Arafat Bears the Responsibility

by Dr. Abdul-Sattar Kassem

Mr. Arafat, President of the Palestinian Authority, bears responsibility for the tension now prevailing within the Palestinian Authority and within Palestinian society at large. It was he who asked the members of the Legislative Council — whose term had already expired — to grant a vote of confidence to Mr. Mahmoud Abbas, while knowing perfectly well that Israel and America had never stopped pushing for his appointment as Prime Minister and for Dahlan’s appointment as the official responsible for security. It was not the national interest, fundamentally, that governed the granting of confidence to Abbas, nor is it the national interest that now governs the President’s stance toward Abbas’s performance. Both Arafat and Abbas support the Road Map, and both had previously led the Palestinian people to Oslo; both are fully aware of the internal rift that can result from submitting to Israeli and American security, social, political, and economic demands. How was Abbas a patriot two months ago, and is one no longer now? And how was Arafat’s decision correct two months ago, and is no longer so now? It is clear that the problem here is not a struggle over the national interest, but over personal interest and influence over this wretched people.

The Palestinian people are suffering killing, slaughter, displacement, arrest, and every kind of torment, while Arafat and Abbas amuse themselves with personal conflicts that only inflict further harm on the Palestinian people. Enough hiding behind the slogans of national interest and unity, and enough trafficking in them.

What is needed is to abandon the commitments made toward Israel, and to reorganize the Palestinian house by establishing a collective leadership (not a unified one) that would work immediately to eliminate rampant corruption and hold the corrupt accountable. It is also essential to dissolve the security apparatuses, with the exception of the police force, because they serve Israeli security and are incapable of defending Palestinian security, or the security of many of their own patriotic members. From there, work should proceed to reorganize the Palestine Liberation Organization in a manner that guarantees the representation of the various sectors of the Palestinian people, according to proper institutional and professional standards.

Source: Translated from the original Arabic, “عرفات يتحمل المسؤولية” by Dr. Abdul-Sattar Kassem.