“Saeb Erekat,
Minister of Local Government, jokingly described himself as an “Indian” – the
man who gets the work done. He was the
translator, the spokesman, the writer of perfect English, and the walking
memory of the political process. His
debut in the international arena came when he participated in the 1991 Madrid
Conference – and took the controversial step of draping a kaffiyeh around his
shoulders to demonstrate his support for Arafat.
In the early 90’s he was considered an extremist, but over the years has come to be regarded by Israel as among those Palestinian leaders most committed to peace. His daughter joined the “Seeds of Peace” project, which brings together Israeli and Palestinian teenagers.
Dr Erekat lives in
Jericho, in the home where he was raised.
He is one of the few leaders in the Palestinian Authority who did not
come from Tunis. In effect he is the
unchallenged leader of Jericho and one of the most prominent negotiators on the
Palestinian side. He is a true
intellectual, with an M.A. in Political Science from the University of San
Francisco and a Ph.D. from Bradford University in Britain. He lectured at Al-Najah University in
Nablus, and he has told me that he misses teaching and research”.
§
Yossi Beilin, The Path to Geneva: The Quest for a Permanent
Agreement, 1996-2004, p.104;
Pub. RDV Books (May 15, 2004); ISBN: 097192063X
§
Photo: Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat
(L) shakes hands with President Thabo Mbeki (C) and head of the Israeli
delegation Yossi Beilin (R), who was Israeli Justice Minister under the former
government of Ehud Barak, at the end of Mbeki's Presidential Peace Retreat on
the crisis in the Middle East, January 11, 2002. The delegations emerged from
the three day meeting, at which a representative of the Israeli government was
not present, confident that a solution could be found to the crisis. In a joint
statement they called for the resumption of talks between the Israeli
government and the Palestinian Authority without pre-conditions (REUTERS/Mike Hutchings).
Erekat and Beilin co-authored an op-ed – Keep
Talking – immediately after their South Africa meeting.