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A Palestinian Women’s Perspective on the Security ProblemSaturday 01 Feb 2003
author: Jerusalem Center for Women (jcw@palnet.com)
summary
It is difficult to comprehend the bloody era in which we now find ourselves. What began at the 1991 Madrid conference as an attempt at parity and historical compromise, establishing international law and United Nations resolution 242 as the peace process terms of reference, was implemented in such a way as to destroy the very concept of “land for peace.” Only the need to provide security to Israeli citizens was considered, while the need to guarantee security to the Palestinian people has been ignored. This, we believe, is one of the gravest problems plaguing the peace process and one that continues today.
AN OPEN LETTER TO THE ISRAELI PUBLIC
A Palestinian Women’s Perspective on the Security Problem
Jerusalem Center for Women
It is difficult to comprehend the bloody era in which we now find ourselves. What began at the 1991 Madrid conference as an attempt at parity and historical compromise, establishing international law and United Nations resolution 242 as the peace process terms of reference, was implemented in such a way as to destroy the very concept of “land for peace.” Only the need to provide security to Israeli citizens was considered, while the need to guarantee security to the Palestinian people has been ignored. This, we believe, is one of the gravest problems plaguing the peace process and one that continues today.
Throughout the entire post-Oslo period, the building of illegal settlements continued. Bypass roads linking those settlements sliced up the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, destroying the territorial continuity of the Palestinian land that was become the state of Palestine (the June 4, 1967 borders). Subsequent Israeli governments placed the political responsibility for safeguarding these illegal settlements and the settlers on the Palestinian security services, while at the same time offering the Palestinian Authority security and civil control solely over Palestinian population centers (Areas A). In practice, the situation has been impossible, but even more significant was its demoralizing effect. There was, of course, no comparable safeguard for the Palestinians in their villages and on their land.
By implementing this one-sided vision of security, the Israeli government sought to protect the personal safety of its citizens and to control as much Palestinian land as possible. But the result was that Palestinians lost faith in credibility of the peace process. Palestinian despair increased as our daily conditions worsened. The loss of more land; the demolition of more homes; and the closure of our towns coupled with the experience of daily humiliation at the surrounding Israeli checkpoints led to frustration, anger and a loss of faith in the peace process—and finally to the eruption of the Intifada for Independence.
Security for Israelis will not be achieved by shelling residential areas, destroying homes, killing innocent civilians, tightening closures, harshening economic realities, subjecting 3.5 million Palestinian to siege and curfew, humiliating Palestinians at checkpoints and assassinating activists. Nor will security for Palestinians be achieved by killing Israeli civilians. But there will be no end to these great losses until the concept of security is revised to serve Palestinians as well as Israelis.
Experience has proved that only a just peace is the way to security for both sides. We call upon Israeli society, and Israeli women in particular, to pressure their government to end the occupation, and to join our quest to work together to build a new concept of security. Through negotiations that have a clear timetable for ending the occupation—in line with international law and backed by international guarantees—both sides can live securely and in peace. We are confident that the majority of Palestinians are behind this vision for security. We are actively working for, and anticipating a day when a just peace will prevail and both sides may enjoy its many fruitful results.