President George W. Bush has condescended to propose a so-called peaceful solution to the Palestinian problem by suggesting that Chairman Yasser Arafat should be replaced, this is exactly what Prime Minister Aerial Sharon of Israel has been asking for. This is nothing but adding insult to injury for the Palestinians and makes them bow down to Israeli design in any future set up of Palestine. This goes to prove that America and Israel are two sides of the same coin. After all why such a long time should be taken up in establishing the state of Palestine? East Timor’s struggle for freedom from Indonesia started much later and East Timor is a free state. Why the same procedure can not be adopted for Palestine, and Kashmir. It is simply because the fundamentalist powers calling themselves liberal and dominating the United Nations are not interested to do so.
The idea of thrusting a leadership and dictation from abroad is not democracy at all; the definition of democracy in American dictionary should now be Government of the people, for the people and by America. Surely this definition of democracy is not that what President Abraham Lincoln preached in his famous address to the American nation. Coming as it does on the eve of 226th Independence Day of America, it reflects the standard of democracy for Americans and their commitment to democracy for others. This advise of President George Bush has received the full support of Great Britain only, while Russia considers it to be imprudent at this stage to oust Yasser Arafat from his present position. By the same token of thinking as proposed by President George W. Bush, Osama bin Laden may also propose an end to War Against Terrorism and a peaceful world if President George Bush is replaced by another leader in America. Would President George Bush accept this proposal and climb down?
In order to stand the test of democracy the leader has to be elected by the people at their will and not at the will of Washington or Tel Aviv. Yasser Arafat has made a very sincere categorical statement that he is prepared to hold the elections to elect a new Parliament and their leader, he can not do any thing more and can not be expected to do any thing more.
There may be some justification for the freedom fighters of suicidal attacks, yet they would be better advised not to do it in the interest of a peaceful solution of the Palestinian problem for some time. At the same time America and Israeli must realize that there is no justification in democracy and peace in the region for occupation of Palestinian territory by Israel’s armed might, supported by America’s tacit approval. The memory of Yom Kipper war is still fresh in the world’s conscientious mind. Israel must vacate the Palestinian territory and pay for the losses incurred by the Palestinians as a pre-condition of a peaceful settlement and healing of wound caused by the thrust of the dagger of Israel by the Christian fundamentalist in the hearts of the peaceful Islamists in Arab speaking lands.
Peace does not come through dictations but it comes through respect for others and conscientious working, which incidentally is always absent from the annals of a super power and gives rise to acts of terrorism by the weaker nations. War Against Terrorism is not won in the battle fields by the armed might or in high seas by war ships or by carpet bombing, but War Against Terrorism can be won in the hearts of the people, which is bleeding though. The super power has to learn this lesson at the cost of its ego, let them learn it is worth it.
Mr. Ali Ashraf Khan is a Pakistani Businessman and Ex-Politician who bid good bye to politics in order to concentrate on more useful service benefit of the political intrigues prevalent in the National Political life of Pakistan. He frequently writes for English and Urdu newspapers in Pakistan.
