REASON has triumphed over fantasy in the Palestinian elections. Yasser Arafat’s landslide victory is an overwhelming endorsement of the peace process, and reflects a growing view among the Palestinians that their aspirations for an independent state are more likely to be gained by negotiation than by terrorism. The election result is also a vindication of the decision of the late Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres to negotiate with Arafat, the man they had long reviled as an outcast terrorist.
Fatah’s campaign was certainly not without its flaws, and Palestinians still have much to learn about democratic processes and a free press. But, as the international observers have testified, none of the violations were so serious as to put the outcome of the election into question. Beyond doubt, the Palestine Liberation Organisation’s leader has finally acquired legitimacy and will be in a much stronger position at the marathon “final settlement” round of peace talks, which begin in May and are scheduled to last up to three years. In the enthusiasm of the moment, Arafat’s close aides are predicting that a Palestinian state has now come within tangible
Realism, however, dictates caution. Israel remains far from accepting that the Palestinian “entity” should gain full independence. The most intractable issues — the future of the Israeli settlements, the status of Jerusalem, and the return of the Palestinian diaspora — must now be tackled.
To resolve any of this will take considerably more compromise than has yet been on display. Certainly Arafat cannot count on major concessions from Israel unless the Palestine National Council, the PLO’s supreme body with hundreds of members in the diaspora, amends its charter to strike out the call for Israel’s destruction. Even in his newly strengthened position, Arafat will not find it easy to convince the PNC to overturn this article of the Palestinian faith.
More immediately, the PLO leader has to keep the lid on Hamas and other extremists who might yet endanger the whole peace process. It could turn out that Hamas misjudged the Palestinian yearning for stability and economic progress, and committed a fatal error in boycotting the elections. But, even with Israeli help, there is no guarantee that Hamas can be neutralised.
The US and its European allies greeted Arafat’s victory with a torrent of congratulations. But satisfaction with Arafat’s achievements so far must not inhibit the international community from pressing for more accountability from his administration, and above all, for greater respect for human rights within the Palestinian “entity”.