Angry at reported offer of a home, Palestinians burn Manley in effigy
Mike Trickey--The Ottawa Citizen--Jan. 19, 2001
Nasser Ishtayeh, The Associated Press / Manley Sparks Fury in West Bank: Palestinians burn Foreign Minister John Manley in effigy in a refugee camp outside Nablus. Canada says they were protesting a non-existent secret agreement to take in refugees.
Foreign Affairs Minister John Manley was burned in effigy near the West Bank city of Nablus on Wednesday in protest of his offer to accept Palestinian refugees as part of a Middle East peace plan. The protesters were responding to news stories earlier this month that claimed Mr. Manley had made a secret offer to accept an undetermined number of Palestinians during a series of phone calls between Christmas and New Year's with Palestinian, Israeli and American officials. Last week Ahmed Abdel-Rahman, a senior aide to Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat, told a reporter that Palestine is the home of Palestinian refugees and none is willing to accept an alternative to his homeland.
"The Palestinian people will accept neither resettlement or compensation," he said.
Mr. Manley's office immediately denied any secret deal had been struck, claiming that he was only reiterating Canada's longstanding position that it was prepared to accept refugees if that was part of a negotiated peace settlement. Mr. Manley was travelling yesterday and unavailable for comment. But his spokeswoman, Jennifer Sloan, said it is "unfortunate" that a misrepresentation of the Canadian position had spurred some to violent action.
"It's unfortunate that some people have been led to believe that Canada's policies have changed because they have not changed. It has always been Canada's view that the solution to the refugee question is a matter for the parties to solve in the context of a negotiated settlement. Our position has not changed." A high-ranking Israeli official confirmed Mr. Manley's claim that no secret deal had been discussed during conversations in December. Yoram Ben-Zeev, deputy director general of the Israeli Foreign Ministry's North American department, told the Citizen no concrete offers have been made by Canada. "As far as I understand, Canada's position is unchanged for some time, that it is prepared to accept refugees if that is what is needed for a peace agreement. Other countries in Europe and Australia have said the same thing. I think it's a good thing, but I know of no new offer." During Prime Minister Jean Chretien's tour of the Middle East last April, he was asked by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak to take in Palestinian refugees as part of a peace settlement. Mr. Chretien, however, denied Israeli media reports that he had agreed to accept 15,000 Palestinians.
Mr. Ben-Zeev praised Canada and others for offering to take in refugees, saying it gives the Palestinians more options. However, the Palestinians are deeply opposed to the idea of relocation to a country far from their ancestral lands. The 10 masked gunmen and 100 demonstrators at the Balata refugee camp near Nablus shouted, "We refuse resettlement of refugees," as the effigy of Mr. Manley burned. Hussan Khader, chairman of the Committee for Defence of the Rights of Palestinian Refugees, which organized the demonstration, said offers to accept refugees undermines the Palestinian demand of the right to return to their homes on the West Bank and in Israel.
"Any solution that would not include the right of return would not obligate anybody and will lead to a new stage in the conflict."
Ms. Sloan said the Balata rally was an "isolated incident" that does not reflect the views of the Palestinian Authority or majority of the Palestinian people toward Canada or its role in the peace process.
Canada is the chair of the Refugee Working Group, a multilateral group attempting to resolve the Palestinian refugee situation.
There are 3.7 million Palestinian refugees, some the third-generation descendants of those driven from their homes by the wars of 1948 and 1967.
Mr. Manley has not spoken to any of his Middle East counterparts since the talks at the end of December, but diplomats at regional embassies and officials at Foreign Affairs have been telling Israeli and Arab officials that Canada's position remains unchanged.
Mr. Manley had wanted to tour the region this month, but had to set those plans aside because of the impending Israeli election. He is now considering a trip to the region this spring. |
