The true face of the Palestinian people

But you know what? The State of Israel is also committing terrorist acts against Palestinian people. These acts did not stop during Oslo and they have not stopped now. The actions of the majority of Palestinians are ones that demonstrate their commitment to peace.

Let me give you an example of this commitment to peace. Anas al-Aili was shot inside his school by an Israeli soldier at age 14. At that age, he was involved in the first Intifada of 1987 whereby he fought for his very existence. How did he do that? How was he "threatening" the soldiers? He wanted to display the Palestinian flag that Israel had banned from public display. Israel did not allow the expression of anything Palestinian, so as to deny the existence of the Palestinian people. People joked that watermelons were illegal since their colors are similar to the colors of the Palestinian flag.

Anas's injury nearly lost him his life. For four weeks he was in the hospital recovering. He never injured a soul and simply wanted to hold his flag and be allowed to exist. In 1993, he finally got what his scars cost him: Oslo and the right to hold up his flag. He believed by supporting Oslo he was finally going to be like any other human being and be a citizen of a state.

Today, Anas has no freedom. He is forced inside his apartment and leaves for five hours every three days (when the Israeli imposed curfew is lifted) in the town of Ramallah. He goes to buy food from the market and then he returns home. His job as a peace activist, mostly working with children, no longer exists because of the occupation of Ramallah by tanks and troops since June 2002. Seeing Israeli soldiers kill people has become normal. And believe it or not, he is still hopeful for peace, and believes it can exist.

Now, Anas is no longer a child, but he continues his peace work for the Palestinian kids. He does not want any of them to have his scars and to have to live under occupation. He does not practice any violence, does not want to annihilate Israel but wants it to leave the territories it is occupying. His backyard is a war zone. The Israeli kids Mr. Behm spoke of, who sit discussing ending the violence, have the luxury to be away from it. Today, more than 70 percent of Palestinian kids suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome from listening to the shelling and bombing outside their homes, being denied access to a school, being cramped up indoors due to curfews. These kids are committing no acts of violence, while acts of violence against their rights and humanity are being committed against them.

Scholars affirm that Oslo failed because it did not acknowledge the wholly unequal power and resources of the negotiating parties, the state of Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA). On top of that, the sole intermediary in the talks has been Israel's ally, the United States.

In addition, in my opinion, the Israeli government has continued to violate international law by creating "facts on the ground" _ illegally expropriating Palestinian land to build settlements and a network of linking bypass roads in all the areas occupied in 1967, including East Jerusalem. Anas, and all Palestinians, looked out their window everyday and saw a Jewish settlement that grew during Oslo. How is this action by the State of Israel showing a desire for peace?

During the Oslo process, peace was primarily equated with security, security for Israel. Consequently, the role of the PA was seen largely as internal enforcement and control. As a result, the proliferation of powerful and unaccountable internal security agencies has encouraged anti-democratic trends within the PA. Yes, to look at this fairly, the PA and Arafat deserve criticism. But where was Mr. Behm's criticism of Mr. Sharon, Mr. Netanyahu or Mr. Barak?

Finally, the Palestinians have seen few tangible benefits from the peace process. Since 1993, living standards have fallen and unemployment remains high. People like Anas remained hopeful that peace, which in my opinion means a state, will come. Others began to see that Oslo was all an illusion.

Immediate action is needed to create a new framework for peace, based on international law. The negotiations should be conducted in a context that gives greater equality to both parties. A just solution would give both societies the prospect of security and prosperity. The way I see it, for the Palestinians, this means an independent, viable state.

A viable Palestinian state requires a number of stipulations. Israel should withdraw from the territories occupied in 1967 by pulling out of settlements and discontinue the use of bypass roads. East Jerusalem should be the Palestinian state's capital, the center of its economic, religious and cultural life. The PA should control natural resources within the new state, including land and water. The state should have clear boundaries, contiguity of territory, and freedom of movement for people and goods within and across the state's boundaries. Finally, the state should provide the possibility of a functioning economy, which is no longer totally dependent on the Israeli economy in terms of employment, movement of prices, balance of trade and access to external markets.

Mr. Behm, Mr. Barak did not guarantee anything close to this at Camp David in 2000. Israel after Rabin did not practice peace and its actions today demonstrate nothing but its war practices.

Rana Abdul-Aziz is a senior majoring in International Relations and Middle Eastern Studies