By Khalid Amayreh
The American-backed Fatah group has been demanding the organization of general elections in the West Bank and Gaza Strip as soon as possible. However, the demands don’t seem to reflect genuine concern about democracy as one might take it at face value.
Fatah officials and apologists argue that elections represent the only exit out of the present political deadlock at the Palestinian arena, including the enduring rift between Fatah and the Islamic movement, Hamas.
However, in the absence of real guarantees for holding truly free elections, the raucous blather about elections by the Fatah organization, or any other Palestinian group, remains an expression of deception and hypocrisy.
Today, the PA regime in the West Bank is more or less a police state apparatus. Human rights and civil liberties are virtually non-existent as the PA security agencies exercise absolute control over all aspects of life. People are unceremoniously fired from their jobs at the slightest suspicion regarding their political or ideological orientations. And the justice system is in a state of chronic paralysis due to the often wanton interference by the security apparatus.
Since 2007, hundreds of institutions have been seized and the “wrong”, e.g. Islamic-oriented, governing bodies sacked and replaced by Fatah loyalists. In many cases, capable and highly skilled teachers and civil servants were rather vindictively dismissed only to be replaced by others whose main qualification is their membership in the Fatah organization.
And when the victims appeal to the courts for redress, they are told that their dismissal was justified due to “security reasons.”
In other words, one must sing all the songs of praise for Fatah and give unflinching loyalty to Abbas and his American-backed junta, or else he will be considered a security risk and consequently fired from his or her job.
In addition, there is a huge amount of abuse of people’s basic human and legal rights under the rubric of the whoring security coordination with Israel.
According to this regime, any Palestinian arrested by Israel is rearrested upon his or her release by the Palestinian Authority security agencies, and vice versa. Even a Palestinian freedom fighter or political prisoner who has spent 10 or 15 yeas of his life, is rearrested as soon as he sets foot in his village or town.
Needless to say, this is more than just security coordination with Israel. This is outright treachery since these heroic people who have spent the prime of their lives in Zionist jails deserve every appreciation and gratitude, not arrest, humiliation and imprisonment inside a dark, slimy cell.
In recent days and weeks, the PA has allowed student elections to take place on several campuses in the West Bank . However, the elections had no semblance of real elections whatsoever. In many cases, prior to the elections hundreds of Islamic-oriented students were rounded up and warned against participation in the elections. The message was too clear: If you participate in the elections, you will be arrested twice: First by the PA and then by the Israelis. Given the police state atmosphere, most of the student population either boycotted the polls or cast blank ballots in protest against the conspicuous absence of freedom and fairness.
The same pattern of behavior, the anti-Hamas inquisition, has prevailed and continues to prevail in every other institution in the West Bank whereby people are harassed and persecuted for their political views and suspected affiliation.
Hence, one would really wonder how free and fair elections can be carried out under such circumstances.
Well, the answer is clear: No true elections worthy of the name can be conducted under existing conditions in the West Bank where the Fatah-run government views an important part of citizenry as enemies. How else can one relate to the mass dismissal of people from their jobs, with many forced to seek work at Jewish settlements in order to provide food for their families?
More to the point, true elections require a healthy environment that is free from intimidation and interference by the security agencies, a requirement that is conspicuously absent especially in the Wes Bank.
Indeed, allowing elections, whether local or general, to take place under the current police-state atmosphere would be a serious insult to the Palestinian people’s intelligence.
This is why, Hamas and other Palestinian factions which value true democracy are urged to reject Fatah’s exploits and explicit efforts to falsify the Palestinian people’s will by concocting elections that have little or no credibility, elections that would give the impression that a majority of the Palestinian people are surrendering to Israel and readying themselves to sell out al-Quds al Sharif (the Noble Jerusalem) and the refugees’ right of return in exchange for a comical, hamburger statelet on parts of the West Bank.
We all know that Fatah came to regret having allowed elections to take place in 2006. Now, Fatah and the PA are assuring their ultimate patron, the United States (which is at Israel’s beck and call), that Hamas will not be allowed to win again.
Which means that Fatah, ostensibly with American and Israeli blessing and support, will use every conceivable means, including the intended falsification and rigging of elections, in order to ensure Fatah’s victory.
If so, it would be more dignifying and wise for Hamas, and other dignified Palestinians, to boycott such dishonorable elections as taking part in these elections would probably exacerbate the already volatile atmosphere with Fatah and might lead to the outbreak of violence.
Undoubtedly, Hamas might see itself coming under growing pressure from certain Arab regimes to agree to hold elections under the present circumstances. Well, Hamas must resist such pressures, especially coming from these repressive regimes which are utterly unqualified to lecture us on elections and democracy.
In the final analysis, the vast majority of our people shall not and will not commit adultery with our enduring and sacred cause by succumbing to the American-Israeli conspiracies, even if these conspiracies assume a Palestinian face.
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