Hazem Jamjoum’s article, “Liberal Racism on Campus,” represents the wrong approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Mr. Jamjoum’s gross misquotation of former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir draws into question the accuracy of his article in general. Moreover, I see no reason to criticize Mrs. Meir’s observation. She was reiterating what Arab leaders had been saying for years. Ahmed Shuqeiri, past chairman of the PLO, speaking to the UN in 1956, said, “It is common knowledge that Palestine is nothing but southern Syria.” Syrian President Hafez Assad repeated this statement in 1977, saying, “There is no such thing as a Palestinian People, there is no Palestinian entity, there is only Syria.” These are not the views of Israel; they are the views of historical Arabic leaders in the Middle East.
It has been the Arab leaders, not Israel, who have denied the Palestinians the right of statehood. Since the UNSCOP recommendation to divide Palestine into two parts, Arab leaders have rejected a two state solution as ardently as they have rejected Israel’s existence and demanded its destruction. A solution that does not seek two states is a rejection of Israel’s existence. Attempts to bring about such a solution will prevent any meaningful peace.
Organized protests in opposition to “apartheid” in Israel are ignorant. Within Israel, the Arab minority are full citizens who enjoy equal rights. Arabs are represented in the Knesset, and have served in the Cabinet, high-level foreign ministry posts and on the Supreme Court. These are undeniable facts. No other conclusion can be drawn except that Israel treats its Arab citizens fairly and equally, which is more than can be said for any Arab state in the Middle East.
The opportunity for Palestinians to build a democratic society alongside Israel will never come to fruition if Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat continues to spend vast amounts of aid dollars on promoting hatred of Israel. Hundreds of millions of dollars that are intended to rebuild an impoverished society are used instead to bolster terrorist groups and fund television programs and textbooks that indoctrinate hatred, violence, and martyrdom. Instead of Palestinians demanding the resources to which they are entitled, they condemn Israeli occupation for the cause of their poverty. Palestinian families are told that Israel is their enemy while their “government” robs them blind.
It is true that resistance to oppression is a moral right. What most who object to Israel’s policies fail to understand, or choose to ignore, is that Jews, let alone the state of Israel, would not exist without thousands of years of resistance to oppression. Israel has no desire to subject others to the sort of oppression that the Jewish people have endured. Palestinian hatred should be directed towards the real oppressors: the Arab autocrats throughout the Middle East. The improbability of such a shift explains why there has been no advancement in peace negotiations.
If a peaceful settlement is achieved between Israel and the Palestinians, it will not be the result of terrorist acts. Nor will it be the result of continual rejection of Israel’s existence. The “More Humus Less Hamas” campaign acknowledges the fact that peace will not be achieved by violent means. The road to peace will begin when the Palestinians and the Arab world chooses diplomacy with, not the rejection of, Israel as a legitimate state.
Abram Greenspoon is a fourth year student in Political Science and History.
