Post Arafat Palestine

These are truths unpalatable to many. However, it may be of no use to harp on the old bizarre tune. The grim reality has been that Yasser Arafat -- the uncontested leader of millions of Palestinians for four decades, their hopes and aspirations personified, is no more. The new leadership is most likely plunged into a state of uncertainty. The gap must have been tremendous. Yet they have got to collect themselves as fast as possible with double zeal and enthusiasm. At the foremost their agenda will have to be overcoming all the factional differences and to forge a far more cohesive unity. In achieving such an indispensable goal the new Palestinian leadership must keep is mind that the Jewish leadership and their agents would go all the way out to ensure that seeds of dissent are not uprooted. Since the stubborn and most formidable Yasser Arafat is gone they are sure to make fresher infiltration to keep process of peace hanging for yet a longer period.

Hence the new Palestinian leadership will have to make very cautious steps forward. It has by now made a fervent appeal to the world leadership to restart the peace process with Israel which has been kept in abeyance by the latter on none too convincing or rational grounds. Just the other day the new leader of PLO and former Prime Minister Mahmood Abbas was shot at by some gunman but fortunately he escaped unhurt. This awful incidence occurring so quickly has created a more compelling situation for Mahmood Abbas and others in the new leadership to plan out a newer strategy for containing such aggression from within. The commitment of diverse factions to forge unity is most likely to be foiled before it turns out to be reality. It is indeed an uphill task for the new leadership, yet it must not be abandoned under any circumstances.

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Yasser Arafat's demise has created a massive void in the occupied territory of Palestine. This void, in turn, has extended to the political status of the entire Middle-East. He was the invincible chairman of PLO and concurrently the elected President of Palestine. On top of every thing he is universally recognised as the Father of the Palestinian nation. In fact, the struggle for liberation of Palestine and Arafat's own life have been entwined by the same thread. His whole existence was mingled with the lives of the people of Palestine. Yasser Arafat faced death many times. A number of times he lay captive at the hands of Israeli army. At the latest he was practically under house arrest in his Ramallah office compound for over two and a half years. Israeli Premier Ariel Sharon threaned to kill or banish him from Palestine on a number of occasions. At one stage it became also clear that Bush administration was bent upon removing him from the leadership of Palestinian Authority. But he was undaunted, flinched not even an inch from his path.

This great leader of Palestine had to fight throughout his life in an absolutely unequal, viciously antagonistic circumstances. Israel enjoys open support and patronage of the world's biggest power, USA. They are simply far more advanced in weaponry. On the other hand, against Israeli missiles, helicopter gunships, mortar assault, the people of Palestine has had to fight with brickbats. In such a disastrous situation extremism was born. But Arafat realised that it was not possible to reach the desired goal pursuing the path of extremism. Parallel with political offensive he took to diplomatic intervention as well. Although the Arab countries have tacit support to the people of Palestine the latter didn't have effective cooperation from all of them. Arafat had to move heaven and earth to mobilise global support to the cause of the people of Palestine. He made good use of diplomacy and through the strength of such diplomatic approaches he succeeded in securing support of the allies. Again this was how he succeeded in signing a historical agreement on peace and understanding with the late Israeli President Rabin. This was a re-affirming proof that he was a die-hard advocate of peace. The Nobel peace prize that Yasser Arafat received along with Rabin was again a firm corroboration of the truth.

Notwithstanding the insinuating remarks of Sharon the new leadership of Palestine will have to move ahead -- carefully, in measured steps, following Arafat's principles and paths meticulously. Or else, any slackening of administration might give rise to terrible extremism, which will be suicidal. It is heartening to observe that the militant groups, hither to unable to see eye to eye with Yasser Arafat, have committed to work together from now on with the new PLO leadership, yet the sad incident in about a week's time since Arafat's death as stated above, could be an ominous signal for all. It must be ensured at any cost that there is no internal rift within the new leadership who should also be ready and prepared to make any sacrifice for the bigger national interest.

Kazi Alauddin Ahmed is an industrial consultant.