Palestinians feel they were deceived by a PR exercise. Now aid carries disruptive caveats and the peace process is just a circus
Rachel Shabi
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 7 July 2010
"If there are Palestinian textbooks on the failure of the Camp David talks with Israel in 2000, they ought to carry diagrams illustrating the use of smoke-and-mirrors tactics. In this case, the confusing burst of smoke used by the Israeli side to such spectacular effect was the "generous offer" made by then Israeli prime minster, Ehud Barak – a now mythically impressive peace proposal which Palestinian president Yasser Arafat, it is claimed, both stubbornly and stupidly refused....
A toxic, humiliating consequence of those peace process years that began with the 1993 Oslo accords has been the creation of an aid economy in the occupied Palestinian territories. Palestinians, who place no less emphasis on education, economy and good business than do their Israeli neighbours, are now ashamed to point out that they are among the most aid-dependent societies.
There is no good reason for this: it is absolutely a decision made by the international community, to allay some of the more devastating consequences of Israel's occupation while refusing to push for a political agreement. Now the aid carries its own disruptive caveats: for instance, USAID feeds funds into swathes of the Palestinian NGO sector, but only on condition that documents are signed to assure that the organisations to be funded are Hamas-free. Observers say that civil society organisations and grassroots groups, pre-Oslo, were far better able to take care of Palestinians than the mushrooming, internationally dependent and politically compromised NGO economy that currently powers Palestine......"
Rachel Shabi
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 7 July 2010
"If there are Palestinian textbooks on the failure of the Camp David talks with Israel in 2000, they ought to carry diagrams illustrating the use of smoke-and-mirrors tactics. In this case, the confusing burst of smoke used by the Israeli side to such spectacular effect was the "generous offer" made by then Israeli prime minster, Ehud Barak – a now mythically impressive peace proposal which Palestinian president Yasser Arafat, it is claimed, both stubbornly and stupidly refused....
A toxic, humiliating consequence of those peace process years that began with the 1993 Oslo accords has been the creation of an aid economy in the occupied Palestinian territories. Palestinians, who place no less emphasis on education, economy and good business than do their Israeli neighbours, are now ashamed to point out that they are among the most aid-dependent societies.
There is no good reason for this: it is absolutely a decision made by the international community, to allay some of the more devastating consequences of Israel's occupation while refusing to push for a political agreement. Now the aid carries its own disruptive caveats: for instance, USAID feeds funds into swathes of the Palestinian NGO sector, but only on condition that documents are signed to assure that the organisations to be funded are Hamas-free. Observers say that civil society organisations and grassroots groups, pre-Oslo, were far better able to take care of Palestinians than the mushrooming, internationally dependent and politically compromised NGO economy that currently powers Palestine......"
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