http://www.middleeast.org/1998_10_23a.htm
Arafat Now a "Pathetic, Collaborating Ruler"
[MER - 23 April 1997}:
One of the most emminent Palestinian personalities, Professor Edward
SaiD at Columbia University, has publicly, and repeatedly, used the
word "collaborator" to describe his former colleague, Yasser Arafat --
Said's books and articles have subsequently been banned by the
"Palestinian Authority".
Professor Nasseer Aruri recently used the word "vassal" to publicly
describe Arafat to an establishment Arab-American gathering in
Washington.
Dr. Haidar Abdul Shafi, the former head of the Palestinian negotiating
team at Madrid and in Washington, has publicly described the PA as a
"terrible disaster" for the Palestinian people.
And in private things said about Arafat personally and the "PA" he has
created with American and Israeli arms and money are far more graphic.
Practically all of the Arab institutions and personalities in the US
have been bought off or silenced. Worldwide they have either been
drained of funds or co-opted. In the now doubly occupied territories
-- especially after the arrest and torture of Dr. Eyad El Sarraj in
Gaza -- these is unprecedented fear and despair.
This article by Professor Tanya Reinhart -- a dedicated Israeli who
has long-struggled for true Palestinian independance and Statehood --
helps explain what has happened in the last few years and why such
major personalities as Said, Aruri, Abdul Shari, and El Sarraj, are
desperately trying to speak out against what is essentially the
"Arafat regime".]
The Road of Collaboration
By Prof. Tanya Reinhart,
Tel Aviv University (Translated from Hebrew
in Israeli daily, Yediot Aharonot, 4/7/97)
Now they are talking about
a Camp-David style summit, and the final agreement. One can forget
about the horrors of occupation, seen on (foreign) tv. At the level of
words, the occupation is (said to be) long gone. What we have now is
symmetric negotiations between two empires. Like Egypt, in Camp-David,
the Palestinian empire carries on tough bargaining with Israel on the
final details.
The power of analogy is that it can blind the eyes. In Camp-David
there were indeed negotiations between two independent states. The
agreement included withdrawal, returning lands and evacuating
settlements. But the Palestinian state is an Israeli invention -
nothing but a word. What we have in practice is a new form of
occupation, assisted by brutal collaborating-services, which were
trained by the Israeli secret services to do the job of oppression.
For the Israeli left, it is difficult to criticize Arafat, since for
years he has been the symbol of the Palestinian struggle. It is also
difficult for the oppressor to denounce the oppressed for his defeat.
Nevertheless, ignoring the facts only helps the fraud called 'peace-
process': At the eve of the Oslo agreement, the PLO was in a serious
crisis, whose center was a growing resentment of Arafat's leadership,
There were many reports in the press of public gatherings in the West
Bank denouncing the lack of democracy, the dissociation of the Tunis
group from the reality of occupation, and, especially, the complete
control Arafat had over the budget and the finances. Arafat may have
felt that the way to regain control is a sweeping agreement with
Israel. Today it is already a public knowledge that in the circles of
Rabin, the idea was formed that under these circumstances, it may be
possible to extort Arafat into a complete surrender.
The process in which a brave national leader becomes a pathetic
collaborating ruler, like Lahad of South Lebanon, is complex, but with
a fixed script of pressure and bribery. Some details of how this
happened in just one area were exposed lately.
"WHAT WE HAVE IN PRACTICE IS A NEW FORM OF OCCUPATION, ASSISTED BY
BRUTAL COLLABORATING SERVICES...TRAINED...TO DO THE JOB OF
OPPRESSION."
In April 1994, when the air was still full of the Oslo euphoria, the
economical agreement between Israel and the Palestinian authorities
was signed, in Paris. The agreement was astonishing: It guaranteed the
full control of Israel of every aspect of Palestinian economy: Import
is subject to all of Israel customs and taxes; export is only
permitted through Israeli mediators. The only future left for the
Palestinians was serving as cheap labor for Israeli investors. In the
Israeli press, there were some who wondered how come the Palestinians
signed such an agreement, but they answered, as always, that if Arafat
agrees, then all must be fine. Now it turns out that the chief was
simply bought there - The prize that he got for his cooperation was
all the profits of the oil-taxes. And oil is big money.
'Haaretz' of 4.4.97(1) discloses that Mohammed Rashid, the Kurd
millionaire who serves as an economical counsellor of Arafat, agreed
in Paris, that the taxes which Israel collects on oil-imports to the
territories will return in full to a private account in 'Bank Leumi'
in Tel Aviv which is accessible only to Arafat and to Rashid. It is
reported that the money is reserved for "the evacuation of Arafat, his
family, and some senior officials, in case of an upturning", and to
cover some secret services designed to guarantee Arafat's rule until
then.
"THE PROCESS IN WHICH A BRAVE NATIONAL LEADER BECOMES A PATHETIC
COLLABORATING RULER...IS COMPLEX...WITH A FIXED SCRIPT OF PRESSURE AND
BRIBERY."
AS REPORTED, IN THE GANGSTERS UNION FORMED IN PARIS, RASHIDCLOSED HIS
DEAL WITH NO OTHERS BUT THE PAST HEADS OF THEISRAELI SECURITY
SERVICES: THE MEDIATOR WAS YOSEPH GINOSAR,WHO WAS THE HEAD OF THE
'INTERROGATION' SECTION OF THEISRAELI SECRET SERVICES (SHABAK), WHICH
IS IN CHARGE OF THETORTURE OF PALESTINIAN PRISONERS. THROUGH HIM,
RASHIDPROMISED THE MONOPOLY ON OIL SALES TO THE TERRITORIES TODOR
COMPANY, ONE OF WHOSE DIRECTORS IS SHMUEL GOREN, WHOWAS THE 'MILITARY
COORDINATOR' OF THE TERRITORIES.
The occupier and his servants know how to milk the Palestinians.
Together they will make sure that those who pay the price for their
deals will believe that it is all for the benefit of the Palestinian
state. As for those who won't believe that - the combined security
-services will take care of them..
To make things even more macabre, IT TURNS OUT THAT YOSEPHANTWERG, WHO
SIGNED THE AGREEMENT OF THE DOR-COMPANYWITH RASHID, IS THE PRESENT
CANDIDATE TO HEAD THELAND-ADMINISTRATION OFFICE OF ISRAEL - THE
OFFICERESPONSIBLE FOR THE APPROPRIATION OF PALESTINIAN LAND. ONECAN
TRUST ARAFAT AND RASHID THAT THEY WILL HELP HIMTRANSFER THE REMAINING
LANDS QUIETLY.
THE PRIZE THAT ARAFAT GOT FOR HIS COOPERATION IN THE PARISECONOMICAL
SUMMIT OF 1994 WAS ALL THE PROFITS OF THEOIL-TAXES. BIG MONEY, BIG
CORRUPTION.
But before we blame the Palestinians for going along with that, we
should remember that Arafat and his corrupt administration could not
have stayed in power, if not for the Israeli army that has never left
the territories.
(1) Roenen Bergman and David Ratner, "The man who swallowed Gaza",
Haaretz Supplement 4.4.97
