The Threatened Cause
Ghassan Charbel Al-Hayat - 26/09/08//
New York -- President Mahmoud Abbas is aware of how important the UN is. He is aware of how important it is to work from within the international legitimacy. Yet, he also knows that time is passing, that threats are growing, that the memory of the world is an expert at forgetfulness, and that decades have passed since Yasser Arafat implored the world not to let the olive branch fall from his hand.
Mahmoud Abbas is aware of how important the UN is. He also knows the limits of its role, that most of those who visit New York actually have their eyes on Washington, and that in the absence of an effective relationship with the club of big players, the visit to New York is no more than a media or diplomatic campaign.
No one expected the Palestinian cause to be the issue of the day at the current General Assembly convention. Yet, a visitor to New York these days cannot but notice how far behind this cause has retreated on the list of priorities and meetings of major nations. The Palestinian cause was not even mentioned in the opening speech of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. It is true that Amr Moussa was quick to raise the issue and express concern, but the reality is that the world is preoccupied with other affairs.
World leaders arriving in New York discovered that the only superpower is up to its ears in its financial crisis. The serious crisis has left its marks on the presidential campaign, forcing the two contenders to show a degree of unity in the face of the storm. A few expressed their belief that this September is far more dangerous than bin Laden's September. While the 9/11 attacks constituted an attack from overseas on America's symbols of prestige and success, the current financial crisis threatens to bring an end both to the success and the prestige.
On the eve of heading to Washington, Mahmoud Abbas heard what the heads of delegations heard or saw on TV. America is drowning in a crisis that almost required declaring a state of emergency. The entire American economic system is under threat, with growing comparisons to the Depression of the 1930s. When the US economy falls sick, it becomes difficult for the world economy to stay in good health.
This currently troubled administration is the same administration that had promised the two-state solution. It is the same administration that is embroiled in two wars, that has played a major role in draining financial resources and undermining prestige. Naturally, and irrespective of its partisan affiliation, the next administration will have to face an unprecedented and challenging legacy. Who expects an administration left with such a catastrophic legacy to deal with remote regional files or to enjoy the capability to develop or impose solutions?
In addition to all this, there is the deteriorating American-Russian relations, the rise of new powers that, while demanding the right to participate in managing world affairs, raise their dissenting voices in everything that concerns their regions. The backbone of the post-USSR world order has been afflicted by an unusual damage that would open the doors for international turbulence both on the political and economic levels. In such a climate, it is difficult to harness the collective international will needed for a fair or quasi-fair solution to the Palestinian cause.
The Palestinian cause is threatened with a potentially troubled international scene and the preoccupation of the major powers with more dangerous and pressing issues. It is also threatened with Israel's insistence on pursuing its policy of settlement and confiscating lands which could practically eliminate the opportunity to create a viable Palestinian sate. This is why Arabs rushed to the Security Council in an attempt to shed light on this practice which could practically undermine the chances of a Palestinian state.
The Palestinian cause is indeed threatened. The Palestinian division doubles the risks of the next stage. The danger is pending not only for the Palestinians but for all nations that are seeking international solutions to their causes. Most probably, the next phase will see the world grapple with the financial crisis and its repercussions, not to mention the Afghani reactor and the approaching serious issue, Pakistan.
|
