UNITED FEDERATION OF ISRAEL/PALESTINE

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Proposal for Ending the Palestinian/Israeli Conflict

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FOUNDATION FOR OUR PROPOSAL

By Kamal Nawash

From the outset, we recognize that according to western democratic standards, the ideal and fairest solution would be for Israelis and Palestinians to live as citizens of one democratic country based on equality and justice that ignore religious affiliation, race or ethnicity.  However, western ideals may not work for Israel/Palestine because the best solution is a solution that fits the particular needs of specific populations based on their history and circumstances.  In the following model for Israel/Palestine, we seek unity and self determination for Israelis and Palestinians but without segregation or separation.

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Currently, there are approximately four (4) million Palestinians who live in areas controlled by Israel, West-Bank and Gaza, who are not citizens of Israel.   There are also 550,000 Jews who live in the West Bank but who are citizens of Israel.  These demographic statistics are at the core of the conflict.  While Israel controls the borders of the West Bank and Gaza, the Palestinians living there have no rights in Israel and are unable to travel freely from their cities to Israeli cities while their Jewish neighbors are able to travel and have full rights in Israel.  The Jews of the West Bank have full access to Israeli hospitals, universities, courts, public transportation while the Palestinians do not.  Only Palestinians with a Jerusalem ID and Palestinians who are Israeli citizens have access to Israel’s hospitals and other institutions. 

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According to our analysts, the reason for the unequal treatment between Israelis and Palestinians is not necessarily caused by racism or hatred for non-Jews.  It is because Israel has a dilemma that it has been unable to solve from day one of its creation.  Israel was created with the intention of being a Jewish state or a national home for the Jews.  The problem with this goal is that Israel is not 100% Jewish.  The dilemma for Israel is how to have a Jewish, democratic state when a substantial number of non-Jews live in Israel and Palestine.

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The second part of the dilemma is that Israel perceives the Palestinians as naturally hostile to Israel and does not trust them to be citizens.  Without a doubt, the Palestinians have complicated the matter by using violence to achieve their goals.  This must stop.   (The Palestinian struggle for freedom and equality must be based on nonviolence.  Our model for achieving freedom and equality for Palestinians is the civil rights movement in the United States under the leadership of Martin Luther King.)

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When Israel became an independent country, many Jews believed that the demographic dilemma was solved after a majority of the Palestinians in the new country Israel either immigrated or were kicked out of their homes.  While many Israelis dispute that the Palestinians were kicked out of their homes, there is no dispute that only a fraction of the Palestinians in modern day Israel remained after the founding of Israel.  It is also undisputed that Israel did not give the few remaining Palestinians in Israel (Israeli-Arabs) citizenship until five years after the founding of Israel.  Jews were given citizenship immediately.

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The demographic dilemma reemerged 29 years after Israel was created when, as a result of the 1967 war, Israel increased its territory by occupying the West Bank and Gaza.  The occupation of the West Bank and Gaza substantially increased the number of Palestinians under Israel’s control.  There is disagreement whether the war was defensive as Israel claims or an offensive land grab as Palestinians claim.  Regardless, it is undisputed that Israel took control of Palestinian lands but refused to give Israel citizenship to the Palestinians.

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Currently, there are approximately six million Jews in Israel, four million Palestinians (Christians and Muslims) in the West Bank and Gaza and 1.5 million Palestinians (Muslims and Christians) with Israeli citizenship in Israel proper.  Thus, there are 6 million Jews and 5.5 million Palestinians in Israel/Palestine.  The number of Palestinians is expected to equal the number of Jews in a few years. 

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Currently many Jews on the left and right believe that if Israel gave equality to Palestinians in the form of citizenship and political rights then Israel as a Jewish state could be undermined or threatened.  Consequently, Israel has isolated the Palestinians in an open prison by building huge walls to lock them in their cities and has deprived them from freedom of movement and most civil rights and freedoms enjoyed by Israelis.  Israel claims that the building of the wall was done for security reasons.  Palestinians believe that the wall is nothing but a land grab because it was built on Palestinian land rather than Israeli land. 

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Israel has justified its treatment of the Palestinians by referring to the Palestinian use of violence to end their inequality and suffering.  Without a doubt the use of bombings and the targeting of Jewish civilians by Palestinians are morally wrong and unacceptable.  The use of violence has hurt the Palestinian cause in every way imaginable and must stop.  The Palestinians counter that during the first uprising (intifada), they did not use violence and Israel responded to their demonstrations with lethal weapons that killed thousands of Palestinians.

Moreover, Palestinians do not believe in the security argument because Israel does allow some Palestinians into Israel to work.  Those Palestinians are checked and allowed in Israel at various checkpoints with no security risks to Israel.  Palestinians argue that if Israel was sincere about security, then it would allow all Palestinians freedom of movement in Israel and Israel can guarantee its security by checking and searching Palestinians at the various check points and then allow them to travel in Israel as Jews are allowed to travel.  However, Israel does not do this.  Under Israeli law, Palestinians are not allowed in Israel unless they have a special visa or work permit.  Thus, Israel treats Palestine as if it is a foreign country but wants to exercise control over Palestine as if it is a province of Israel.  This contradiction has driven Palestinians to seek statehood and independence from Israel.  Our analysts believe that if Israel treated Palestinians with respect and equality and allowed them to travel freely and to work wherever they find a job, then Palestinians may not want statehood or separation from Israel.    

In addition, Palestinians argue that the check points make it difficult even for Palestinians with permits to travel because of long lines.  For example, the check point near Bethlehem/Beit Jala, that primarily serves Jewish settlers, has 10 gates to check the identification and cars of Jews which keeps traffic moving fast.  The check point that serves the Palestinians in Bethlehem only has one gate.  Thus, even for those few who can travel into Israel, the commute is a nightmare in the best of times.

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Currently, the Palestinians claim that their situation under Israeli control is worse than the situation of blacks in the United States prior to the civil rights movement and even worse than blacks in apartheid South Africa.  Palestinians point to the irony of how Jews treat them, considering that Jews have traditionally been leaders in global civil rights movements.  American Jews were and continue to be leaders in demanding equality and justice for blacks in the United States.  However, the same Jews who supported equality for blacks in the U.S. opposed equality for Palestinians.  The Palestinians interpret this contradiction as being caused by the fear of the above mentioned demographic dilemma.  Israelis respond by saying that they are a different nation from the Palestinians and have no obligation to allow Palestinians equality or freedom of movement in Israel.   Palestinians respond that Israel cannot claim that they are a different nation since Israel controls the borders of Palestine and controls the movement of Palestinians.

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Two State Solution

Over the last 30 years, the world has pursued the two state (two country) solution without much success.  However, contrary to unanimous belief, neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis are to blame for the failure of the two state solution. The two state solution failed because the concept of creating two separate countries by dividing Israel/Palestine was and still is a difficult pill to swallow for Israelis and Palestinians. It is a fact that Israelis and Palestinians have religious, historical and emotional attachments to every square inch of the land that includes Israel and Palestine and neither side is eager to embrace permanent separation or “amputation” as described by Israeli novelist Amos Oz.  Practically speaking, it should be obvious to anyone who takes an honest look at the map of Israel/Palestine that there is not enough room in such a small area to support two separate countries that are contiguous, and viable.

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Historically, the Palestinians only requested an independent state in the West Bank and Gaza for strategic reasons or to end the misery associated with being stateless.  The West Bank and Gaza are approximately 23% of the lands that Palestinians claim as original Palestine.  For most of their recent history the Palestinians have wanted to return to all of Palestine which includes all of Israel.  It was only in the 1980s that a significant number of Palestinians began asking for a state in the West Bank and Gaza.  In fact, the split between Hamas and Fatah and between Fatah and other branches of the PLO is precisely over this point.  Hamas and other branches of the PLO reject the notion of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza.

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Not surprisingly, the leaders of Israel have also rejected the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza. They argue that withdrawing from the West Bank and Gaza would leave Israel vulnerable while others argue that the West Bank and Gaza are integral parts of Israel and refer to the territories as Judea, Samaria and Azza.  The attachment of many Jews to Israel/Palestine is so strong that many Jews claim that Jordan is Palestine and that Palestinians should move to Jordan.

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The fact is most Israelis and Palestinians share in the belief that Israel/Palestine is indivisible. For many Palestinians, Palestine is not the West Bank and Gaza, it includes all of Israel. For many Israelis, Israel includes all of Palestine. And both claim Jerusalem. Thus, the two state solution requires compromises that neither side can ever make.

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Recent history has shown that separation is not the answer for Israel/Palestine. Increasingly, more and more Israelis and Palestinians are turning to the idea of a shared country in the form of a federation or confederation or a European Union style of a union with a supranational government.  The Task Force believes that the way forward is for a shared future as opposed to separation.  This article outlines an initial roadmap for Palestinians and Israelis to share Israel/Palestine in light of their goals, aspirations and fears. 

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ROADMAP

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TWO PROVINCES = ONE COUNTRY

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The Roadmap envisions one country made up of a federation between two provinces, Israel and Palestine, where each province contributes 50% to the federal parliament regardless of population.

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This road map envisions two people sharing one united country where each side is guaranteed equality, freedom, civil rights and security.  The reference to “provinces” is not to two independent countries but rather two partially sovereign entities similar to New York and New Jersey linked together to form one country similar to the United States of America.

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The road map envisions several tiers of government:  federal, province, municipal, and autonomous districts with municipal powers.  The federal government will have limited powers that are given to it by the constitution.   

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BOUNDARIES

The ideal and preferred solution is not to have boundaries and in many instances the roadmap envisions a future with no boundaries.  However, practical administration of a modern federation may require legal or administrative boundaries without physical barriers.   Among the purposes of administrative borders is for simplicity in determining the reach of the provincial government and to give people the psychological satisfaction and security that comes from the perception that they are in a province of similarly situated people.  The boundaries will not be apparent and the number of Parliamentarians who represent a province in the federal parliament will not be based on the number of people living in each province.  Instead, parliament will be divided 50/50 regardless of population.

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To illustrate, Israel and Palestine will each contribute 50% to the federal parliament regardless of which province Jews and Palestinians choose to live.  Jewish settlers will be represented in the federal government by the 50% allocated for Jews and Arab Israelis will be represented by the 50% allocated for Palestinians. 

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The 50/50 split will never change.  The purpose of the 50/50 split is to provide each side with security, equality and to make certain that only moderates on both sides are able to pass legislation because any legislation will probably need support from parliamentarians from the other side. 

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As to voting for federal candidates, Israelis living in Palestine or Palestinians living in Israel shall be able to vote for the Federal candidates who represent their district regardless of religion.  For example, Jewish settlers living in Palestine shall have the right to vote for the Palestinian candidates who represent their districts in the federal parliament and Palestinians living in the province of Israel shall have the right to vote for the candidate that represents their district regardless of his or her religion.  However, the parliament shall always be 50% Jewish and 50% Palestinian.

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The administrative borders may be based on the location of the people.  Cities that are majority Jews may go to Israel and cities that are majority Palestinian may go to Palestine.  The same may apply for federal voting districts.  If there is no agreement on the administrative boundaries, the administrative boundaries shall be based on the 1967 lines.  However, it is believed than an agreement on administrative boundaries should be easy since there is free movement of people and no permanent separation or exclusion from any jurisdiction.

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To illustrate further, if the Boundaries are not based on 1967 boundaries, Israel and Palestine may agree to adjust the state boundaries based on local referenda.  For example, the Jewish neighborhood of Gilo is in the West bank and by default will fall within the boundaries of the Palestinian province.   Similarly, the town of Abu Ghosh is a Palestinian Israeli town and currently falls within the boundaries of Israel.   The residents of either town could vote to be included within the other state, which vote would require a 65% or more percentage of eligible voters in favor to pass.  Regardless of the legal boundaries, the formation of the federation is such that the boundaries are of no visible significance for the free movement of people or labor.    There will be no physical barriers or check points.  The boundaries are only relevant for choosing parliamentarians for the provincial government and determining the application and reach of provincial law.

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Moreover, cities may have a vote as to which province they want to belong to.  For example, if the parties draw administrative boundaries based on demographics rather than 1967 lines then a particular town may object to being in the state made up of its people.  For example, an Israeli Arab town may prefer to stay within the boundaries of the Israeli province rather than Palestine.  The wishes of that town should at least be considered. 

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FEDERAL, PROVINCE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS

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The federal government shall be divided 50/50.  The federal government will have specific authority that is given to it by the constitution.  It will not interfere with province or municipal governments but will guarantee certain fundamental rights for all people.  Where there is a contradiction between federal and provincial law, federal law must be supreme.

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As to the governments of the province of Israel or Palestine, each province must allow all its citizens the right to vote for the parliament of the provincial government regardless of religion.  However, states shall have the right to limit the number of provincial parliamentarians from the minority population.  For example, Israel may prefer to have 100% Jews in the parliament of its province.  Israel shall have that right even though non-Jews may live in the Israeli Province.  Palestine shall have the same right or if Palestine may want to allow as much as 10% or 20% Jews in its parliament, Palestine shall have the right.  Each province determines who sits in its provincial parliament.

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For further illustration, Palestine must allow Jewish settlers living in Palestine the right to vote in Palestinian provincial elections.   However, if Palestine wants 100% Palestinians in the parliament of their province, Palestine will have to allow the settlers to vote for their provincial candidate but the settlers may be prevented from seeking a position in the parliament of the Palestinian province.  On the other hand, Palestine may not want to put limits on Jews in its parliament and in that case Jewish settler will be able to run for office in Palestine. 

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Some members of the Task Force believe that it would not be healthy for Jews or Palestinians to have provincial parliaments that are either 100% Jewish or 100% Palestinians.  However, the constitution will allow provinces to have 100% parliamentarians of a particular group to enhance the feeling of security and preserve the cultural identity and political power of a particular group in its own province.  Nevertheless, the federation’s suggested policy is for each province to allow members of the minority population to run for office and hold as much as 10-20% of the parliament seats.    

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As to municipal elections, the allocation of seats will be done on a system of one man one vote.  There will be no limits on the number of any community in municipal parliaments.  However, municipalities or districts may be created or designed around specific community concentrations.  For example, Jews who live in Bethlehem or Palestinians who live in Tel Aviv shall have the right to vote and run for municipal elections.  On the other hand, community concentrations such as the Har Homa Jewish settlement which would ordinarily fall within the municipalities of Bethlehem and Beit Sahour may petition to become its own municipality since it is large in size and 100% Jewish.  In other words, it will be allowed to run itself.  The same rule may apply to large concentrations of Palestinians within Israeli municipalities.     

President or Prime Minster

The President or the Prime Minister may be elected by the popular vote of the people or by the parliament.  Some task force members believe that the leader of the federation should be elected by parliament since it is divided 50/50 which will better guarantee that the leader will strive to serve all the people of the federation rather than his community.  In other words, for a leader to be elected, he or she will need support from Jewish and Palestinian Parliamentarians.  This dynamic will almost certainly guarantee the election of a reasonable leader who strives to serve all the people of the federation rather than just his community.

Others in the Task force believe that the leader should be elected directly by the people. 

Jerusalem

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Jerusalem shall be the Capital of the federation and there shall be no restrictions on the number of people who travel, visit or reside in Jerusalem.

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                                                                         Police                             

There may be municipal police, provincial police, federal police, a national guard and a federal military.

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The federal police will have specific federal jurisdiction and will enforce laws that are within the jurisdiction of the federal government.  The federal government will recruit and train federal police from both communities, preferably in equally numbers.

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There will also be provincial police and municipal police.  The jurisdiction of the provincial police shall have general police powers and cover the entire province it belongs to and the municipal police shall have general police powers but limited to the municipality and subject to provincial restrictions.

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Federal Military and Provincial National Guard

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The ideal situation will be for the federation to have one federal military.  However, in light of decades of hostilities, the individual communities may want a provincial military guard for the province to feel secure in the early years of the union. 

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For example, upon the creation of the union, the country of Israel may transfer most of its military to the province of Israel and call it the provincial National Guard.  The same goes for Palestine.  The National Guard may limit its membership to all Jews or all Palestinians depending on the province.  The purpose of the Provincial Guard is to provide real and psychological security to the provinces, especially in the early years of the union.  As the years turn into decades and the provinces of Israel and Palestine begin to function as one country, the goal is for the provincial Guard to be less significant and the federal military to be the dominant military force.

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Federal military

If states choose to keep a provincial guard, then the provinces shall transfer 25% of their military hardware to the federal military, along with officers and other military professionals to assist in establishing the federal military.  If the states choose not to have a provincial guard then the provinces shall transfer all of their military hardware to the federal military.  The Federal military should be made of young new recruits, whereby the new recruits are developed into a professional army over the years and decades.  To the extent possible, the federal government shall recruit military personnel on a one to one basis, with equal numbers of Palestinians and Jews.

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MIGRATION AND RIGHT OF RETURN

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The new country shall accept the return of all Jews and Palestinians from all over the world.  However, it is understood that some citizens may feel uneasy with the sudden movement of a large number of people into their province. 

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Thus, while the basis of the new country is the free movement of labor and people, to reduce the fear from the sudden changes in demographics, a province may limit the number of people who migrate from one province to the other as permanent residents.  However, the state cannot limit the number to less than 50,000 per year.  The 50,000 limit shall NOT apply to labor or people traveling for anything other than permanent residency.

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As to the right of return, both Jews and Palestinians shall have the right to return to the federation at any time.  There shall be no limit on the number of Jews who return to Israel or Palestinians who return to Palestine.  The new returnees shall also have the right to free movement and employment anywhere in the new country.  However, each province shall have the right to insist that the new returnees first reside in their respective province for five years before residing in the other province as permanent residents.  For example, a Palestinian who is a resident of the United States may want to return to Israel/Palestine.  The family of that Palestinian may have originated from Haifa in 1948 which is in Israel.  He shall have the right to return to Palestine at any time.  He shall have the right to travel and stay in Haifa at any time.  However, if he wants to reside in Haifa permanently, the province of Israel shall have the right to insist that he first reside in Palestine for five years before moving to Haifa as a permanent resident.  The purpose of this reservation is to reduce the anxiety that certain people may have from sudden changes in demographics. 

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The limitations on residency in a particular province shall not apply to the free movement of people and labor.  Any citizen of the federation may travel and work anywhere in the federation and at any time with no limitations.

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Economy

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There shall be NO restrictions on interstate commerce within the federation.  This means that the federation shall act as one economy in every respect.  No province may favor its industry to the detriment of the industry of the other province.   No province may restrict the flow of goods from the other province or tax goods from the other province differently than it taxes goods of its own province.

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Israel/Palestine shall have the same currency, no tariffs and complete free trade. The early days of the national government or confederation shall be to bring jobs and economic prosperity to both Israelis and Palestinians. This should be an easy task.  A peaceful Israel and Palestine acting as one nation should be a gold mine the likes of which the world has never seen.  A nation that is the birth place of western civilization and immensely revered by Jews, Christians and Muslims, religious tourism alone will guarantee a healthy economy in perpetuity.

However, the economy will have more than tourism to secure its prosperity.  A nation of Palestinians and Israelis at peace with their neighbors shall have unlimited opportunities. The technical know-how of Israel, the available capital in the Arab world and a geography that is at the intersection of three continents can produce an economic power house that is second to none on a per capita basis.

Basic rights

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The federation shall have the power to guarantee basic rights of all the citizens of the federation.  For example, the federation may protect citizens from religious, racial or gender discrimination.  No state may have the right to discriminate against a citizen of the federation because if his/her religion, race, national origin or the exercise of free speech.

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Courts and state/federal law

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The provinces shall have general governing powers to enact laws.  The provinces may use religion as a basis for law in family matters or any other matter that the people of the province feel that religion plays a role.  However, a province may not compel religion or religious based laws on any resident of the province.  Each resident of each province shall have the right to opt out of religious based laws and rely on secular law by seeking the jurisdiction of the federal courts. 

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The federal courts shall have parallel jurisdiction to provincial courts but the federal courts shall only apply secular law which is the law of the federal government.  The residents of the federation shall have the right to submit their legal matters to the provincial courts or the federal courts.  For example, a Muslim who wants a divorce may apply to the provincial court which may apply Islamic law to determine her rights or obligations to her husband or children.  However, if that Muslim woman is secular in ideology, she may submit her dispute to the federal court which will decide the case based on secular law. 
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Words of empathy and understanding

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To summarize, this roadmap requests the Palestinians to reach out to their Israeli and Jewish partners and say:

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"We understand why the state of Israel is important to you. We understand that the Jews – as a people- have a right to self-determination and to rule themselves under their own national institutions.We are fully aware of the persecution that Jews suffered throughout history and the necessity of having a safe haven for Jews.  We mourn your losses, we are pained by your pain and we want a future with no losses and no pain due to this conflict.  We recognize that because of desperation and self defense, both sides committed atrocities that should never be repeated. We also understand that Jews have historical and religious ties to the land of Israel/Palestine.  We believe that every Jew shall have the right to move to Israel and become a citizen immediately. We also welcome Jews to live with us in our cities, towns and villages.  We want the Palestinians and Israelis to live together as neighbors, friends and countrymen. In return, what we want is freedom, liberty and equality for the Palestinians. Will you meet us half way?"
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The roadmap is also requesting Israelis and Jews to reach out to their Palestinians Partners and say:
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"We understand why Palestine is important to you and we understand that the Palestinians – as a people- have a right to self-determination and to rule themselves under their own national institutions.We are fully aware of the suffering the Palestinians have experienced over the last 100 years and the necessity of having a safe haven for Palestinians. We mourn your losses, we are pained by your pain and we want a future with no losses and no pain due to this conflict.  We recognize that because of desperation and self defense, both sides committed atrocities that should never be repeated. We also understand that Palestinians have historical and religious ties to the land of Israel/Palestine. We believe that every Palestinian shall have the right to move to Israel/Palestine and become a citizen immediately. We also welcome the Palestinians to visit and to reside in our cities, towns and villages.  We want the Palestinians and Israelis to live together as neighbors, friends and countrymen.  In return, we want permanent security, liberty, equality and total freedom for the Jewish people.  Will you meet us half way?"

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Free Muslims’ Task Force on Israel/Palestine

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Kamal Nawash