Palestine Under the Feet of the Factions

by Dr. Abdul-Sattar Kassem

4/6/2005

Mr. Mahmoud Abbas has decided to postpone the date of the Palestinian “legislative” elections — which are, in truth, elections for the Palestinian Council, a body with very limited powers. In doing so, the President of the Palestinian Authority has cast his previous assurances about the announced date, 17 July 2000, into the basket of his own impotence, bowing before factional interests and perhaps Israeli-American interests as well, which have long fed on national interests. In doing so, he strikes a blow to his own cohesion and reveals his inability to shape the national decision in the face of pressure from those who elected him and stood with him to secure his rise to power.

Fatah has not yet settled its internal affairs, and the homeland must follow along, whether it likes it or not. To this day the movement remains uncertain about which electoral system best serves its interests: the district system, the proportional system, or a mixed system? Which system is best for increasing the number of seats it can win in the coming elections? It is also uncertain about who will lead Fatah in the elections: the old guard, or the young leadership? How is this to be decided? Through internal primary elections within the old Fatah lists, or within new Fatah lists that bring in whoever happens to show up to swell the movement’s ranks? The old guard has its own calculations, through which it wants to remain dominant, while the Fatah field activists who reject monopolization and corruption have their own calculations, through which they want renewal.

As long as matters within Fatah remain unresolved, matters within the homeland must remain unresolved too. And what harm is there to the homeland? It has been under occupation since 1948, and it can wait a few more years. The Palestinian faction is what matters most, and the homeland has no value without the faction. Indeed, were it not for the faction, feelings of despair would never have crept into people; were it not for despair, silence would never have been kept over the Oslo Accord; were it not for the Oslo Accord, corruption would never have spread; and were it not for corruption, there would never have emerged this class of traitors trampling on the blood of the martyrs, and of exploiters living off the sweat of the poor.

So what, then, is this homeland, and what is liberation? The occupied homeland is an investment project, and its liberation might be a risky venture that would damage pockets, positions, and means of exploitation. Let it remain under the feet, no harm done, while the media carries statements overflowing with expressions of concern, belonging, and affirmations of the Palestinians’ full rights.

Perhaps the postponement even serves Israeli and American interests. The Islamic movement threatens strong competition in the coming elections, and if the opposition unites, it is expected to easily win a majority of the seats. There is no doubt this troubles America and Israel and places the self-rule agreements in jeopardy. The interests of America and Israel inevitably converge with the interests of the corrupt, who unite in search of tricks and stratagems enabling them to exclude the Palestinian people and its loyal forces, and to keep the corrupt, influential forces in their positions.

Good intentions are not enough to restore the health of the homeland and its citizens, and if Abbas is among those who carry enlightened ideas, his lack of courage will make them explode inside his own head.

Source: Translated from the original Arabic, “فلسطين تحت أقدام الفصائل” by Dr. Abdul-Sattar Kassem.