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Palestinians hope to move toward independence gradually |
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September 13, 2000
JERUSALEM (AP) - The Palestinians hope to move toward independence gradually, by holding general elections and seeking full U.N. membership even before a state is proclaimed, officials said Tuesday, on the eve of a sure-to-be missed deadline for a peace treaty with Israel. However, they said it is unlikely any action will be taken during the next five weeks, the period the Palestinians have set aside for a final attempt to reach agreement with Israel on the terms of Palestinian statehood. A treaty was originally due Wednesday, but talks are deadlocked over control of Jerusalem holy sites. Israel has warned the Palestinians against unilateral steps, and over the weekend, the PLO's top policy-making body, the Central Council, decided to postpone a statehood proclamation at least until Nov. 15. In the session, the Central Council said preparations should be made for holding presidential and parliamentary elections and upgrading the Palestinians' status at the United Nations to full membership. The speaker of the Palestinian parliament, Ahmed Qureia, said Egypt and Jordan, direct neighbors of the Palestinians, should draw their borders with the Palestinian territories in a sign of recognition of growing independence. The council has given state-building directives in the past, with little result, and it was not clear whether this time would be any different, even though Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has promised a state by the end of the year. Marwan Barghouti, head of Arafat's Fatah movement in the West Bank, said vague assurances about the future were no longer enough since the Palestinian leadership was losing credibility over repeated delays in forming a state. "It is time to show our people that we are doing something," he said. The missed Sept. 13 treaty deadline "is an opportunity to begin gradually establishing the Palestinian state on the ground. The intention now is not to do everything at one time," said Barghouti. "There is a period of five golden weeks for the negotiations, and after that, I think we should begin." Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's office had no immediate response. However, general elections would go beyond what is permitted during the transitional period from Israeli military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip to Palestinian statehood there. Barak, meanwhile, reiterated that he considers any understandings reached at the Mideast summit at Camp David null and void, as long as there is no final agreement with the Palestinians. The opposition Likud party, which is being courted by Barak, has said it will only consider joining the coalition if the prime minister declares publicly that all concessions to the Palestinians are off the table. "If there is no result to the peace talks, there won't be any need to declare that the understandings are null and void," Barak told Israel army radio. "At the end of Camp David, I said that all the ideas that were raised are null and void, and (U.S. President Bill) Clinton said this as well." Barak said he would not invite the Likud until he was absolutely certain it was not possible to reach a peace agreement. He said prospects for an agreement were "50-50, perhaps even less." |