At the mass meeting with Arun Gandhi, the grandson of the Mahatma, in Abu-Dis, I observedthe faces of the participants. While Gandhi was preaching non-violence, I imagined a debatebetween two young Palestinians in the audience.
Yussuf: “He is right. The armed intifada has failed.”
Hassan: “On the contrary. Without the actions of the martyrs, the world would haveforgotten us long ago.”
Yussuf: “For half a year there were no suicide attacks in Israel , and look what we haveachieved!”
Hassan: “We have achieved nothing. On the contrary, the Israeli generals boast thatthey have defeated us with their targeted assassinations , incursions into our territoriesand all the other acts of oppression. And all this time they have been enlarging thesettlements, putting up new ‘outposts’ and continuing to build the racist wall.”
Yussuf: “You forget that the International Court has declared the wall illegal and the UNGeneral Assembly has confirmed this with a huge majority . All of Europe voted in our favor. Weare winning in the arena of world public opinion.”
Hassan: “What is that worth, if in the meantime Sharon does what he wants, goes on keepingArafat in a cage and spits in the face of Abu-Ala, while Abu-Ala is advocating non-violence?”
Yussuf: “Even the senior jurists in Israel itself warn Sharon that if he goes on like this,the United Nations will end up imposing sanctions on Israel .”
Hassan: “But in the meantime, the opposite is happening. Because of the lull in suicideattacks, the Israeli economy is reviving. Tourism to Israel , that had stopped altogetherbecause of our actions, is starting up again. If the Israelis feel comfortable and are nolonger afraid of suicide bombers, why should they talk with us? Why should they give back anyterritories? Why should they stop enlarging the settlements? They don’t give a damn.”
Yussuf: “We have to win international public opinion. We can do this only bynon-violence. I admire the martyrs who are ready to die for our people. I am proud that we havesuch heroes. But they don’t get us anywhere. They only provide Sharon with pretexts to oppressus even more.”
Hassan: “As if Sharon needs pretexts! He wants to break us, and world public opinion willnot lift a finger for us. The treacherous Arab leaders will not do anything for us, either. Onlyour heroes will save us.”
Yussuf: “But Gandhi argues that non-violent methods will be more successful. Hisgrandfather proved this in India .”
Hassan: “He doesn’t know the Israelis. The Israeli army will open fire on any non-violentPalestinian demonstration that reaches serious proportions.”
Yussuf: “Look at the brothers who scaled the wall. That is an example of successfulnon-violent action, breaking the law of the occupier openly and without fear! ”
Hassan: Don’t kid yourself. If Arun Gandhi and the Israelis hadn’t been there, thesoldiers would have shot and killed them. Later they would have announced that they werewanted terrorists. You remember the beginning of the al-Aksa intifada , when there wereunarmed mass demonstrations? The Israeli army brought in snipers and killed the leaders.Please, this is not India , and the Israelis are not Englishmen. They understand only thelanguage of force.”
Yussuf: “But that is exactly what they say about us!”
This kind of debate is now going on everywhere in Palestinian society, perhaps in everyPalestinian family. The Yussufs have no success in convincing the Hassans, and I am afraidthat Gandhi will not succeed either, because they lack the decisive argument. Abu-Mazen, whoadvocates non-violence, got nothing from Sharon . Half a year without suicide attacks insideIsrael have not brought the Palestinians any achievements on the ground.
Therefore, the suicide attack in Beer Sheva, just a week after the Gandhi rally, was to beexpected.
As long as the Sharon government, with the active encouragement of President Bush, goeson enlarging the settlements, building the Wall and all the other actions of annexation,there is no way to convince Palestinian public opinion to turn its back on violence. And only adecisive change in Palestinian public opinion can put an end to suicide attacks. No wall willstop people who are ready to die in order to carry out attacks, and the Palestinians havealready proved that they have any number of such people.
Ehud Barak, a very violent person, once said that if he had been a young Palestinian, hewould have joined a terrorist organization. Obviously, he doesn’t believe thatnon-violence will succeed against the Israeli army. And he should know.
I was impressed by the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. He was the greatest liberator of the 20th century, achieving freedom for the whole Indian subcontinent, including present-dayPakistan and Bangladesh . (But Gandhi also said that Hitler should be opposed only bynon-violent means, and even his most ardent admirers found it hard to accept that.)
In my youth I joined two very violent organizations (the Irgun and the Israeli army), butafter I was wounded near the end of the 1948 war there were several months when the very thoughtof combat caused me physical nausea. I detest violence in all its forms, but how can it bestopped?
There are people amongst us who are ready for a compromise peace but have been led tobelieve that “there is no one we can talk with”, because “they” don’t want peace but seek toannihilate us. But we must understand that Palestinian violence, which causes so muchbloodshed, is the predictable result of our cutting off every other road in front of them.
I am convinced that it is possible to put an end to violence in our country – if we offer thePalestinian people an alternative, non-violent way of achieving freedom and justice.
Anyone who believes that a wall will succeed in stopping suicide attacks might as wellrely on the amulets of Kabbalist rabbis.