ENCOUNTERING PEACE: FROM OSLO, BACK TO OSLO
By Gershon Baskin
Jerusalem Post
Sept 16 2008
September 13 marked 15 years since the gala signing celebration of
the first Oslo agreement on the White House lawn. It certainly was a
day of hope. Fifteen years later hardly a mention of the anniversary
was made in the local or the international press – on both sides of
the Green Line.
Oslo was a failed peace process, and not only in the minds of Israelis;
most Palestinians also share the assessment. The reasons for the
failure are many, and there are many people who own responsibility for
Oslo’s tragic fate. It is very easy for one side to place the blame on
the doorstep of the other, but in truth, the failure of the process
has its roots on both sides as well as among various international
actors, including the US. Much has been written on what went wrong
and on who is to blame; this is not another one of those articles.
DESPITE WHAT many people believe or would like to believe or perhaps
even hope, Oslo is not yet dead and the chances for Israeli-Palestinian
peace have not totally faded away. If and when the possibility of peace
does fade away, the Palestinian people will no longer be calling for
an independent Palestinian state in the June 4, 1967 borders, they
will be calling for democracy and "one-person one-vote" between the
river and the sea. When and if that happens, we will begin to witness
the beginning of a new era which I would call "the era of the demise
of the Zionist enterprise." I only hope that our leaders and their
leaders will have to wisdom and the sanity to prevent us from jumping
off the brink into that abyss.
The only way to prevent the next round of violence, which will signal
the beginning of the end of the two-state solution, is to reach an
agreement as soon as possible. It may not be possible before the end
of the Bush administration, but the parties should already indicate
their commitment to go beyond that deadline into the beginning of the
next US administration. Both sides will have to make concessions on
fundamentals, crossing lines that were painted "red" for them in the
past. There is a package deal that can be reached and agreed upon.
The Palestinian state will have to be established on about 96
percent-97% of the West Bank and all of Gaza (once the political
regime there changes). Israel will have to give up most of the West
Bank, including the "Ariel finger," and should consider accepting a
fair monetary price from the Palestinians for Ma’aleh Adumim – two
areas that take up huge tracks of land in the West Bank. Most of the
settlers will be able to remain in the areas where they live today.
The parties have already accepted the principle of a 50-50 split of
the "no-man’s" land areas alongside of the Green Line. Finding 3%-4%
of land inside of the Green Line for a swap is not so problematic. The
Palestinians already understand and are willing to wait a period of
at least five years for Israel to vacate all of the settlements that
will be transferred to them. They are also ready to offer citizenship
to settlers who may wish to remain within their state.
PART OF the package includes recognizing that Jerusalem will be
the capital of both countries. The Palestinian capital will be in
the Palestinian parts of east Jerusalem and Israel’s capital will
remain in west Jerusalem. The Palestinians understand that the Jewish
neighborhoods within the municipal boundaries that were built after
1967 will remain under Israeli sovereignty. They account for about 1%
of the West Bank.
The Old City will be shared under a special regime, perhaps with
international involvement, or through the division of sovereignty
within its walls. The Palestinians will have sovereignty over
the Muslim, Christian and Armenian Quarters and Israel will
have sovereignty over the Jewish Quarter. The Jewish Quarter is
already physically separated from the other quarters by internal
checkpoints. The Palestinians will have sovereignty or guardianship
over the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif and Israel will have sovereignty
or guardianship over the Western Wall. Both sides will agree not to
dig, excavate, renovate or construct anything on, around or underneath
the "Holy Compound" without mutual agreement.
All of the mainstream rabbinic authorities agree that no Jew should
enter the area of the Temple Mount until the messiah comes. Until
that time, the Temple Mount will be turned over the Palestinians de
jure instead of just de facto as now. When the messiah comes, we can
all agree to place the issue of sovereignty in his/her hands.
Both sides will guarantee the right of access and prayer at holy places
within their sovereign areas for members of the relevant faiths from
the other state.
PALESTINIAN REFUGEES will go home to the state of
Palestine. Perhaps Israel will accept some humanitarian cases of
family reunification. There will be financial compensation available
for all Palestinian refugees for real property loss claims and for
suffering. The State of Israel will participate in an international
fund for that purpose.
Palestinians and Israelis will recognize the Jewishness of Israel
and the Palestinianess of Palestine. Both sides will agree to ensure
the equal rights and opportunities for minorities within their
state. Palestinian Israeli citizens will remain within the State of
Israel, as part of their birthright and Jewish citizens of Palestine
will be welcome to remain within the Palestinian state as long as
they wish.
It may take years to implement the agreement. Everything will depend
on the security situation. Both sides will end up agreeing to an
international force being stationed within the Palestinian state for
an agreed designated period. That force will be composed of and led
by European nations.
It is quite clear that both sides will have to allow their people to
vote for the agreement – for it to be ratified by the people.
Fifteen years have passed since that hopeful day on the White House
lawn. We are no longer drunk with hope. We are much more sober about
our difficult reality and the fact that there are still too many
fanatics out there who would prefer mutual destruction to making
compromises and concessions for peace. So far those fanatics have won,
and in their winning they have transformed the Israeli-Palestinian
relationship into a "lose-lose" unbreakable embrace. The chance of a
"win-win" mutual liberation is still possible – but the price will
be no less than what is written above. There is simply no other way –
either we both win, or we both lose.
The writer is the co-CEO of the Israel/Palestine Center for Research
and Information.