The key word is 'bizonal'
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Talks between Turkish and Greek leaders on the reunification of Cyprus are on a tight schedule, just the way it's taught in conflict resolution courses. Rule No. 1: Set a hard and fast deadline, to create the sense of urgency and the concern over missing a chance that won't return. The local leaders are prompted by a sense of extreme urgency: If they don't reach an agreement within a month, Greece and Turkey - the "guarantor nations" - will intervene. And if that doesn't help either, Kofi Annan, secretary-general of the United Nations, will put his plan to unite the island to a referendum to be held within the two Cypriot communities on April 21.
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The key word here is "bizonal," with the borders between the Turkish and Greek zones (after certain changes) left open, and all fences, walls and obstacles removed.
The comparison between Cyprus and the situation here almost begs to be made: What is the difference between the physical and geopolitical separation here and the two-nation federation in Cyprus? How is it that international peace-seekers mobilize the prospect of membership in the European Union to achieve unification in Cyprus, and here they offer membership in the European Union to Israel as an incentive for dividing the land into two states?
Are not the values in the Annan Plan of a common home, recognition of separate identities and the obligation to prevent the tragic past from ever repeating itself, applicable in Israel/Palestine, with only the separation fence serving as a symbol of the refusal to dream of a "bizonal" partnership?
There may be a message in the fact that the enlightened world (after Bosnia and Northern Ireland) is united again around a plan that negates fences and ethnic separation, and resolves to create a federated structure as a solution to intercommunal conflict. And don't tell us that the Turkish-Greek conflict is less serious than the Israeli-Palestinian one.
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Twilight zone / Social studies lesson
By Gideon Levy
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A holiday excursion to the hidden side of the Land of Israel - the ruins of lost villages in the Galilee - led by a guide from Hurfish.
Look at this prickly pear plant. It's covering a mound of stones. This mound of stones was once a house, or a shed, or a sheep pen, or a school, or a stone fence. Once - until 56 years ago, a generation and a half ago - not that long ago. The cactus separated the houses and one lot from another, a living fence that is now also the only monument to the life that once was here. Take a look at the grove of pines around the prickly pear as well. Beneath it there was once a village. All of its 405 houses were destroyed in one day in 1948 and its 2,350 inhabitants scattered all over. No one ever told us about this. The pines were planted right afterward by the Jewish National Fund, to which we contributed in our childhood, every Friday, in order to cover the ruins, to cover the possibility of return and maybe also a little of the shame and the guilt.
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Bush to reassure PM: Israel won't have to retreat to Green Line
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The United States will assure Israel that it will not have to withdraw to the Green Line in a future permanent settlement with the Palestinians.
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Hmmm. I thought future negotiations would be between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Apparently not. I wonder how the Palestinians feel about this? I wonder if the entire Arab world knows this? And they wonder why they hate us.
This is an interesting interview with the late Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. It's written by Amira Hass who wrote Drinking the Sea at Gaza: Days and Nights in a Land Under Siege. Amira's book is a must read.
Balance of pain
By Amira Hass
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Don't you think that a struggle along the lines of the one conducted by Gandhi in India would bring you more achievements?
"Are those with the weapons, who occupy my land, the ones who will order me to abandon my weapon and decide for me what means I am obliged and entitled to adopt in order to struggle? The Palestinian people has reached this situation because of its suffering, because all the doors of the future have been closed to them. If I plant flowers, I am barred from exporting them. If I want to import cheap cement, the Israelis don't allow it. We must look for the cause in order to deal with the problem."
But it's also necessary to examine the means of struggle, isn't it?
"That is also a question for the Israelis, for whom everything is permitted. Tanks, planes, all the military and economic means. Did they use humane means but were stopped by someone? Is the occupation humane or aggressive?"
How do you see the future of the Palestinian children, those who are now 8 years old?
"Our people is suffering from Israeli aggression and force. The Israelis are using the height of the strength they possess. But I emphasize that the future, in the long term, will be on the side of the Palestinian people."
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Three Generals, One Martyr
by Uri Avnery
thanks to Aron's Israel Peace Weblog
New documentary takes Israeli-Palestinian conflict coverage to task |
