This week marks the 8th anniversary of the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin, who, together with Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, embarked on the Oslo Peace Process with the Palestinians. We all remember the scene of Rabin and Arafat reluctantly shaking hands on the White House Lawn on September 13, 1993. It was truly a historic moment, as leaders of both peoples, Israelis and Palestinians, publicly recognised the end of the Zero-Sum Game. The handshake, with all of the tensions surrounding it, signified the leader’s embracing the concept of two states between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.
The past 3 years of the Intifada have led people to question Arafat’s sincerity. In fact, many people believe that he does not want to create a Palestinian state beside Israel, but in fact, is still committed to the elimination of the Jewish state. There is debate within Israel over the creation of a Palestinian state. Israeli election results since the spring of 1996, swinging between Likud and Labour, have shown the fluctuations in public opinion vis-à-vis the peace process.
There have been some interesting developments in Israel in recent weeks. In October, a peace proposal, the “Geneva Accords,” developed by Israeli opposition politicians together with Palestinian officials, was made public. The plan was developed over 2 ½ years of discussions. It calls for Israeli relinquishment of sovereignty on the Temple Mount/Haram El Sharif, in return for Palestinian concession of the right of return of refugees to pre-1967 Israel. In addition, Israel will return most of the West Bank, as well as all of the Gaza Strip. The plan is based on American President Clinton’s ideas published after the breakdown in Israeli-Palestinian discussions under Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Yasser Arafat in Camp David in the summer of 2000.
The plan was heralded by many in the 100,000-strong rally in memory of Rabin held in early November in Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square as the “New Hope.” Many on the left believe that the plan lays out a framework for peace. The Sharon government has argued that opposition members should not be negotiating with the Palestinians. The arguments continue, and the level of political rhetoric seems to be on the rise once again. The day before the rally in Rabin Square was marred by the defacement of the memorial and a picture of Rabin. Sharon himself has publicly been called a traitor recently, echoing some of the anti-democratic verbal violence that preceded Rabin’s murder.
The separation fence continues to be built, closely following the pre-1967 Israel-Jordanian border. There is lots of debate about where the fence (in some cases it is a concrete wall, in others it is a series of electric fencing) should run. Is it a security fence, designed to limit the inflow of Palestinians into Israeli population centres? If so, then what about the Jewish settlements on the ‘other side’ of the fence? Or, is it outlining the future permanent border between Israel and Palestine? As the debate over the range of the fence rages, the purpose of its construction is also being hotly contested. Although the UN General Assembly approved a resolution demanding Israel halt construction of the fence, most Israelis hope that the fence will increase their security.
Last year, former Commander of the Israeli General Security Service Ami Ayalon and Sari Nusseibeih, head of the Al-Quds University and official in the Palestinian Authority responsible for Jerusalem, signed a Statement of Principles outlining their vision for 2 states, quite similar to the Geneva Accords. Their petition has so far received 100,000 Israeli and 60,000 Palestinian signatures to.
There has also been some tension between PM Sharon and Commander-in-Chief of the IDF, Moshe “Bogey” Ya’alon, over the government’s policy toward the Palestinians. Ya’alon has come under strong attack from Sharon over his suggestion that the current policy is not effective, and that the government should either strike hard against the Palestinian violence, or present a conciliatory path towards renewed negotiations.
Eight years after Rabin’s assassination, the Israeli public continues to hotly debate its relations with the Palestinians. The public discourse highlites the different opinions in Israeli society, and the approaches to dealing with the current situation. There is no turning back from the two-state solution, and Israel will continue to wait for the Palestinians to return to peaceful negotiations. Hopefully, the public debate in Israel will lead to the development new ideas that will improve the situation, as well as spark louder voices of conciliation amongst Palestinians.