I had a fascinating
conversation about the politics of Israel, and developed upon a theory
I spoke of when I first started writing my blog about why present peace
proposals continue to get rejected, and a potential solution that speaks to the
real issues that maintain the level of hostility between these two people.
Needs of the Palestinian People
During my years in Israel, I 
interacted with many
Palestinian people, nearly on a daily basis.
The vast majority were willing to make sacrifices to have a homeland
again. Most renounced the violence, though many said that it was the only way
they could further their cause. And they all spoke on a national pride, of a
return to a time when they controlled Jerusalem.
Jerusalem
But interestingly enough most spoke of Jerusalem in economic terms, as opposed to
religious terms. Of course there is a
huge amount of awe and affection for the Dome of the Rock, but many spoke of
the thousands or even millions of tourists that the Dome draws every year, and
the admiration and traded afforded Palestine
as keepers of the holy place.
Jerusalem is in many senses a
commercial center for the Palestinians, with huge percentages of Palestine’s trade moving
through the city. The ancient nature of the city as well as its fortification
led to a respect for the city that Palestine
has translated into an economy since its inception. I believe that, while the
Muslim community outside of Israel
demands control over the Holy city, the Palestinians only wants the respect
attached to it.
The Real Jerusalem
Problem
As Israel
promises to provide Palestine with a country
consisting of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, it has become obvious that Jerusalem will never be
returned willingly to the Palestinian people. Without Jerusalem,
the Palestinian people are provided with land with minimal fertility, natural
resources or ability to sustain life. Israel’s
promises to provide funds and irrigation appear as handouts to children who
can’t thrive on their own.
But would an agreement be possible if the offer included a
means for the Palestinian people to develop their own autonomous economy? My first project in Israel was helping create
two autonomous economies for the Israeli and Palestinian people, and I saw first
hand that with even small investments in Palestine’s economy, the economy
blossomed and tensions eased. Dignity is a powerful force, and can transform a
society.
That feeling quickly evaporated in 2000, but the memories
don’t fade so quickly, and I truly believe that, if Israel
not only provided Palestine with a country
comprised of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, but
also provided the Palestinian people with the means to rebuild their economy,
real strides could be made towards peace between the two people.
An Original Solution?
My belief is that, along with returning land to the
Palestinians, Israel should
pay to build the infrastructure for one city, which should probably be Hebron, or al-Khalil to
Islam, the oldest city in the world. The city has nearly as much significance
to the Muslim community as Jerusalem itself, and
if properly rebuilt, could draw the same tourism as was drawn by Jerusalem, even more in
the “novel" stage.
The Process
The funds to pay for the city should be provided both by Israel and by the Jewish Diaspora community, as
in many ways, Israel serves
as a safe haven for all Jewish people everywhere, and as such all of Judaism
owes Palestine some debt for retaking the
ancient land of Canaan.
The international community as well holds some
responsibility for the present dilemma of the Palestinian people, and we must
admit that when some Muslim leaders speak of US and EU favoritism for Israel, they
are not necessarily wrong all of the time. Yes, sometimes we see the UN or EU
countries come out against an Israeli action or decision, but more often then
not they are sympathetic to the Israeli plight, as the US always is.
Still, some responsibility for the present displacement of
the Palestinian people must fall on the Muslim world as well, who told them in
1948 to leave their homes while they swept the Zionist threat into the sea. The
Muslim world has also used the Palestinian people and their leaders as pawns in
a wide variety of conflicts over the years, further propagating the dilemma.
As such, the international community should be responsible
to provide infrastructure between the city and major modes of transportation,
allowing for the resumption of the tourist trade. And the Muslim community should be
responsible for renovating Haram Ibrahim, the mosque signifying the tomb of
Abraham. Anyway, only a mosque funded by the Muslim community would be visited
by the Muslim community.
Rebuilding Dignity
But while the money should be provided by these groups, the
designs and the work needs to come from the Palestinian people. They need to
rebuild the city from their own ideas, with their own creativity, and with
their hard work, so they can rebuild their dignity at the same time. Not to mention the project will provide
thousands of jobs and help grow the sluggish economy.
Yes, there are security concerns over providing the
Palestinian people with funds and/or building supplies. And yes, there are many
logistics that would need to be worked out to make a program like this
feasible. But we need to get at the roots of the problems between Palestine and Israel, the problems will continue
to grow and escalate, and to do so we need to start thinking outside the box.
This is one possible way to do so.
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