Post by Moses on Nov 5, 2004 0:46:20 GMT -5
As some of you may have seen during the President's press conference, news was released that Arafat has died. The Palestinian Authority has reported that the statement made by a reporter today is not true and a French military doctor declared that in fact Arafat is still alive, but on life support.
If succession becomes necessary, Palestinian Authority law states that the speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), Rawhi Fattouh, would step in. He would serves as interim president for 60 days, during which time a new president would be elected.
It appears as though the PLO may overrule this law and appoint Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) in accordance with a rumored letter written by Arafat to Abbas, naming him as the successor. Abbas co-founded the Fatah party with Arafat, and in 1980 was appointed the head of the PLO's department for national and international relations. He signed the 1993 peace accord with Israel on behalf of the PLO and became Prime Minister in 2003, resigning from the position just four months later.
Abbas' approval of the roadmap and willingness to negotiate make him the most welcome possibility in the eyes of both Israel and the United States. However, unlike Arafat who was elected with 85% of the vote in an election in 1996, Abbas was said to have only single-digit approval ratings when he was briefly the PA Prime Minister.
<br>Among Palestinians he is seen as a member of the Old Guard, that is, those who entered from life-long exile only ten years ago. Will there be open contention between the Palestinian Legislative Council and the Palestine National Council, representing the PLO? Not likely, and one would hope not.
Another factor is the younger Fatah members who nominally owe allegiance to Arafat but have shown a real lack of patience and a willingness to confront the Old Guard, especially in Gaza.
<br>The average Palestinian, and even the leadership of all factions, does not want to see a power struggle. Yet the proposed disengagement agreement that would leave the Israelis in charge of all access routes to Gaza is opposed by everyone in the West Bank and Gaza.
President Bush will need a new and forward-looking policy on freeing the Palestinians even before his second inauguration in January. Tony Blair has already called for making the Israel-Palestine problem the very fist thing on any agenda toward the Middle East. And looming ahead is the election in Iraq and the need for elections in Palestine.
One of the great questions is, will the U.S. and Israel allow elections to be held, which the Palestinians have been asking for for the past six months? I suspect the answer is, unfortunately, "No."
Sincerely,
Eugene Bird
President
Council for the National Interest
If succession becomes necessary, Palestinian Authority law states that the speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), Rawhi Fattouh, would step in. He would serves as interim president for 60 days, during which time a new president would be elected.
It appears as though the PLO may overrule this law and appoint Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) in accordance with a rumored letter written by Arafat to Abbas, naming him as the successor. Abbas co-founded the Fatah party with Arafat, and in 1980 was appointed the head of the PLO's department for national and international relations. He signed the 1993 peace accord with Israel on behalf of the PLO and became Prime Minister in 2003, resigning from the position just four months later.
Abbas' approval of the roadmap and willingness to negotiate make him the most welcome possibility in the eyes of both Israel and the United States. However, unlike Arafat who was elected with 85% of the vote in an election in 1996, Abbas was said to have only single-digit approval ratings when he was briefly the PA Prime Minister.
<br>Among Palestinians he is seen as a member of the Old Guard, that is, those who entered from life-long exile only ten years ago. Will there be open contention between the Palestinian Legislative Council and the Palestine National Council, representing the PLO? Not likely, and one would hope not.
Another factor is the younger Fatah members who nominally owe allegiance to Arafat but have shown a real lack of patience and a willingness to confront the Old Guard, especially in Gaza.
<br>The average Palestinian, and even the leadership of all factions, does not want to see a power struggle. Yet the proposed disengagement agreement that would leave the Israelis in charge of all access routes to Gaza is opposed by everyone in the West Bank and Gaza.
President Bush will need a new and forward-looking policy on freeing the Palestinians even before his second inauguration in January. Tony Blair has already called for making the Israel-Palestine problem the very fist thing on any agenda toward the Middle East. And looming ahead is the election in Iraq and the need for elections in Palestine.
One of the great questions is, will the U.S. and Israel allow elections to be held, which the Palestinians have been asking for for the past six months? I suspect the answer is, unfortunately, "No."
Sincerely,
Eugene Bird
President
Council for the National Interest