Open Letter from the Palestinian Peace Coalition

Open letter from the Palestinian Peace Coalition

The Palestinian Peace Coalition took the initiative last week to collect signatures of various Palestinian national and political figures and representatives of civil society groups on a statement that outlines the demands of the Palestinian public at large from the new Palestinian president who will be elected on 9 Janaury, 2005. By Saturday evening, the number of the signatories reached came up to 600 and the process of collecting further signatures will continue to ensure that the largest sectors of the Palestinian society are involved in designing their future by means of outlining their demands for the new Palestinian president.

The initiative to collect the signatures stemmed from the need to engage the maximum number of Palestinians in the current political debate ahead of the presidential elections in order to make sure that the public knows how important its contribution on the Election Day is in designing the future of the Palestinian people for years to come.

Among the signatories are incumbent and former ministers in the Palestinian National Authority, members of various PLO institutions such as the Palestinian National, Council, the Palestinian Central Council and the Palestinian Legislative Council, in addition to leaders and prominent members of various political parties, university presidents and lecturers, journalists, writers, artists, businessmen and financiers. Among others, the signatories include Yasser Abed Rabbo (member of the PLO Executive Committee and head of the PPC/ GI), Dr. Hanan Ashrawi (PLC member), Mahmoud Darwish (a prominent Palestinian poet), Dr. Nabil Kassis (President of Birzeit University), Qaddoura Fares (PNA State Minister), Dr. Iyad Sarraj (human rights activist), and leading Palestinian businessmen and financiers such as Zahi Khoury, Munib Al Masri and Hasib Sabbagh.

Read the entire letter.

MiddleEast Web Comments

Some notable aspects of this letter

• Rejection of interim solutions (the 1974 PLO position which advocated establishing a Palestinian state on any liberated territory in order to better wage the war to destroy the 'Zionist entity.' Reiterated as recently as December 2003 by Fateh, the largest faction in the PLO.--Stuart)

• "Right of Return" for refugees is not mentioned directly
  
• Yasser Abed Rabbo, who signed the Geneva accord, also signed this letter, but this letter rejects the idea that Israel can keep settlement blocs.
and internationally-condemned changes on the ground that the Israeli occupation has accumulated in the occupied Palestinian territories, including Jewish settlements and the Segregation Wall. "
• Indirect condemnation of violence:"While we stress on our legitimate right to confront the occupation, we call for the restoration of the popular and public components of the Palestinian uprising and demand the cessation of all actions that would minimize the support and solidarity with our struggle or de-legitimize our national liberation struggle."
• Sari Nusseibeh and some other prominent moderate Palestinians did not sign this letter]

Palestinian Peace Coalition: “Making Peace Our Horizon”
Geneva Initiative: “Peace is Possible”
Attareek Periodical: "Toward Independence & Peace” (in Arabic)
PPC Newletter Dec 2004
Attareek Periodical: "Toward Independence & Peace” (in Arabic) a bimonthly magazine published with Al Ayyam daily newspaper in Ramallah. which is described this way in the PPC newsletter
From its first issue, Attareek aimed at promoting the following:
* To enhance the realistic political culture and the culture of peace and coexistence on the basis of the Palestinian peace program, twostates for two peoples as presented in the Geneva Initiative.
* To enhance secular and democratic values in the Palestinian society.
* To raise Palestinian public awareness of Attareek Magazine international culture and ideologies with deeply rooted human and democratic content.
* To re-consider values of enlightenment and tolerance against values of obscurantism and religious fundamentalism in the Palestinian society, mainly among the youths.