Hedonism in Ramallah

On top of political failure, the regime of Abbas and Fayyad has now to contend with charges of moral degeneracy and criminality, writes Khaled Amayreh in RamallahFahmi Shabana, a high-ranking Palestinian Authority (PA) intelligence officer, had been warning the Ramallah leadership that corruption was rampant throughout the PA regime and that effective steps had to be taken immediately to stem its tide. However, very few people in the PA hierarchy took him seriously.

One of the main reasons for ignoring Shabana's warnings had to do with the fact that the problem, in its multi- faceted forms, was so widespread that stemming it would be a formidable task the execution of which could seriously destabilise the PA and undermine its public image.

Last week, Shabana, who has been until recently in charge of the Anti- Corruption Department in the PA regime, made serious revelations that would indict a number of PA officials for decidedly criminal behaviour, including sexual misconduct, financial embezzlement, breach of trust, nepotism, favouritism, graft, misappropriation of public funds and indulging in behaviour unbecoming a public official.

In an interview with the rightwing Israeli newspaper, The Jerusalem Post, and later with the Israeli Television Channel 10, Shabana disclosed two main cases of corruption. He revealed that unnamed Fatah officials embezzled much of the $3.2 million bribe given by the US to Fatah ahead of the 2006 legislative elections. The money had been intended to enhance Fatah's image and boost its chances of winning. Some of the sum was used as "inducements" to make young people vote for Fatah. However, the bulk of it evaporated, using the words of one Fatah official from the Hebron region.

This had been public knowledge in the occupied territories for several years. However, due to the dysfunctional nature of the Palestinian justice system, especially since 2007, the issue passed more or less into oblivion. Moreover, neither the US nor other international donors pursued the matter in any serious manner, perhaps lest doing so would hurt Fatah, especially vis- à-vis Hamas that the US and its international and regional allies wanted to weaken and isolate at any price.

In addition, it was clear from the start that some of the senior PA officials involved in corruption were at the forefront of the onslaught against Hamas, which meant that hounding them publicly would have generated undesired repercussions for US goals in the region. "Some of the most senior Palestinian officials didn't have even $3,000 in their pockets when they arrived here. Now their bank accounts swell with tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars," Shabana told Al-Jazeera TV Sunday, 14 February.

"So, I had to act and speak up openly, because not a single corrupt official has been brought to trial for stealing public funds," he said.

Shabana named Azzam Al-Ahmed, the leading Fatah leader in the West Bank, alleging that he and his brother were involved in embezzling more than $1.5 million. He spoke of huge and half-fabricated land purchase deals in which many millions of dollars disappeared into the hands of PA officials.

The other important revelation Shabana made was a videotape showing Rafik Husseini, head of the president's office, lying in bed naked, having been lured to a Ramallah apartment by an unidentified East Jerusalem woman. The woman, according to some sources, was seeking a job at the president's office, so the story was a classic example of trading favours for sex.

Husseini didn't have sexual intercourse with the woman as Shabana and his men stormed the room minutes before the pre-arranged tryst was supposed to take place. In another section of the tape, Husseini is heard saying, "President Abbas has no charisma" and "is not in control". He also referred to the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as "the biggest dajjal ". Dajjal means "liar and conman".

Shocked and obviously embarrassed by the revelations, PA officials issued a plethora of nervous reactions, calling Shabana a long list of names, such as "Israeli informer" "traitor" and "liar". Al-Tayeb Abdel-Rahim, a senior aide to Abbas, claimed that Shabana was a "petty intelligence officer" used by Israel in order to exert pressure on the Palestinian leadership to return to peace talks. Others berated him for "hanging our dirty washing in public" and "making Israel gloat over this affair".

Still others criticised Shabana for the timing of the disclosures, arguing that raising this issue at such a sensitive time was more than coincidence. These and other reactions were mostly defensive reflexes that wouldn't stand up to serious scrutiny.

Nonetheless, on 14 February, Abbas -- who had been reticent to engage the issue -- "suspended" Husseini from his post. He also ordered the formation of an investigation committee comprising three Fatah leaders, including the secretary-general of Fatah's Executive Committee, Abu Maher Ghoneim, Azzam Al-Ahmed, and the head of Fatah's Court, Rafiq Natshe. That Al-Ahmed, who is among those accused of embezzling money, was among those chosen now to investigate the charges raised eyebrows in the occupied territories. Some Fatah leaders, such as Jebril Rajoub, argued that Fatah was obliged to seriously and thoroughly investigate this "real scandal".

"It is not enough just to call these revelations a lie," Rajoub said. "We in Fatah must carry out a serious investigation into this matter and publish the results so that all our people will know the truth. We must also activate the principles of accountability throughout the movement and the PA, and rebuild the security apparatus on a national basis and terminate security coordination with Israel."

Visibly disgraced by the revelations, Husseini appeared in an impromptu press conference in East Jerusalem on 14 February in which he said that he was a victim of an entrapment plot carried out by a gang that doctored a videotape for the purpose of blackmailing him politically and financially. Speaking tersely, Husseini said the purpose behind the plot was to make him stop working for the liberation of Jerusalem and force him to leave the country for good.

Husseini retorted: "This is a classic example of the coalescence of corruption and collaboration with Israel." An appointed member of the Fatah Revolutionary Council, Husseini refused to take questions and left. His remarks did not succeed in dissipating public doubts about his credibility and moral integrity.

This new "Fatah-gate", as many journalists are now referring to the scandal, will surely further weaken and de- legitimise the Abbas-Fayyad regime. Even accepting Fatah's response to Shabana, some observers are wondering how the PA, which is calling Shabana an Israeli agent, could allow such an agent to reach the highest echelon of the Palestinian security apparatus and know the most intimate secrets of the Palestinian leadership.

Shabana also alleged that the family of Abbas has been directly involved in the scandal.