
violence" is a dead-end street, because the Israeli occupation is in itself
an even more severe form of violence, and nature abhors a vacuum of any
kind. However, it is the Palestinians who have the capability to take their
fate into their own hands and lead us all out of the wilderness.
In the post-Sept. 11, 2001 world, democratic governments are deaf to the
voices of violence (and conveniently brand as "terrorism" all forms of
non-state sponsored violence), but are obligated to listen to mass popular
protest. This is where Palestinian strength resides; not with its inferior
military assets, but with its superior democratic assets - the Palestinian
people themselves.
Akram Baker is chairman of Brandicate Consultants and
co-president of the Arab Western Summit of Skills. He is a frequent
commentator on Middle Eastern issues. Gordon Woo is a strategic risk
analyst. Since Sept. 11 he has focused on political risk assessment,
specifically terrorism issues. The two wrote this commentary for The Daily
Star, August 12, 2004,
http://www.dailystar.com.lb
Deutsch
The Common Ground News Service (CGNews) provides news,
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