“Abbas has twelve months to get rid of
the corrupt”.
Originally published in Corriere
della sera, Friday 29 April 2005
By Davide Frattini
He is finishing
“Omertà” by Mario Puzo; one of the books that the Red Cross has delivered
(eight books every six months) to the most famous Palestinian prisoner in
Israel’s prisons. Marwan Barghouti gobbles up everything they bring him, even
the story of a mafia godfather who decides to retire.
“If I can, I choose
writings on international politics”, he explains from his prison cell, “so as
to understand what is going on in the world, developments in democracy, women’s
rights. This time I have read Noam Chomsky, a study on elites by the
Palestinian sociologist Jamil Hilal, and the poetry of Mahmoud Darwish.”
He wears his
familiar short beard and the brown uniform of prisoners. He lives in a cell measuring two metres by
one-and-a-half – explains his lawyer – and for the next three months he will
not be able to receive any family visits.
He was sentenced in May 2004 to five life sentences plus forty years
after being convicted of involvement in the murders of five Israelis. The
secret services are divided on what to do with him in future. To Shin Bet he is the “architect of terror” in the second
Intifada, and falls into the category of
“a prisoner with blood on his hands” who should never be released. But
military analysts see the head of Fatah in the West Bank as a possible
interlocutor, a pragmatic person who could rein in the extremists. For
Palestinians, he is a leader of the new generation (he is 46), one of those who
fights corruption. President Mahmoud Abbas has said that he needs twelve months
to put the Palestinian house in order.
“So let him have a
year. If he carries out a plan of reform, I will be right beside him, like the
majority of Palestinians. But he must
not make compromises, there must not be any exceptions. Anyone who is expelled
from his position after years of bad administration cannot be rewarded with
some role in a ministry. I am astonished by these kinds of deals, they produce
only more bureaucracy that doesn’t work.”
Any regrets? Should
you have run for President?
“The decision was
right, for the sake of national reconciliation. But there can be no doubts that
the Palestinian Authority and Fatah have to be reformed. I hope that the next Fatah congress will be
a concrete step in consolidating democracy and punishing corrupt officials. It
will also give an opportunity for young people to lead the organisation”.
In the last few
weeks the Authority has faced an internal revolt. Elements of the al-Aqsa
Brigades, linked to Fatah, have been shooting in the streets. How should the government in Ramallah
intervene?
“In years past the
Authority has failed, it has not succeeded in creating the nucleus of a
Palestinian democratic state. Now it has to rebuild its institutions:
political, financial, security-related.
We have to have legislative elections based on a law that enjoys broad
support and guarantees the participation of women: there can be no democracy
without women having a role. The problem of violence is the clearest example of
the failure of the Authority. We must put an end to to centers of personal
power in the security forces and one or two of the past commanders should be
put on trial.
Can the militants be
absorbed into the security forces?
“They shouldn’t
expect a reward for their struggle and sacrifice. They didn’t fight for personal interests, but for
independence. They have a right to live
in a dignified way”.
Hamas is prepared to
take part in the legislative elections in July.
“We cannot imagine
the future of the Palestinian people without the participation of the islamic
movement. It is a victory for democracy and national unity, an important
political development for Hamas, which we should encourage”.
Even if your party,
Fatah, risks losing the elections.
“The success of
Hamas in the Gaza municipal elections was a result of their struggle, the
honesty of their leaders, and their sacrifice. But it was also a result of
errors and bad management by Fatah. I am confident: if reforms are made, Fatah
will regain its position as the leading party”.
What do you suggest?
Primaries to renew the faction?
“Primaries are
fundamental. The members and supporters of Fatah have the right to choose their
candidates. Creating artificial lists
can bring only electoral defeat”.
You have read “The
Missing Peace”, by the American mediator Dennis Ross. These days, are other
opportunities for peace being missed?
“I read Ross’ book
and Clinton’s autobiography together. I am convinced that no agreement will
endure if it does not guarantee the end of Israeli occupation, the birth of a
free and democratic Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital and the
return of the refugees”.
This summer, the
Israelis will withdraw from Gaza. Does this represent an opportunity for Abbas
to show he can administer the Strip?
“The withdrawal from
Gaza was not achieved through the skills of negotiators but by the weapons of
the intifada. It is partial. If the situation remains that way, it will
not bring peace and stability”.
On becoming President, Abbas called for an end to the armed struggle. Now
the truce seems to be shaky, rockets are starting to be fired again from Gaza
against Israel.
“It is impossible to
renounce the option of resistance as long as the Occupation remains. Three
months ago the Palestinian groups decided to guarantee a period of calm to
allow international negotiators an opportunity to advance negotiations. What did we get in exchange? New colonies,
siege, checkpoints, thousands more prisoners in jail. There are elements in Israeli socety who seek a real peace, who
reject the occupation. They are our
future interlocutors”.
Translation, and all
errors therein, by Lawrence
of Cyberia.
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