The Hindu : Arafat responds with poll schedule

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jun 27, 2002

International

International

Arafat responds with poll schedule

By Kesava Menon

PONDERING OVER BUSH'S `VISION STATEMENT'?: The Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, looks up during a press conference in Ramallah on Tuesday. — AFP

Manama (Bahrain) June. 26. Arab leaders are still trying to come to terms with the "vision statement'' that the U.S. President, Mr. George W. Bush, enunciated on Monday. They are looking for some scope for ambiguity in Mr. Bush's position that the Palestinian Authority President, Mr. Yasser Arafat, must shed power and they are disappointed that Mr. Bush has not set as tough a schedule for Israel to follow as he has for the Palestinians but in their initial reactions these leaders have viewed the speech as positive overall.

A clarification from a White House spokesman that the steps outlined for Israel to take must be taken in parallel to steps by the Palestinians and not as a follow-up would have erased some Arab misgivings.

For all their expressions of solidarity with Mr. Arafat, there seem to be few in the Arab world who dispute Mr. Bush's view that the PLO Chariman's leadership has been less than adequate. But they do strongly resent the view that the U.S. or anyone else should be the ones to decide the Palestinian leadership. Not much talk of democracy can be expected from the Arab world but they must be somewhat embarrassed that the U.S. has asked for the ouster of just about the only Arab leader who was voted into office in an internationally supervised election.

In their dilemma, the Arab leaders, and Mr. Arafat himself, have taken comfort from the fact that Mr. Bush did not take Mr. Arafat's name when he called for a change in leadership. This omission, they believe or make believe, shows that Mr. Arafat's ouster is not in issue they say.

In any event, Mr. Arafat has moved a step ahead of the hounds who are after him. Yesterday, he announced that the Presidential and Parliamentary elections would be held in January next year and local bodies polls two months after that. It is unlikely that the U.S. will press for Mr. Arafat's ouster before that point in time.

Mr. Arafat has not announced that he will contest the Presidential election but it is inconceivable that he would not want to be the Palestinian leader when his people achieve statehood.

But then the choice Mr. Bush has laid out for the Palestinians and the other Arabs is that "they can have statehood or Mr. Arafat'' leadership but not both.

Mr. Arafat and other Arab leaders seem to have some hope that he will be able to retain his status though he sheds most of his powers under the reforms of the Authority demanded by Mr. Bush. But there is a further dilemma here.

Mr. Arafat has real power in terms of his standing among his masses (which increases when his people perceive he is victimised) and on account of his intimate knowledge of all elements of his own power structure.

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