getting hot in Palestine...
Alright, most readers of this blog probably already know the results of the Palestinian elections. But then I walked into our studios this morning to find a television screen showing a Fatah rally in Gaza, of all places! ay-ay-ay!
This raises so many things for me: the dynamics between countries in international relations; the right-ward political shift that seems to be taking hold and spreading throughout Europe, the US, and the Middle East; the slow chipping away of a universal secular political dialogue and its replacement by one more divisive, more rigid, and much easier to co-opt.
I really hope I'm over reacting on this. I just fear I'm not. I have that feeling in my gut again and it's creeping into my throat. (Then again, the throat constriction could be a result of meeting James Yee this morning--the former Muslim Chaplin at Guantanamo).
The last thing I want to see is fragmentation among Palestinians, but then Political Islamic parties also make me a bit nervous--quite nervous actually. I apologize if I offend any readers' sensibilities about that, but I can't lie about it. I'll discuss if anyone is interested. Finally, I do have faith in Palestinians' solidarity. That, at least, I can hold onto.
Hamas to talk 'partnership'
Friday 27 January 2006, 15:58 Makka Time, 12:58 GMT
A senior member of Hamas says he will meet Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian President, in the coming days to discuss forming a "political partnership".
Ismail Haniya, who led Hamas to its surprise win in Wednesday's parliamentary election, made the announcement as Abbas himself said he would be asking Hamas to form a new Palestinian government.
"I have not asked anybody so far to form the government but we are leading towards contacts and consultations with all the blocs in parliament," Abbas told reporters on Friday.
"Of course, I am going to ask the majority party to form the government," he added.
Clashes
His comments came amid reports of clashes between supporters of Hamas and followers of Abbas's Fatah party, the former ruling power which was dramatically swept out in Wednesday's poll.
According to reports, the rival gangs exchanged gunfire in the town of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, leaving at least two people injured.
Amid worries that such clashes may escalate, Haniya's call for a partnership has been seen by some as an effort to heal rifts after Hamas's shock victory by building a government of national unity.
Hamas won 76 out of the 132 seats in parliament in Wednesday's election, thrashing Abbas's previously dominant Fatah faction which won only 43 seats.
With Middle East peace diplomacy in limbo, Israel has ruled out negotiations, frozen since 2000, with any Palestinian administration involving Hamas.
The group is sworn to Israel's destruction and has been behind dozens of suicide bombings.
Calling on Fatah members to join the new government Moussa Abu Marzouk, a senior Hamas official, said in Damascus the party had "a clear vision for a government of unity," describing it as "one in which everyone joins".
However, Fatah leaders, speaking after the party's crushing defeat, have said they wanted no part in such a coalition.
'Wake-up call'
Hamas's capture of 76 seats in the 132-member parliament against 43 for Fatah has been widely portrayed as nothing short of a political earthquake in the Middle East, triggered by voter disenchantment with corruption and the failure of peace efforts.
"The people have punished Fatah for its mistakes and for internal divisions," said Nabil Shaath, a senior Fatah official and a former cabinet minister.
In Washington George Bush, the US President, also acknowledged that Hamas's electoral sweep represented a "wake-up call" for the Palestinian leadership, but said the United States would have no dealings with a Hamas-led government while the group continued to advocate violence.
"I have made it very clear ... that a political party that articulates the destruction of Israel as part of a platform is a party with which we will not deal," he told a White House news conference on Thursday.
Acting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has also said he will refuse to negotiate with a Palestinian government that includes Hamas.
"If a government is led by or includes Hamas, the Palestinian Authority will turn into a terror organisation," he said.
The suprise outcome of the Palestinian vote is now certain to be a key issue in Israel's own election scheduled for March 28.
Commenting on the outcome of the vote, Bush urged Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to stay in office so the United States could keep open a diplomatic channel with the Palestinian government.
Democracy drive
The Bush administration, which has made promoting democracy in the Middle East a priority for its second term, had pressed Abbas to hold Wednesday's parliamentary election despite polls showing Hamas would do well.
Analysts have said Hamas' shock victory, giving it 76 seats in the 132-seat parliament, could bury any hope of reviving peace talks with Israel and stop Bush from achieving his goal of a settlement creating two states within the next few years.
However, Bush rejected susggestions that the Hamas win had finally killed off the stalled peace process.
"Peace is never dead, because people want peace," he said.
Observers say Hamas' win, bringing an end to four decades of rule by the Fatah Party, stunned even Hamas leaders, who mounted a well-organized campaign but have no experience in government.
Fatah chief Mahmoud Abbas, who was elected last year to a four-year term as president of the Palestinian Authority, has yet to decide how closely to work with the group.
He has said he may go around the new government to talk peace with Israel.
"I am committed to implementing the program on which you elected me a year ago," he said in a televised speech after the election result was announced.
"It is a program based on negotiations and peaceful settlement with Israel."
Nonetheless the cabinet and legislature must approve any major initiative by the Palestinian president, giving Hamas tremendous influence over peace moves.
Aljazeera.Net - Hamas to talk 'partnership'
This raises so many things for me: the dynamics between countries in international relations; the right-ward political shift that seems to be taking hold and spreading throughout Europe, the US, and the Middle East; the slow chipping away of a universal secular political dialogue and its replacement by one more divisive, more rigid, and much easier to co-opt.
I really hope I'm over reacting on this. I just fear I'm not. I have that feeling in my gut again and it's creeping into my throat. (Then again, the throat constriction could be a result of meeting James Yee this morning--the former Muslim Chaplin at Guantanamo).
The last thing I want to see is fragmentation among Palestinians, but then Political Islamic parties also make me a bit nervous--quite nervous actually. I apologize if I offend any readers' sensibilities about that, but I can't lie about it. I'll discuss if anyone is interested. Finally, I do have faith in Palestinians' solidarity. That, at least, I can hold onto.
Hamas to talk 'partnership'
Friday 27 January 2006, 15:58 Makka Time, 12:58 GMT
A senior member of Hamas says he will meet Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian President, in the coming days to discuss forming a "political partnership".
Ismail Haniya, who led Hamas to its surprise win in Wednesday's parliamentary election, made the announcement as Abbas himself said he would be asking Hamas to form a new Palestinian government.
"I have not asked anybody so far to form the government but we are leading towards contacts and consultations with all the blocs in parliament," Abbas told reporters on Friday.
"Of course, I am going to ask the majority party to form the government," he added.
Clashes
His comments came amid reports of clashes between supporters of Hamas and followers of Abbas's Fatah party, the former ruling power which was dramatically swept out in Wednesday's poll.
According to reports, the rival gangs exchanged gunfire in the town of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, leaving at least two people injured.
Amid worries that such clashes may escalate, Haniya's call for a partnership has been seen by some as an effort to heal rifts after Hamas's shock victory by building a government of national unity.
Hamas won 76 out of the 132 seats in parliament in Wednesday's election, thrashing Abbas's previously dominant Fatah faction which won only 43 seats.
With Middle East peace diplomacy in limbo, Israel has ruled out negotiations, frozen since 2000, with any Palestinian administration involving Hamas.
The group is sworn to Israel's destruction and has been behind dozens of suicide bombings.
Calling on Fatah members to join the new government Moussa Abu Marzouk, a senior Hamas official, said in Damascus the party had "a clear vision for a government of unity," describing it as "one in which everyone joins".
However, Fatah leaders, speaking after the party's crushing defeat, have said they wanted no part in such a coalition.
'Wake-up call'
Hamas's capture of 76 seats in the 132-member parliament against 43 for Fatah has been widely portrayed as nothing short of a political earthquake in the Middle East, triggered by voter disenchantment with corruption and the failure of peace efforts.
"The people have punished Fatah for its mistakes and for internal divisions," said Nabil Shaath, a senior Fatah official and a former cabinet minister.
In Washington George Bush, the US President, also acknowledged that Hamas's electoral sweep represented a "wake-up call" for the Palestinian leadership, but said the United States would have no dealings with a Hamas-led government while the group continued to advocate violence.
"I have made it very clear ... that a political party that articulates the destruction of Israel as part of a platform is a party with which we will not deal," he told a White House news conference on Thursday.
Acting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has also said he will refuse to negotiate with a Palestinian government that includes Hamas.
"If a government is led by or includes Hamas, the Palestinian Authority will turn into a terror organisation," he said.
The suprise outcome of the Palestinian vote is now certain to be a key issue in Israel's own election scheduled for March 28.
Commenting on the outcome of the vote, Bush urged Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to stay in office so the United States could keep open a diplomatic channel with the Palestinian government.
Democracy drive
The Bush administration, which has made promoting democracy in the Middle East a priority for its second term, had pressed Abbas to hold Wednesday's parliamentary election despite polls showing Hamas would do well.
Analysts have said Hamas' shock victory, giving it 76 seats in the 132-seat parliament, could bury any hope of reviving peace talks with Israel and stop Bush from achieving his goal of a settlement creating two states within the next few years.
However, Bush rejected susggestions that the Hamas win had finally killed off the stalled peace process.
"Peace is never dead, because people want peace," he said.
Observers say Hamas' win, bringing an end to four decades of rule by the Fatah Party, stunned even Hamas leaders, who mounted a well-organized campaign but have no experience in government.
Fatah chief Mahmoud Abbas, who was elected last year to a four-year term as president of the Palestinian Authority, has yet to decide how closely to work with the group.
He has said he may go around the new government to talk peace with Israel.
"I am committed to implementing the program on which you elected me a year ago," he said in a televised speech after the election result was announced.
"It is a program based on negotiations and peaceful settlement with Israel."
Nonetheless the cabinet and legislature must approve any major initiative by the Palestinian president, giving Hamas tremendous influence over peace moves.
Aljazeera.Net - Hamas to talk 'partnership'
posted by smokey spice at 10:06 AM
3 Comments:
Hi Smokey, long time no see :)
I think this is the end of direct US involvment with Palestinians, which may be a good thing. I don't really have a clue, but it seems things can be much worse than they've been the last 10 years, so any change is bound to be a good change.
That's my attempt at optimism, anyway! Best I can do.
Not sure what you mean by a "shift to the right" - Europe and Canada have been pretty far to the left sonce the Cold War ended. They have a LONG way to go shifting rightwards before they cross the middle of the political spectrum :)
Hi PC.. thanks for the welcome! It has been a while, hasn't it.
I guess 'right' isn't the best word to use for what I wanted to say. I generally associate religion and institutional militancy with the right, but that's collapsing the groups. Thanks for pointing that out. I meant conservative.
Your comment made me wonder, though, what states would you see as the middle of the spectrum?
And are we (including me) actually talking about a liberal-conservative spectrum rather than a left-right?
Hey smokey, about your popups... are you using something called "Nedstat" by any chance?
Another blogger I read just fixed this yesterday... check the little chat window on the right, they were talking about it there, and how to fix it:
http://bintal3raq.blogspot.com/
About your comment, though! I also associate religion with the right. You can't really be devoutly religious without being conservative, in my opinion.
"Institutional militancy" ... I associate militancy with a methodology, not a political philosophy. There are just as many historical examples of a militant left as a militant right.
"Your comment made me wonder, though, what states would you see as the middle of the spectrum?"
OK, assuming you mean "nations" when you say states... I guess maybe I'd put Britain in the middle, politically. Nowhere else in "old" Europe. The US is leaning right, currently, but 10 years ago it was leaning left, and it's bound to start going that way again soon. Seems to be about a 10 year cycle in the US. We haven't been far to the left since the 70s, and not far to the right since the 50s. I know you probably disagree with me on this, but that's how I see it :)
"And are we (including me) actually talking about a liberal-conservative spectrum rather than a left-right?"
I consider myself a conservative liberal, but I call myself a libertarian, because "Liberal" doesn't really mean what it used to. Liberal is a synonym for progressive now.
Anyhow,
progressive = left
conservative = right.
far left = socialism
far right = fascism
At least, that used to be true. Things are really confusing now.
An anarchist is a libertarian (like me) who has gone one step too far...and such people (me inluded) don't fit well on a traditional political spectrum.
Another thing that doesn't fit very well now is radical fundamentalism... seems kinda weird.
Things don't seem very clear-cut to me anymore. What do you think?
PS-sorry if this comment doesn't make any sense, it's past my bedtime :O
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