Excuses, excuses

Even after Ariel Sharon 's Temple Mount performance triggered the second intifada, as Yassir Arafat had feared, and even after Sharon was then elected Israeli prime minister, Arafat still pleaded for peace talks to continue, but Sharon said no. Now, seven years later, Israel still chooses permanent occupation instead of peace, as shown by the multitude of excuses they think up in order to avoid serious peace talks. For years, Israel and the US Israel Lobby have insisted that there must be an end to all violence before serious peace negotiations take place, but of course, only a fair and just peace will end all violence. Then they have insisted that the Palestinian government be free of all corruption, as if either the Israeli or US governments are corruption-free. Then they claim that the current Israeli and Palestinian governments are too weak to negotiate the serious final solution issues, such as borders, status of Jerusalem, and refugee question. Yet peace discussions are meaningless without addressing these issues, and it is the lack of peace which makes their governments weak. It is in this spirit of never-ending incrementalism (see previous blog entry) that the international envoy Tony Blair is prohibited from tackling these final status peace issues, even though he is a famous peace-maker. Most recently, the excuse is that a premature discussion of final issues could unleash violence if talks break down. After forty years of occupation, it is clear that talks should never break down. Until peace is achieved, negotiations must continue despite everything, including the additional excuses which will surely materialize along the way.