ISR"LI REFUSAL TO HONOUR AGREEMENT ON TROOP WITHDRAWALS COULD DEAL FATAL BLOW TO PEACE PROCESS, PALESTINE OBSERVER SAYS
Press Release
GA/PAL/775
ISRAELI REFUSAL TO HONOUR AGREEMENT ON TROOP WITHDRAWALS COULD DEAL FATAL BLOW TO PEACE PROCESS, PALESTINE OBSERVER SAYS
19980331 Israeli Settlement at Jebel Abu Ghneim Could Also Represent Decisive Blow, Palestinian Rights Committee ToldIf Israel persisted in its refusal to withdraw its troops from 90 per cent of the West Bank as agreed, that might deal a fatal blow to the current peace process, the Permanent Observer for Palestine this morning told the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.
M. Nasser Al-Kidwa cited Israel's recent rejection of a proposal by the United States for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from 13 per cent of the West Bank, which in itself fell short of the agreed figure of 90 per cent. He said that action demonstrated the desire of the current Israeli Government to annul and replace the existing agreements. In addition, the establishment of a new Israeli settlement in Jebel Abu Ghneim would represent a decisive blow to the peace process, he said.
The representative of Ukraine said that the attainment of a stable peace in the region and settlement of the Palestinian question would be impossible unless it was complemented by the economic development of territories under the Palestinian Authority, as well as the speedy integration of those territories into the economic infrastructure of the whole region.
Also this morning, the Committee also heard reports from its Chairman on the Eighth Islamic Summit Conference, held in Teheran last December, and on the Twenty-fifth Conference of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the Organization of the Islamic Conference in Doha, Qatar, in March. He also reported on two meetings held in Brussels in February: the Conference in Support of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People and the European Non-Governmental Organization Symposium on the Question of Palestine.
In other business, the Committee also approved the provisional work programmes for three upcoming meetings: the International NGO Meeting on the Question of Palestine, to be held in Cairo on 25 and 26 April; the Seminar on Assistance to the Palestinian People, also in Cairo, on 27 and 28 April; and the Latin American and Caribbean Seminar and NGO Symposium on the Question of Palestine, to be held in Santiago, Chile, from 26 to 29 May.
The Palestinian Rights Committee will meet again at a date to be announced in the Journal.
Committee Work Programme
The Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People met this morning to review the outcomes of recent meetings relating to the Palestinian cause, including the resumed emergency special session of the General Assembly held on 17 March. It was also expected to consider the provisional programmes of related forthcoming meetings, as well as developments in the Middle East peace process and the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem.
It had before it the Chairman's reports on the Eighth Islamic Summit Conference, held at Teheran, Iran, from 9 to 11 December 1997; the Twenty- fifth Conference of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), held at Doha, Qatar, from 15 to 19 March; the Conference in Support of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, held at Brussels on 24 and 25 February; and the European Non-Governmental Organization Symposium on the Question of Palestine, held at Brussels on 26 February.
The Committee was also expected to approve the provisional agenda of three upcoming meetings, as follows: the International NGO meeting on the Question of Palestine, to be held on 25 and 26 April, and the Seminar on Assistance to the Palestinian People, to be held on 27 and 28 April, both at Cairo, Egypt; and the Latin American and Caribbean Seminar and NGO Symposium on the Question of Palestine, to be held at Santiago, Chile, from 26 to 29 May.
Emergency Special Session
IBRA DEGUENE KA (Senegal), Committee Chairman, drew attention to General Assembly resolution A/ES-10/5, adopted during its resumed emergency special session on 17 March on illegal Israeli actions in occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory.
He said the Assembly recommended that the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention convene a conference on measures to enforce the Convention. It also reiterated its recommendation that the Swiss Government, as depositary of the Convention, undertake the necessary preparatory steps, including the convening of a meeting of experts for the High Contracting Parties. The Assembly extended the target date for the convening of such an expert meeting until the end of April. It recommended that the process be carried out in cooperation with the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), both with respect to the meeting of experts and the conference itself.
He said that 25 delegations took the floor during the Assembly's discussion of the draft and of the situation in the occupied Palestinian
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territory. There was overwhelming support for the draft, which was adopted by a vote of 120 in favour to 3 against (Federated States of Micronesia, Israel and the United States), with 5 abstentions (Australia, Bulgaria, Marshall Islands, Romania and Swaziland).
Islamic Conference Meeting
Mr. KA (Senegal), Committee Chairman, then reported on the Eighth Islamic Summit Conference, held at Teheran. The three key areas of discussion were the question of the Palestinian and Israeli conflict, the question of Jerusalem and the current state of the Middle East peace process. Those issues were studied at the level of senior officials, ambassadors and ministers. A number of draft resolutions were adopted, the texts of which were before the Committee. Overall, the Conference unambiguously reaffirmed its support for the peace process, as well as for the efforts of the Palestinian Rights Committee and the Palestinian Authority.
While in Teheran, the Chairman said he had invited Yasser Arafat, President of the Palestinian Authority, to participate at the Brussels Conference in Support of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. Mr. Arafat subsequently came to Brussels and made a statement. The Chairman had also met separately with the Secretary-General of the OIC and with representatives of the League of Arab States concerning preparation for the upcoming Brussels conference.
He said that the three topics mentioned earlier were also the centre of discussion at the Conference of the OIC Foreign Ministers in Doha. The Conference also reaffirmed its support for the Middle East peace process.
The Conference held that Israel must carry out its obligations in accordance with the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference and Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973), he said. It reaffirmed that the delays and obstacles created by Israel had seriously hindered the peace process, and called on the international community and the co-sponsors of the peace process to exert pressure on Israel to comply with the principles of international law. It also emphasized the need to convene a meeting of the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention.
While at the Conference, Mr. Ka took the floor to explain the serious crisis confronting the peace process. He said the policies of the Israeli Government had caused a blockage of that process at every level. His statement had focused on the "economic strangulation of the Palestinian nation" and the continued settlement atrocities, as well as Israel's refusal to open the airport and security corridor between Gaza and Jericho.
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Brussels Conference, NGO Symposium
Mr. KA (Senegal), Committee Chairman, then reported on the Conference in Support of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, held at Brussels. He said its principal aim was to bring focus on the most pressing issues relating to the exercise by the Palestinian people of its rights and to promote intensified international action in that regard for the success of the peace process. Its general exchange of views had focused on promoting the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, the need to improve the living conditions of the Palestinian people and promote their economic and social development and the current situation and prospects for the peace process.
In their concluding remarks, the organizers had voiced their concern at the stalemate in the peace process caused by setbacks and obstacles placed by the Government of Israel, Mr. Ka said. They specifically referred to the violation by Israel of the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention, its settlement policies, attempts to alter the demographic, historical and cultural character and status of Jerusalem, and its imposition of an economic blockade on the Palestinian territory.
While the world was celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the rights of the Palestinian people continued to be denied, the organizers said. They underlined that the Israeli occupation of Palestinian and Arab lands, including Jerusalem, must be brought to an end without delay. They also reaffirmed the permanent responsibility of the United Nations towards the question of Palestine until it was resolved in all its aspects.
Mr. KA (Senegal), Committee Chairman, also reported on the United Nations European NGO Symposium on the Question of Palestine, held at Brussels. He said that many NGOs also attended the two-day Conference and got a first- hand impression of the concerns of the international community regarding the stalemate in the peace process. The theme of the Symposium was "NGO action in support of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people".
He said the NGOs emphasized in their final statement that the Declaration of Principles between Israel and the PLO had raised hopes for a just peace through the establishment of a Palestinian state and for stability in the region. They criticized the current Government of Israel for rejecting the principle of land for peace, for its refusal to redeploy its armed forces and for its policies of land confiscation, expansion of its settlements and its prolonged closures of the Palestinian territory.
The NGOs asked the European Union to take more decisive measures to ensure that Israel desisted from pursuing policies that destroyed the peace process, he said. European Governments were asked to maintain their financial aid to the Palestinian people and increase their support for the United
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Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). The NGOs pledged to pursue their campaigns of lobbying their national parliaments and governments, the European Commission and the European Parliament, to urge them to freeze the interim accord signed between the European Union and Israel until Israel complied with all its political and economic commitments signed with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).
He said the NGOs stressed that they would make concerted efforts for the implementation of the recommendations of the tenth emergency special session of the General Assembly for the convening of a conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Forthcoming Meetings
The Committee then approved the provisional work programmes for the International NGO meeting on the Question of Palestine, and the Seminar on Assistance to the Palestinian People, to be held at Cairo in April.
The CHAIRMAN expressed his appreciation to Egypt for agreeing to host those two events, adding that the meetings would undoubtedly be new milestones in the Palestinian quest.
MOTAZ M. ZAHRAN (Egypt) expressed the hope that the two Cairo meetings would provide fresh proof of the support the peace process enjoyed in the Middle East. Those meeting should reinforce implementation of related Security Council resolutions, as well as the land for peace policy. They should also serve to reaffirm the right of the Palestinian people to exercise their inalienable rights in a context of sustainable regional peace, and to strengthen and confirm the important role of the United Nations.
The Committee then approved the provisional work programme for the Latin American and Caribbean Seminar and NGO Symposium on the Question of Palestine, to be held at Santiago in May.
Statements
M. NASSER AL-KIDWA, Permanent Observer for Palestine, said that yesterday, 30 March, marked the twenty-second anniversary of the killing by Israeli police of six Israeli Arabs demonstrating to regain their properties in the land of their forefathers. That important day had taken on much significance to the Palestinians, especially as it related to Palestinian refugees.
He said it was unfortunate that the Secretary-General, during his visit to the region, had been unable to use the airport in the Palestinian territory on 23 March, because of Israel's negative position. During his visit, the Secretary-General held a one-hour official discussion with Yasser Arafat and
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visited the headquarters of the Palestinian Legislative Council, where he met with the head of Council and several Council members. He also visited various United Nations offices in the occupied territories, including UNWRA.
At a press conference in Gaza, the Secretary-General made it clear that all Security Council resolutions were binding and should be implemented, and that he would try within available means to see that they were. While those statements had been covered extensively in the Palestinian media, they were not accorded similar coverage by the international press. When they were, they were often misquoted and wrongly stated. The Secretary-General had lived up to his obligation as the United Nations representative to uphold the international legitimacy of the Palestinian position and to insist on respect for it by all concerned. Unfortunately, the Israeli Government had continued to apply unacceptable pressure, and sometimes even blackmail.
The resumed emergency special session of the General Assembly on 17 March had represented an extremely important development, he said. The resolution it produced was adopted by an overwhelming margin, illustrating the international community's near consensus on the convening of a conference on measures to enforce the Fourth Geneva Convention. The necessary preparatory steps would include the convening of a meeting of experts by the end of April. Palestine would not be in a position to attend any meeting outside the context of that specific time-frame; nor would it attend a substitute meeting. The idea of the meeting was in itself a compromise that had been promoted by the European Union. Its lack of implementation would create a very serious situation, not only for the emergency special session but also for the integrity of international humanitarian law and that of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
The establishment of a new Israeli settlement in Jebel Abu Ghneim would represent another decisive blow to the peace process and another indication of the arrogant Israeli position and total disrespect for the will of the international community, he said. In such a case, the international community should respond decisively. The Palestinians would ask the Security Council to adopt a clear position against such a step on the basis of the clear positions that emerged during the tenth emergency special session of the Assembly. While he hoped those steps would be unnecessary, the policies of the current Israeli Government made them a likely possibility.
He went on to say that the visit of the American envoy, Dennis Ross, to the region, aimed at advancing the peace process, had not succeeded. An Israeli Government official said that the Prime Minister had flatly rejected an American proposal for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from 13 per cent of the West Bank, adding that Israel had made no counter-proposal. It seemed there was no limit to the Israeli arrogance and defiance of the will of the international community, including the position of its closest ally, the United States. That reaffirmed that the desire of the current Israeli
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Government was to annul and replace the existing agreements, which was the real cause of the stalemate in the peace process.
He said that the American proposal had not lived up to full implementation of the existing agreements, by which Israel should have already withdrawn its troops from 90 per cent of the West Bank. If the current Israeli stance proved to be its final position, that might become a fatal blow to the current peace process, thereby opening the door to unforseen developments. The situation did not look bright at all. Increased efforts and pressure by the international community were required.
VOLODYMYR Y. YEL'CHENKO (Ukraine) said the Conference in Brussels had a positive impact in efforts to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting solution of the Palestinian question. That Conference had also indicated the international community's grave concern over the situation in the region with respect to ensuring the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.
He said Ukraine supported the Conference's appeal for the parties to return to the negotiating table, overcome the existing animosity and demonstrate their goodwill and political wisdom. The attainment of a stable peace in the region and settlement of the Palestinian question would be impossible unless it was complemented by the economic development of territories under the Palestinian Authority, as well as the speedy integration of those territories into the economic infrastructure of the whole region.
He said it was especially important that the various programmes and activities carried out by United Nations bodies should continue to aim at mobilizing international economic support and financial assistance to the Palestinian people. The United Nations should continue to shoulder its primary responsibility with respect to ensuring the exercise by the Palestinian people of the inalienable rights, including the right to self- determination. The role of the United Nations as a guarantor of international legitimacy on the question of Palestine could not be diminished. The United Nations must demonstrate its power and authority on that issue.
GEORGE SALIBA (Malta), Rapporteur, asked if Mr. Al-Kidwa could brief the Committee on the recent visit to the region by the Foreign Minister of the United Kingdom, Robin Cook.
Mr. AL-KIDWA, Observer for Palestine, said Mr. Cook had visited the region not only in his capacity as Foreign Minister of the United Kingdom, but also as current President of the European Union. Prior to his visit, a compromise was reached to have him visit Jebel Abu Ghneim accompanied by the Secretary of the Israeli Government. He would then proceed to the West Bank to meet with some Palestinian officials. That was what happened.
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However, when he got to the West Bank, he was literally mobbed by Israeli settlers, Mr. Al-Kidwa said. He was not protected by Israeli security. The Israeli Government shortened his meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and cancelled the dinner that was to have been held in his honour. That kind of action by the Israeli Government was not a result of the visit to Jebel Abu Ghneim; it was clearly directed at the position of the European Union, which Mr. Cook reiterated during the visit.
He said the Secretary to the Israeli Government had welcomed Mr. Cook to what he called the capital of Israel, but Mr. Cook replied that it was also the capital of Palestine, Mr. Al-Kidwa said. The Foreign Minister had reiterated the European Union's position on settlements and on the need to honour existing agreements on various issues. The Arab side could not but praise the position taken by Mr. Cook, the United Kingdom and the European Union. The Union should continue to be more politically engaged in the peace process; it must complement its financial assistance with greater political involvement.
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