Palestijnse leider erkent geen Joodse staat naast een Arabisch-islamitische staat

"Historic Palestine will be divided into two states -- Israel and Palestine," he told reporters in the West Bank political capital of Ramallah.

"We do not discuss the character of one or the other. That's all I have to say on the matter," Abbas said at a joint news conference with visiting Ukraine President Victor Yushchenko.

Als beide staten zelf het karakter van hun staat mogen bepalen (wie zou dat anders moeten doen?), waarom is het dan zo moeilijk even te zeggen dat je er geen problemen mee hebt als Israël kiest voor een Joodse staat? Zolang ze de rechten van niet-Joodse burgers maar eerbiedigen. Overigens zal de Palestijnse staat zeer waarschijnlijk een Arabisch en islamitisch karakter krijgen, in navolging van de Palestijnse grondwet:

CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF PALESTINE
Third Draft, 7 March 2003, revised in March 25,2003
www.jmcc.org/documents/palestineconstitution-eng.pdf
....
Article (5)
Arabic and Islam are the official Palestinian language and religion. Christianity and all other monotheistic religions shall be equally revered and respected. The Constitution guarantees equality in rights and duties to all citizens irrespective of their religious belief.

Het probleem met een Joodse staat heeft dus niet te maken met een principiëel standpunt over de verhouding tussen staat en religie, nog afgezien van het feit dat met een Joodse staat een staat wordt bedoeld waar de Joden als volk zelfbeschikking hebben. Dit is het probleem:

But Israel's demand has already been rejected by the Palestinians as unacceptable because it would mean them effectively renouncing the right of return for refugees ousted when the state of Israel was created in 1948.

Men heeft meermaals toegegeven dat dit 'recht op terugkeer' tot doel heeft Israëls karakter te veranderen. 60 Jaar geleden stelde de VN voor het mandaatgebied Palestina te delen in een Joodse en een Arabische staat. Dit voorstel is door de Palestijnen en de Arabische wereld unaniem afgewezen.

 

Hoeveel verder zijn we anno 2007?

Ratna
---------

Agence France Presse / Friday, November 16, 2007

Palestinian leader refuses to be drawn on 'Jewish Israel'
Published: November 15, 2007
http://www.metimes.com/Politics/2007/11/15/palestinian_leader_refuses_to_be_drawn_on_jewish_israel/afp/

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AFP) Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Thursday refused to be drawn on a demand by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that Palestinians recognise the Jewish nature of Israel.

"Historic Palestine will be divided into two states -- Israel and Palestine," he told reporters in the West Bank political capital of Ramallah.

"We do not discuss the character of one or the other. That's all I have to say on the matter," Abbas said at a joint news conference with visiting Ukraine President Victor Yushchenko.

On Wednesday during talks with European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana, Olmert said that "the starting point for negotiations with the Palestinians following the Annapolis meeting will be recognition of the state of Israel as the state of the Jewish people."

Israel and the Palestinians are expected to enter into US-sponsored talks at Annapolis in Maryland before the end of November in a bid to kickstart the dormant Middle East peace process.

"The prime minister made it clear that from Israel's point-of-view. this issue is not subject to either negotiations or discussion," Olmert's office said.

But Israel's demand has already been rejected by the Palestinians as unacceptable because it would mean them effectively renouncing the right of return for refugees ousted when the state of Israel was created in 1948.

The fate of those refugees and their descendants -- estimated at 4.5 million people -- is a key issue in the search for peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

Israel refuses to countenance talk of their return, saying this would threaten its very existence and make the country's six million Jews a minority.

There are 1.3 million Arab-Israeli citizens, 20 percent of the population, who are descended from the 160,000 Palestinians who stayed when Israel was proclaimed 59 years ago.

© 2007 Agence France-Presse

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