[Shadow_Group] Fw: Proof of Sharon's Deceit and U.S. Complicity
shadowgroup-l at lists.resist.ca
shadowgroup-l at lists.resist.ca
Sat Oct 9 18:21:23 PDT 2004
Received this message by email from Rabbi Michael Lerner.
Proof of Sharon's Deceit and U.S. Complicity
Oct 7, 2004
Greetings!
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So we at Tikkun were right, and wish we had been wrong. >From the moment that Ariel Sharon announced his famous "deal" to pull settlers out of Gaza in return for U.S. assurance that Israel could continue to build the Wall through the West Bank and would no longer be subject to pressure to return to the "Green Line" (the armistice line from 1949 that had served as the defacto border between 1949 and 1967), we at Tikkun argued that this was all part of Sharon's plan tonever give up control over the West Bank. Though Sharon continued to talk about "a Palestinian State," he knew that the state he would propose,once so much of the West Bank had been incorporated into Israel, would be a sham that would be economically and politically non-viable. Roughly, it would amount to suggesting that we create a state out of the most run-down parts of Brooklyn and Queens, leaving every part that had factories or productive capacities to the U.S. but giving this other part to African Americans and then saying, "this is your compensation for slavery and oppression." No one would buy it here, and no one is going to buy it there. . It would never come into existence because it would be refused by any Palestinian leadership that had even an ounce of pretense of representing the wishes of the Palestinian people.
But why propose it? Because the peace forces had come together to create the Geneva Accord, and it was obvious that the Geneva Accord made so much sense and provided such a reasonable solution that it was bound to generate mass support in Israel and around the world if it became the focus of attention. If Sharon and the Right wanted to keep control over the West Bank, they'd have to shift the focus. And with the help of George Bush, that is exactly what they did.
The proposal for a unilateral withdrawal from Gaza was hailed by the White House as an "advance" for peace when actually it was a clever move to stop any pressure for a Road Map, a Geneva Accord, or anything else that would get Israel out of the West Bank. It began with a slap in the face: instead of presenting the idea to the Palestinian people, whose fate was being determined, Sharon presented it to the global hegemonic power, the U.S.
With the strong backing of President Bush, Sharon had what he needed to torpedo any pressure for peace. And with the power of AIPAC, pro-Sharon forces got the House of Representatives to pass in June a resolution totally endorsing this plan--by a vote of 400 for to 9 against. PLEASE ASK YOUR CONGRESSPERSON HOW THEY VOTED ON THAT RESOLUTION AND WHY...AND IF, AFTER READING THE STATEMENT BELOW, THEY WILL NOT PUBLICLY RECANT THEIR VOTE AND APOLOGIZE FOR IT!!!!!!
Did you yourself think that maybe we were being paranoid or "over the top" when we suggested that the whole thing was a conscious plan to undermine any last remnants of pressure for a Palestinian state? Well, now the proof is available--in the form of a statement made yesterday by a key advisor to Ariel Sharon who participated in the process that led to this clevel strategy to undermine peace. This is not some leftie critic of Sharon, but someone who is proud of Sharon and his strategy! It was reported yesterday in Ha'aretz.
Ha'aretz Story about Sharon's Deceit
<http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?> The U.S. on Wednesday evening asked Israel to clarify statements made by Sharon's senior advisor, Dov Weisglass, in an interview with Haaretz, according to which the disengagement plan means a "freezing of the peace process," Israel Radio reported.
"The significance of the disengagement plan is the freezing of the peace process," Weisglass, one of the initiators of the disengagement plan, said in an interview for the Haaretz Friday Magazine.
"And when you freeze that process," Weisglass added, "you prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, and you prevent a discussion on the refugees, the borders and Jerusalem.
"Effectively, this whole package called the Palestinian state, with all that it entails, has been removed indefinitely from our agenda. And all this with authority and permission. All with a presidential blessing and the ratification of both houses of Congress."
"The disengagement is actually formaldehyde," he said. "It supplies the amount of formaldehyde that is necessary so there will not be a political process with the Palestinians." (The full interview will appear on Friday in Ha'aretz and will also appear on the Tikkun website www.tikkun.org)
State Department Spokesman Adam Ereli, speaking in Washington, said the U.S. told Israel that Weisglass' comments do not match Israel's official government position as presented to the U.S. {Tikkun editorial note: DUHHHHHH!}
But Ereli also said Israel informed the U.S. administration that Sharon remains committed to the road map peace plan and to President George W. Bush's vision of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Following the publication of parts of the Weisglass interview in Haaretz, Sharon's bureau released a statement saying he supports the road map and sees it as the only plan for allowing a final-status agreement.
A senior State Department official in Washington also said the administration was very satisfied with clarifications of Weisglass' comments made by the Prime Minister's bureau.
Israeli Centrists and Left slams comments
Labor Party chairman Shimon Peres said Sharon had never told him that the disengagement plan was meant to freeze the peace process. "He who seeks half-peace will bring half-war," Peres said Wednesday.
In the wake of the comments, Hadash MK Ahmed Tibi sent a letter to U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Kurtzer questioning whether "the American administration is a partner to Sharon's political deceit, which Weisglass revealed with incriminating candor." Tibi said that Weisglass' comments "bolster what we have said all along, that the [disengagement] plan is a 'Sharon bluff'." Yahad chairman Yossi Beilin said Weisglass' "frightening comments" were uttered in a rare moment of truth, and show Sharon's real, dangerous intentions. The remarks "reveal the fact that it is Sharon who is not a partner for peace, and the peace camp must work for him to be overthrown," said Beilin. Hadash MK Mohammed Barakeh called the statements grave, saying they prove that the Sharon government must be toppled as soon as possible. These comments, Barakeh said, affirm the importance of refusing to serve in the Israel Defense Forces and the relevance of the Geneva Initiative, a peace plan co-authored by Beilin and former Palestinian minister Yasser Abed Rabbo. National Union MK Zvi Hendel said that Weisglass' comments stem from political considerations, namely to appease the right for the short term. Asked why the disengagement plan had been hatched, Weisglass said: "Because in the fall of 2003 we understood that everything was stuck. And although by the way the Americans read the situation, the blame fell on the Palestinians, not on us, Arik [Sharon] grasped that this state of affairs could not last, that they wouldn't leave us alone, wouldn't get off our case. "Time was not on our side. There was international erosion, internal erosion. Domestically, in the meantime, everything was collapsing. The economy was stagnant, and the Geneva Initiative had gained broad support. "And then we were hit with the letters of officers and letters of pilots and letters of commandos [refusing to serve in the territories]. These were not weird kids with green ponytails and a ring in their nose with a strong odor of grass. These were people like Spector's group [Yiftah Spector, a renowned Israel Air Force pilot who signed the pilot's letter]. Really our finest young people." Weisglass does not deny that the main achievement of the Gaza plan is the freezing of the peace process in a "legitimate manner." "That is exactly what happened," he said. "You know, the term 'peace process' is a bundle of concepts and commitments. The peace process is the establishment of a Palestinian state with all the security risks that entails. "The peace process is the evacuation of settlements, it's the return of refugees, it's the partition of Jerusalem. And all that has now been frozen.... what I effectively agreed to with the Americans was that part of the settlements would not be dealt with at all, and the rest will not be dealt with until the Palestinians turn into Finns. That is the significance of what we did." Sharon, Weisglass said, could also argue "honestly" that the disengagement plan was "a serious move because of which, out of 240,000 settlers, 190,000 will not be moved from their place."
Tibi said that Weisglass' comments "bolster what we have said all along, that the [disengagement] plan is a 'Sharon bluff'."
Yahad chairman Yossi Beilin said Weisglass' "frightening comments" were uttered in a rare moment of truth, and show Sharon's real, dangerous intentions.
The remarks "reveal the fact that it is Sharon who is not a partner for peace, and the peace camp must work for him to be overthrown," said Beilin. {Tikkun Editorial Note: Beilin is referring here to the move by Peres and the Labor Party to support a Coalition Government under Sharon's leadership should the right-wingers defect from his government for having "gone too far" by agreeing to end the settlements in Gaza. Beilin believes that this statement is strong evidence that his Yachad Party were right in challenging the Labor Party's desire for a coalition government which, Yachad argued, would simply allow Sharon to continue his charade about seeking peace when his actual attempt is to block it..)
Hadash MK Mohammed Barakeh called the statements grave, saying they prove that the Sharon government must be toppled as soon as possible. These comments, Barakeh said, affirm the importance of refusing to serve in the Israel Defense Forces and the relevance of the Geneva Initiative, a peace plan co-authored by Beilin and former Palestinian minister Yasser Abed Rabbo.
National Union MK Zvi Hendel said that Weisglass' comments stem from political considerations, namely to appease the right for the short term. Asked why the disengagement plan had been hatched, Weisglass said: "Because in the fall of 2003 we understood that everything was stuck. And although by the way the Americans read the situation, the blame fell on the Palestinians, not on us, Arik [Sharon] grasped that this state of affairs could not last, that they wouldn't leave us alone, wouldn't get off our case.
"Time was not on our side. There was international erosion, internal erosion. Domestically, in the meantime, everything was collapsing. The economy was stagnant, and the Geneva Initiative had gained broad support.
"And then we were hit with the letters of officers and letters of pilots and letters of commandos [refusing to serve in the territories]. These were not weird kids with green ponytails and a ring in their nose with a strong odor of grass. These were people like Spector's group [Yiftah Spector, a renowned Israel Air Force pilot who signed the pilot's letter]. Really our finest young people."
Weisglass does not deny that the main achievement of the Gaza plan is the freezing of the peace process in a "legitimate manner." "That is exactly what happened," he said. "You know, the term 'peace process' is a bundle of concepts and commitments. The peace process is the establishment of a Palestinian state with all the security risks that entails. "The peace process is the evacuation of settlements, it's the return of refugees, it's the partition of Jerusalem. And all that has now been frozen.... what I effectively agreed to with the Americans was that part of the settlements would not be dealt with at all, and the rest will not be dealt with until the Palestinians turn into Finns. That is the significance of what we did."
Sharon, Weisglass said, could also argue "honestly" that the disengagement plan was "a serious move because of which, out of 240,000 settlers, 190,000 will not be moved from their place."
************End of the Ha'aretz story****************
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If there is no real possibility of a 2 state solution, there will almost certainly be growing demands for a one-state solution. It will be increasingly difficult to withstand the demand for "one person, one vote" in what is a seemingly unending occupation. In the January/February issue of Tikkun we will begin to explore that debate--one of many reasons why you should buy gift subscriptions to Tikkun as the perfect Chanukah gift for friends!! But we have to say that we are not looking forward to this conversation, because we have to approach it with an open-mind, to see if there really is a reason for the Tikkun Community to change its strong two-state perspective and start advocating for something different. That is a change we will not make without the input of all our members who are willing to give input. But that's one reason why it's important to pay attention to what we've just learned from this development in Israel.
In the meantime, even as we finish our holiday season, we have some mourning to do. The horrible terrorist assault on Egyptians and Israelis vacationing in Sinai hotels reminds us all that the struggle is about life and death, not just an abstract philosophical issue about rights. We unequivocally condemn those disgusting attacks against Israeli civilians. Nothing Israel is doing could possibly justify this kind of carnarge. We also unequivocally condemn the murderous assault by the Israeli army on the citizens of Gaza which in the last 9 days has resulted in the deaths of over 85 Gazans. There is no moral equivalence here because there is never moral equivalence between one unnecessary death and another--none of these deaths would be happening if the people of the US were to use our immense power to force Israel and the Palestinians to accept the Geneva Accord and end this senseless struggle, instead of cheering on one side and demonizing the other. Every partisan who keeps this struggle going, on both sides, has their hands filled with the blood of the innocent. When it ends, whether it will be in six months or 600 months, it will be ended on terms very close to those of the Geneva Accord, and afterwards people will ask: what was keeping all those people locked into such a horrible struggle and why were they so attached to their killings? From our standpoint, NOW is the time to end all of those killings. NOW. And that means, demanding of the media and of those who seek our votes from whatever party that they must stop giving Israel a blank check to continue the Occupation, since the Occupation is not in the interests of Israel, the Jewish people, or the United States. But to get that message taken seriously, we need people to be organized. It's not enough to shake your head "yes" or "too bad" about the things you read here about Israel/Palestine--it's time for you to join (or if you joined in past years, to renew your membership in) The Tikkun Community, because size matters, and if you want us to be able to speak effectively in the public realm in our call for a change in U.S. policy so that it is both pro-Israel and pro-Palestine, and so that it uses its power to obtain an end to the Occupation, then you need to do something concrete: JOIN US now. You can do that by calling 510=644 1200 in Pacific Daylight Time work hours 9-5, or by going to our website at www.Tikkun.org and joining on line. Or sending a check to Tikkun according to what you are willing to give to help us get the message out: (World Transformer: $1,000/yr. --$10,000/yr.; Founding Member: $500/yr.; Tikkun Associate: $25/mo we bill your credit card; Supporting Member for incomes over $80k/yr: $120/yr; Basic Membership; Basic Membership for incomes $35k-$80k/yr: $80/yr; Students and Incomes under $35k/yr: $40). When you join, you a year of Tikkun as well as a copy of my book Healing Israel/Palestine or my book The Geneva Accord and Other Strategies of Middle East Peace--just tell us which one you want. Send the check to: Tikkun, attn. TMS, 2342 Shattuck, Suite 1200, Berkeley, Ca. 94704.
It's not too late to build a world of peace. Love and blessings!
Rabbi Michael Lerner
Tikkun
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