BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights [With
thanks to IAP NEWS] Press Release E-53-03 5 December 2003

What Palestinians are saying about the Geneva initiative

In the interests of promoting informed discussion on Palestinians' hopes
for a peace agreement, BADIL is publishing Palestinian organizations'
perceptions of the Geneva understandings. The first, from local groups in
the West Bank and Gaza Strip, was issued last month. See www.badil.org
"Let's really hear from the grass roots".

The following is an unofficial translation of a statement from Fateh issued
1 December with its views on the Geneva initiative:

In the Name of God

Our Freedom Fighting People, Our People in Palestine and in Exile

Initiatives and proposals for solving the Arab- Israeli Conflict appear
from time to time. Whether Israeli or Israeli-Palestinian, regional, or
international, these proposals are based on the premise that the
Palestinian refugee issue can be resolved within the framework of a future
Palestinian State.

Of even greater danger is the fact that the current Palestinian regime has
opened the door for such initiatives without having a clear vision that is
consistent with our people's aspirations! The current regime has encouraged
and participated in these initiatives, justifying their position by saying
that they are searching for a political breakthrough with the Israeli and
international community. Oblivious to the harm being done to the unity of
the Palestinian people, this regime includes those who initiate and direct
and those who reject such initiatives. This situation is pushing the
Palestinian people towards an internal conflict that could lead to a "civil
war" just to maintain the interests of the Palestinian elite currently in
power. This elite - guided by their own self-interests - threatens the
unity and steadfastness of the Palestinian people and the right to return
of the Palestinian refugees, which is the core of the Palestinian issue.

Concerned about a unified Palestinian position that is consistent with the
national consensus, we affirm the following:

First: Taking into consideration that the Right of Return is the foundation
of the Palestinian consensus; the core of the Palestinian struggle; the
justification for the current revolution; and the dream of two-thirds of
the Palestinian people, we strongly reject all initiatives, agreements,
and understandings, whether formal or informal - including Beilin-Abu
Mazen, Nusseibeh-Ayalon, the Geneva agreement, among others - that
compromise this sacred right. We see such initiatives and agreements as a
dangerous trend that transforms the national consensus into a bargaining
chip for negotiations.

Second: We do not place responsibility only on those who participated in
such initiatives. We also blame the Palestinian regime which plays with
the fate of the people and contributes to the damage done to the people's
aspirations. For the last three months, this regime has been consumed with
petty internal conflicts over the formation of a government rather than the
concerns of our people and the critical issues. The regime, which has
placed the most corrupt persons in positions of responsibility in
ministries, security and civil organizations, has persisted in playing with
and harming the unity of our people and the national consensus - foremost
being the right of return - in an unprecedented manner, in order to
maintain Palestinian sovereignty over any square meter.

Third: We remind those who play with the future of our people that an
independent Palestinian State on the 1967 occupied land is not part of the
strategic consensus, but only a transition program adopted by the PLO at
the 1974 meeting of the Palestinian National Council (PNC). The right of
return is a key element of the Palestinian National Charter and the primary
reason for the beginning of the Palestinian revolution. If there was a need
for tactical measures it is the Palestinian State which should be used as
a bargaining chip in order to achieve the return. The Palestinian State is
no longer a priority nor in the popular interest of the Palestinian
people. It has become an Israeli security interest that also happens to
serve some in the current Palestinian regime, who see the Palestinian
State as a means to increase their own illegitimate profits. Sacrificing
the Palestinian State for the sake of achieving the return, therefore,
serves the comprehensive Palestinian strategy, while sacrificing the right
of return for the sake of a pseudo State with limited sovereignty
sacrifices the people's rights, dreams and aspirations.

Fourth: We believe that we can reach a comprehensive and just peace, a
peace in which this land accommodates both peoples within a democratic
secular state; a peace that recognizes the rights and duties of both
Palestinians and Israelis; a peace that removes borders, walls and
checkpoints; a peace that is not based on displacement and the separation
of cities, but rather one that is based on the return of Palestinian
refugees; a peace in which everyone is a winner and not a compromiser; and,
a peace in which both parties triumph and no one loses.

Fifth: In order to maintain the unity of our people; build democratic
Palestinian institutions; and, facilitate each person's right to
contribute and participate in the building of civil society and the
formation of policy, we call for transparent democratic elections on all
levels, starting with the FATEH Central Committee, through Municipal
Councils, the Palestinian Legislative Council, the Presidency and the
Palestinian National Council. The purpose of these elections is to
reorganize the Palestinian house and protect it from ongoing
administrative, financial, and political corruption, and stop the process
of collapse and division.

Based on the abovementioned concepts, and without hesitation, we will start
a Popular Campaign in Palestine and in Exile under the Title: "Return
First, and Peace for Two Nations in One State".

With this slogan, we will be faithful to our people's dreams and ambitions.
We will be faithful to the blood of our martyrs. We will adopt a more
realistic approach to achieve a comprehensive and just peace that does not
impose painful compromises on anyone. A solution to the conflict that
ignores the interests of two-thirds of the Palestinian people can only be
considered as a ceasefire between two parties.

Unified and together until achieving Return, Liberation, and Peace

FATEH - Palestinian Liberation Movement Palestine, 1/12/2003