Palestinian Playtime

Under the headline Double Standard U.S. Policy on Hamas, Arutz Sheva reports:

The U.S. is funding a Hamas-controlled town in Gaza despite a ban against financing terrorist organizations. Congressmen warned that funds to the PA might be cut if Hamas wins elections.

The New York Sun reported back in October that Bush seemed to be taking the latter approach:

President Bush yesterday privately told his Palestinian counterpart, Mahmoud Abbas, that while it was up to him as to whether terrorist groups could participate in upcoming municipal and parliamentary elections, America would have no contact with terrorists in his future government.

Meanwhile, the US is not the only one who is expressing second thoughts in their support:

The European Union, the biggest donor to the Palestinian Authority, also says it might curb aid to the PA - if Hamas wins the election next month. EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana told reporters in Tel Aviv, "It is very difficult that parties that do not condemn violence ... without changing those positions can be partners for the future,'' Solana said.

PA officials responded by saying that neither the EU nor the U.S. should intervene in internal Palestinian Authority affairs. [emphasis added]

As to how to take the EU's sudden concern with Hamas--I don't know whether this is something that can be taken with more than a grain of salt. Meryl Yourish see's the EU's reaction as nothing more than a 'soft threat'

Yes, the EU has shown us in the past that they don’t particularly care if the PA is rife with terrorists. Yes, they’ve ignored evidence from Israel proving that Arafat was sponsoring terrorism.

But I don’t recall them every stating out front like this that they won’t deal with a terrorist group if it refuses to renounce terror.

Like her, we'll have to wait and see.

On the other hand, there is an odd quality to the idea of a incompetent, corrupt political entity--unwilling to keep its agreements, refusing to disarm terrorists, incapable of keeping its own people from killing each other, completely dependent on billions of dollars in foreign aid (which are lost and wasted)--saying that no one should intervene in their internal affairs.

Here you have a child's playtime version of Iraq, where they think that by putting little pieces of paper into a box you magically create a democratic state. They insist that they are perfectly capable of doing what the big boys do and petulantly stamp their feet at the thought that they have no clue what they are doing.

Of course there are those who agree that the Palestinian Arabs are on a par with the Iraqis when it comes to nation-building. Austin Bay writes:

Despite the violence, Iraqis and Palestinians are creating democratic alternatives. The world's free people need to encourage the Iraqis and Palestinians, not disparage them with defeatist rhetoric and myopic pessimism.

Iraq's and Palestine's victories, now matter how incremental, must be recognized and rewarded.

That's because the democratic revolt's biggest payoffs are at least 10 to 15 years away.

A long haul? Indeed, 15 years is a large chunk of an individual's lifetime. However, in terms of fundamental political and economic reformation, it's no eon.

Peace, the rule of law and steady, honest leadership will make Iraq one of the wealthiest countries in the region. It has water, agriculture, a source of capital (oil) and a population willing to work. Palestine lacks Iraq's natural resources, but Palestinians are aggressive entrepreneurs. Babylon and Bethlehem make Iraq and Palestine prime tourist destinations.

Peace, the rule of law and steady, honest leadership--are there any hints of any of these in the PA? While in Iraq, the insurgents are either in opposition to the Iraqi government or from outside of Iraq altogether, when it comes to the PA, the terrorists are either associated with the Fateh and Abbas or are in the process of being brought in by Abbas--along with their guns.

Furthermore, it's unclear how Bethlehem is a prime tourist attraction, considering the changing demographics:

In Bethlehem alone, the ratio of Christians to Muslims has undergone a complete reversal in the past 50 years—from a 70 percent majority of Christians at the end of World War II to a 30 percent minority today.

And that's from an article in 1997. These days you have articles describing the situation in Bethlehem with headlines like

Christians Fleeing Palestinian Controlled Areas (Near East Report, 1/28/02)
The Beleaguered Christians of The Palestinian-Controlled Area (JCPA, 1/15/03)
New York Times Omits Major Reason Christians are Leaving Bethlehem (CAMERA, 12/24/04)

As the Palestinians continue to make a mess of things, the overindulgent West just continues to spoil them, in the hope--I suppose--that somehow everything will turn out all right and the Palestinian Arabs will stop their tantrum and just quiet down and behave. (not that Arab oil has anything to do with it...).

The fact remains that the Palestinian Arabs are way out of their league. It's a pity that neither the US nor anyone else seems to be willing to put in the time and effort that has been put into achieving what has been done so far--and remains to be done--in Iraq.

Technorati Tag: Israel and Palestinians.