Many pro-Palestine activists are just divisive
The people who are failing the long-suffering Palestinians are their own leaders, whose focus is on enriching themselves and their families instead of bringing about peace, writes Bassem Eid
EVERYONE appears to have an opinion on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. South Africans in particular display an interest in solving the problem, even more, it seems to me, than the Israelis and Palestinians themselves.
Unfortunately, almost all of those so dedicated to finding a solution have their own agendas, and these may not be to the advantage of either Palestinians or Israelis. A case in point is the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. As a Palestinian dedicated to working for peace between my people and our neighbours, I do not believe they are helping our cause. They are just creating more hatred and polarisation.
On Tuesday I was asked to talk at the University of Johannesburg. I criticised Israel for their settlements and the Palestinian Authority for their lack of leadership in helping the Palestinians, and began to speak on the boycott movement. It was at this point that my talk was disrupted by students wearing BDS and PSF T-shirts. They did not allow me to continue speaking, and the event had to be abandoned. As a campaigner for peace and human rights, I am used to hostile reactions from those who disagree with me. However, even in my own country I have never witnessed the kind of raw hatred and unreasoning aggression that confronted me on this occasion.
Had I been allowed to continue, I would have told them Jordan is about to import natural gas from Israel to the tune of $15 billion (R177.2bn). Will they now be boycotting Jordan? Natural gas?
There is no connection between the tactics and objectives of the BDS movement and the onthe-ground realities of the Middle East. Indeed, if you ask Palestinians what they want, they’ll tell you they want jobs, education and health. And the people who are failing them in this regard are their own leaders: Fatah under Mahmud Abbas in the West Bank, and Hamas in Gaza. The focus of Palestinian Authority leaders is on enriching themselves and their families, rather than serving the interests of the Palestinians. They are not a generation of leaders who are able to bring about a viable end to the conflict.
As for Hamas in the Gaza strip, it was they who provoked last year’s destructive war with Israel to gain support among their own people. They then cynically used their own population as human shields during the fighting to generate sympathy for their cause when innocent lives were lost. Hamas benefits from delaying the reconstruction of Gaza. It will use the money it receives to reconstruct the terror tunnels and replenish its missile arsenal. There is no hope in the near future to solve this mess.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is receiving less attention. The real focus at the moment is on the Islamic State (IS). This is the greatest threat to the world. Many Muslims feel let down by their leaders and want to take revenge on them. IS provides them with the opportunity to do this.
The Palestinians are tired of the peace process. Both sides have learnt to manage the conflict, rather than solve it. While Israelis are coming into the West Bank to do business, the Palestinians are choosing to buy Israeli goods. There is only one way to bring about peace between Israelis and Palestinians, and that is for both sides to have sufficient good will to negotiate their own peace deal.
BDS spokespeople justify calling for boycotts that will result in increased economic hardships for the Palestinians by asserting that Palestinians are willing to suffer such deprivations in order to achieve their freedom. It goes without saying that they live in comfortable circumstances elsewhere in the world, and will not suffer any such hardship themselves. It would seem that the BDS movement, in its determination to eradicate Israel, is prepared to fight to the last drop of Palestinian blood. As a Palestinian who actually lives in East Jerusalem and hopes to build a better life for his family and his community, this is the kind of “pro-Palestinian activism” we could well do without.
Bassem Eid is a human rights activist, political analyst and commentator on the IsraeliPalestinian conflict.