Yesterday I watched on television Benjamin Netanyahu´s speech at the American Congress – which was witnessed by congressmen and senators from both main political parties. Barack Obama was away on a trip overseas; luck – or else divine providence – kept him away, because then he avoided the other´s many daring indirect jabs, which were all unanswerable since it is not common practice in such circumstances for a foreign speaker to be interrupted by the representative from the welcoming country.
The “theatre” even seemed rehearsed, although probably not because Netanyahu is a master in the art of sophism as only a few others are. The American congressmen – generally ill-informed about foreign politics and personally uninterested in the growth of Israel — never ceased to applaud and express admiration in a “muscular” enthusiasm – getting up, sitting down, up, down – as if hypnotized by every sentence professed by the foreign leader. It is hard to believe that such an exhaustive gymnastics of arms and legs shaking had not been previously suggested by the event planners. The few ones who did not seem to be happy listening to that hesitated before finally joining the general applause. The reader knows how these things are, after all, everybody has been through such things – in a ceremony, when most of the people are clapping and standing up, we feel almost forced to do the same, in order not to look dissonant.
Now why such criticism directed to the Israeli Premier? Any prejudice against the Jewish people? Not at all, regarding the latter. There are some extraordinary Jews, as there are in all races. However, I have some reservations – and strong ones – against Netanyahu, an astute leader who is tremendously selfish, who is not a good friend of the truth and who is short-sighted when it comes to proposing right and lasting solutions. Propositions which would truly solve the problems of his people and their Semite blood-related people — the Palestines. These ones, for no blame of their own, ended up being punished two thousand years after the violence perpetrated by the Roman Empire who expelled the Jews from Palestine. The expelled ones returned there in the Twentieth Century and, while in need of a proper space to grow and develop, “had no other solution” than to banish the local Arabs. In a paradox, the Jewish Diaspora, despite the undeniable suffering which followed it, brought some benefits to the Jews: the opening of new horizons, the learning of new languages, the dominance of finances, the training and emphasis on tenacity. Had there been no Diaspora, the Jewish people would have remained in the Palestinian territory, raising goats, planting olive trees and living basically as the local Arabs did before the creation of the State of Israel
The Israeli Premier is so obsessed with selfishly favoring his own country – and as a consequence getting more and more electoral prestige – that he forgets the injustices he practices. Einstein — a model Jew, morally and intellectually speaking — used to say that in situations of disagreement we need to always put ourselves in the other´s place, to try to understand the other´s reasons. This is something that Netanyahu never did and never will do because it is not in his nature. And this will be paid in the future by his own people. The moral capital of the Holocaust is being plundered by the successive withdrawals made by politicians who only think of their personal gain, and not in their own people.
Cunning is a rudimentary form of intelligence because most of the times it just deceives or procrastinates. It doesn´t solve, it patches. It doesn´t deactivate “bombs” originated from resentment with reason. The bomb, in a figurative sense – or proper sense, as is the case of the Middle East – will explode some time afterwards. In order for it not to explode it will have to be drenched in blood. The wick connected to the dynamite might be long, but one day it will eventually reach its end.
And which wick is this, in the present case? The understandable Palestine hatred, which spreads to the rest of the Arab world, a hatred accumulated for decades and derived from the excessive occupation of land, ill-treatment, bureaucratic abuse, barriers and the expulsion of Arabic communities which had been there for more than two thousand years.
Netanyahu seems never to have heard of “usucaption”, a legal term which recognizes that when a property is abandoned for a given time its property rights go to the individual who is occupying it. In Internacional Law, as far as I know – which is not much, in this specific subject — it seems not to exist the aforementioned “usucaption” with strict rules; however, an analogy of situations with what occurs on a private level is already an indication that the return of the Jews to the Palestine two thousand years ago was a political mistake which might result in the burning of the world, even leading to a Third World War. It just turns out that this mistake has been consolidated. There is no way to go back in time. There isn´t even a way to think of a Second Holocaust, even though we are already witnessing its bastard puppy, a “mini-holocaust”, a “lighter version”, whose victims are Palestinian refugees.
Israel nowadays has eight million inhabitants. Not as a mere coincidence, the number of Palestinian refugees which were expelled from their homes and who now live in tents and precarious shelters in neighboring countries, anxious to return home, is also close to eight million. Two bodies can´t occupy the same place at the same time. Hence, the need for the weakest one to “get the hell out without complaining to the bishop!”, as Netanyahu suggests.
The “Bishop”, in this case, would be the International Court of Justice, which can´t be accessed by the Palestinians because only constituted states have such a right. And for that end they would need help from Israel itself, which has every political reason not to help them to achieve such a legal status. “Why should we torment ourselves with Palestinian demands at the International Court of Justice”?
Persecuted people of any race, traumatized by bad memories (European ones in this case), are easy prey to politicians who stimulate fear and doubt, transforming former persecuted into new persecutors. The demagogical promise – made by Hamas and the Iranian president – to “sweep Israel from the map” is a clear silliness conceived to please voters who are exasperated by the Israeli impunity. Not even the most ardent enemy of the State of Israel, when lucid, believes in this imaginary broom, even if Iran indeed builds its nuclear weapons. Iran, in case it does an insane attack, would be incinerated in the same day – or the next, at most. If Israel has the right to manufacture atomic weapons, using as an excuse the fear for its own destruction, similar excuses and rights can be attributed to Iran, aware of Israel´s “hunger for land”.
Israel is the most powerful country of the Middle East in terms of conventional weaponry. As for nuclear ones, it is the only country which has the right to own them. And it doesn´t have to allow inspections from the International Atomic Energy Agency because it never signed the “non-proliferation agreement”. Even with so many privileges, Israel still feels “offended” – or else falsely afraid – by – or for – the eventuality that Iran one day produces nuclear weapons. For this reason, it threateningly demands that Iran renounces its advancements in the practical knowledge of nuclear energy, regardless of whether it is for peaceful or military purposes. And this coming from a country which is capable of building not only nuclear plants but also, at least in theory, bombs. It insists – as if it were its divine right – to “be the boss”, irrestrictly, through a monopoly which can lead to abuses. And to Netanyahu, the enlightened sovereign, it really doesn´t matter that Iran subsists mainly through oil, which is a limitation and which eventually will cease naturally or for ecological reasons. And then, where will Iran obtain the energy it needs, especially with land which is not suitable for agriculture? Why does only Israel have the right to be feared in the whole region? Can´t it, at least in theory, abuse such power? It is important here to remember that absolute power might absolutely corrupt.
Another evidence of Netanyahu´s impressive dominance tendency is the demand for Hamas not to participate in any way on the future negotiations regarding the creation of a Palestinian state. If both Palestinian factions, Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, decide to unite, it is none of Israel´s business. It would be the same thing if, in a negotiation between Argentina and Brazil, the former demanded that no politician from PT, PSDB or PMDB (three of the main Brazilian political parties) ever participated in the negotiations. Deep down, such maneuvers aim mainly on creating excuses and difficulties, to delay the fixation of frontiers while the Jewish settlements are expanded in the West Bank.
To Netanyahu, “terrorism” is a label which can only be used for others. He forgets that terrorism can happen in any country where its inhabitants feel oppressed by outsiders and the problem cannot be solved with good manners or though a legal way. If – incredibly hypothetically speaking – Chinese troops invaded the USA, hundreds of Americans – the fierce, most temperamental ones – would probably resort to terrorist acts against the invaders. The Jews themselves had their “proud” terrorist phase when in the 1940´s they were prevented by the British to create an Israeli state in the Palestine.
Osama bin Laden was a really reproachable terrorist by killing innocents. He was incredibly stupid with the 9/11 event, turning the whole civilized world against his cause. His hatred against America derived mainly from the USA´s unconditional support to Israel. Had there been no such support, probably there never would have been a 9/11. Whoever has the trouble to research and read on the internet a collection of speeches made by the terrorist - “Bin Laden quotes” or “quotations” – will have no doubt about how much the Palestinian situation was important in motivating the 2001 attacks. Had there been peace in that region, even if not entirely ideal, probably the Twin Towers would still be standing.
On July 22nd, 1946, “Hotel King David”, located in Jerusalem, was exploded, causing the death of 91 people — 28 British, 41 Arabs, 17 Jews (which were there by mistake) and 5 people from other nationalities – as well as hundreds of wounded ones. Taking responsibility for such terrorist act was a Jewish movement known as Irgun Zvai Leumi, made up by those who insisted on creating the Israeli state. Why that hotel? Because that was where most of the British governmental employees lived in the Palestine. At that time it was the British who managed that region, as determined by the predecessor of the United Nations.
This well-known historical fact has often been “forgotten” in Netanyahu´s speeches through the years. Netanyahu has even mentioned that terrorism is an intrinsically criminal act, as if there had never been a Jewish terrorist act. For him, only the Arab terrorism is wrong. And as much as he apparently is uninterested in History, he knew of such fact because he was present, along with other politicians from the right, at a commemorative event for the 60th anniversary of the terrorist act which destroyed the hotel, a seven-floored building. According to Wikipedia, in this celebratory event a commemorative plaque was put on, recognizing the merits of the Jewish terrorist organization. This is only one of the reasons why I don´t believe in a word said by this citizen who, unfortunately for the Jewish people, should have a different profession. He would certainly be a great real estate agent, stock broker or sales manager, considering his persuasive powers.
Terrorism — when motivated by an authentic hatred and not financial greed — is the reaction of the more hot-tempered against situations of injustice. Among the wronged ones, some are more prudent (e.g., Mahmoud Abbas), others are more aggressive (e.g., the Hamas leaders). There is no way to prevent this variation of moods. And it is useless to try to eliminate terrorism for good without touching the deep cause with originated it. Netanyahu says that Israel is a democracy and that human rights are protected there. Israel is in fact a democracy, but such rights have been denied to many Palestinians. They had to flee to avoid persecution. Millions of them can attest to that.
The only true solution to the Palestinian conflict would be for the international community to step forward in a daring and fair move, altering the Charter of the United Nations and creating a committee of notables – the more notable the better – who, after listening to both parties, would establish the frontiers of both states. After all, a judicial decision does not have the obligation to please both parties. To foolishly demand that “both parties sit down and reach an agreement” is to play Netanyahu´s game, who, deep down, wants to be remembered by future generations as a kind of prophet who turned a tiny state into a huge nation.
When you see in the map how far the Gaza Strip is from the West Bank, it is predictable that such detail might bring even more problems than the ones usually talked about publicly. There is no rhyme nor reason to the creation of a Palestinian State divided into two distant areas. Only fresh and experienced minds who have no personal relation to the subject – international judges with no Arab or Jewish origin – might be able to solve the problem, which is something that is never mentioned. We can never forget the utter intransigence and stubbornness of both religions which, even sharing the same and unique god, will never reach an agreement.
Are the expelled Palestinians unable to return to the Israeli State – as its future borders – because the return would result in an inevitable uproar? May this be taken into consideration by the future arbiters, should it be true. Experienced international judges will know how to compensate this non-return with reasonable concessions. It is patent that the West Bank shall not be separated from the Gaza Strip and without access to the sea.
Such propositions are mere suggestions, perhaps mistaken when put on a map. The essential thing is to point out that the “cool head” in the international judges will be much wiser than the “boiling head” of Jews and Palestinians, incapable of dismantling the gravest current danger to the world peace. When the Palestinians are calmed, the so-called “Islamic Terror” will eventually disappear.
The International Law is pretty elegant. Its profound specialists – not my case, by the way, since I am merely an admirer - lack, however, the audacity to try some “innovation” in the documents which regulate the powers of international justice. Without a solution “from the outside” and mandatory, the planet might find itself in another global conflict. No one can safely predict what might result from the Arab upheaval. If everybody sympathizes with the Palestinians, the already hot atmosphere will only boil. And all because nobody who understands the subject bothers to think of a renovation at the United Nations, especially in the area of International Justice.
May God have mercy on the Middle East. Because the Devil won´t. Think about this, Netanyahu. You can still revert your reputation among the Arabs. Who knows if one day the Arabs might even applaud you. Everyone deserves a second chance.
(May 24th, 2011)
