The following is a press release issued by the American Committee on
Jerusalem (ACJ) about a briefing it hosted yesterday in Washington
DC
with Afif Safieh, the Palestinian General Delegate to the United Kingdom
and the Holy See.
Abu Dis is not a Substitute for Jerusalem
WASHINGTON, DC - "Abu Dis has always been a village in the vicinity
of
Jerusalem. Today with the natural growth of East Jerusalem, and the
growth of Abu Dis, it has become a neighborhood, a part of what is
considered as East Jerusalem by the Palestinians, but it is not an
acceptable substitute for East Jerusalem," Palestinian diplomat Afif
Safieh said at a briefing organized by the American Committee on
Jerusalem (ACJ) at the National Press Club in Washington, DC on Tuesday,
May 9.
Afif Safieh, the Palestinian General Delegate to the United Kingdom
and
the Holy See, expressed his disenchantment with the open-ended peace
process by stating that "we're having a lasting peace process, but
what
is lasting, is the process and not the peace that is so desirable."
"The
Israeli political establishment, left, right and center," Safieh added
"would like to achieve with us an agreement that would reflect Israeli
intransigence, American alignment on the Israeli preference, Russian
decline, European abdication, Arab impotence and what they hope to
be
Palestinian resignation." "Such peace, if achieved," according to
Safieh, "will not be lasting, durable, final, equitable, just or
acceptable."
"We the Palestinians," Safieh emphasized "expect the return of 100%
of
the occupied territories of 1967 and we're being unreasonably
reasonable." He continued that "Jerusalem has been undergoing a
deliberate process of decline, a process of sometimes
legally-engineered ethnic reduction and cleansing. Jerusalem and the
way
it is handled or mishandled can either become the area for international
interfaith, cross-fertilization and dialogue on a local and global
level, .or it might become the cause for a clash of civilization not
only on the local level but also on a global level." After describing
how Israelis have totally besieged the eastern part of Jerusalem
preventing the natural growth of the city and its economy, society
and
demography, Safieh explained that "negotiations on the status of
Jerusalem should discuss the east and west sides of Jerusalem. Forty
percent of west Jerusalem is still privately owned by Palestinian
families and 36% belongs to the Islamic waqf, the Christian churches
and
the British mandatory government. Only 24% is owned by Jews."
While stressing the importance of the role of third parties like the
United States in the peace process, Safieh declared that the "United
States should not only act as a facilitator seeking a half-way
compromise on problematic issues. There is no moral equivalence in
the
positions of the two sides when one aspires to be free and another
shows
ambitions for territorial appetite." "The Palestinian state," he
concluded, "is the right of the Palestinian people in addition to being
the moral duty of Jews and Israelis towards us, the Palestinians,
because they know the human price that we Palestinians have had to
pay
individually and collectively for the birth of
Israel."
In commenting on the Vatican policy towards the Middle East and the
Pope's recent visit to the region, Mr. Safieh emphasized the moral
importance and leadership of the Vatican and praised its long-term
support for Palestinian aspirations which was evident in the Pope's
statement to Palestinian refugees, assuring them that the Vatican will
continue to "advocate" their
cause.
________
______ American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
/\ |_ ___ \ /
____| 4201 Connecticut Ave., N.W., Suite 300
/ \ | | \ | | |
Washington, D.C. 20008, U.S.A.
/ /\ \ | | | | | |
Tel: (202) 244-2990, Fax: (202) 244-3196
/ ____ \ _| |_ / | | |____ E-mail: adc@adc.org
/_/ \_\________/ \______| Web :
http://www.adc.org
Be Active, Become A Member:
http://www.adc.org/membership.html