The Hamas election victory in Palestine may have caught many Americans off guard, but according to an expert at St. Lawrence University, it was not at all surprising.
“To anyone who’s been following the situation closely,” says Assistant Professor of Global Studies John Collins, “it’s hardly surprising. Indeed, given that the Israeli occupation has been going on for nearly 40 years, and the dispossession of the Palestinian people for nearly 60, it’s a wonder that more Palestinians didn’t turn to Hamas earlier.”
“Discussion of the conflict almost never includes the word ‘colonization,’ even though most of the world knows that is exactly what’s going on,” he says. “You don’t even hear the word “occupation” much any more. What this shows is that Israel and its allies in the Bush administration have succeeded in controlling the terms of debate. They have succeeded in applying the categories of the “war on terrorism” and deflecting attention away from the Palestinians’ right to resist occupation.”
Further, Collins says, “I think it’s important to remember that U.S. and Israeli leaders use these terms for their own political benefit. The terms that Palestinians use are much more in line with the international consensus on the issue, that the occupation must end completely, that the settlements are illegal and that no one has the right to tell Palestinians to be complicit in their own oppression.”
This professor is exactly the kind of researcher and teacher our friendly neighborhood Fascists would have students turn in for blacklisting.
Even our music has forgotten what it’s like to be on side of people who are poor and oppressed. Like Janis said, “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.”
Phoaarrr! This is why I love press freedom. Good on ya, John.
We respect democratic elections as long as they turn out like we want.
Yes. Thanks for posting that, John. Needless to say, you will take lots of heat for it.
Great for Hamas.
What is not well publicized is that Hamas is a humanitarian organization. It operates medical clinics, food distribution centers, helps poor Palestinians and other charitable acts. The Bush decided that ALL parts of Hamas are illegal and a terrorist organization. Funny how American tax dollars and donations that fund the Israeli murder of Palestinians are OK.
Steve,
Hamas has a Charter that calls for the Jews/Israel to be obliterated. There was once another group that called for Jews to be extinguished. They were democratically elected too. Maybe it was “REALLY hard” for them, but they did come up with a FINAL SOLUTION to their problems.
While it’s true that Hamas charter calls for the destruction of Israel. The same goes for the Likud ruling party in Israel -and many other extreme right- believe that all of Palestine belongs to Israel -i.e. Palestinians do not have the right to exist there-
I see no difference between the two and no one seems to mention it, but one of them is our ally and the other is a terrorist organization.
Palestinians went to Hamas not because they believe in their ideology but because the US did not present them with an alternative to the social and economic services that Hamas was providing them. Instead the US’s first reaction was to cut off the aid to them. And we sit here and wonder why they hate us, it’s because all they’ve seen from us are our american made Apache’s and missiles for 50 some years and a promises of a state without delivering on them for the last 10 years.
As far as what Hamas will do, my bet is that they will be a better peace negotiator than their predecessor. And on terrorism, all I have to say is “Remember the IRA”
To anyone reading response number 5, the guy quotes wikipedia and cfrterrorism.org. No further comment on that one.
As for what that professor wrote, he basically summarised, quite elegantly may I add, what most people familiar with the history of this conflict know to be true. Furthermore, it’s not just the Palestinians who refer to themselves as resistance fighters in a struggle against an illegal occupation, but the English-language international news services from every country in the Maghreb and Middle East (eg Al Jazeera, NileTV) likewise use the proper terminology.
Thanks for the post, John.
Things change.
Let’s not forget that Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress were branded as “terrorists” and “communists” not only by the then apartheid government of South Africa but by the US and Great Britain.
Let’s also remember that later on, during the UN sponsored worldwide arms embargo and boycott of South Africa, the government of Israel continued to sell weapons to a white South African government that was fighting against the ANC in order to hang on to its racist policies.
More recently, although it was never widely reported in North America, many of South Africa’s new leaders, including Nelson Mandela and Bishop Desmond Tutu, have publicly commented that Israel’s treatment of its Palestinian population is more savage and inhumane than the treatment of black people under the former South African regime.
How many of us are aware that, alone among nations, Israel is the only country that has never officially accepted, acknowledged or defined its territorial extent?
And that is not to mention the dozens of United Nations resolutions that the state of Israel has been flouting for decades.
All of this, with nary a peep from any US government or the American press.
Jim
Taking a quote you used above,
“There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through Jihad. Initiatives, proposals and international conferences are all a waste of time and vain endeavors.”
What has any international conference or proposal ever done for the Palestinians? They still wallow in poverty. Their infrastructure is continually destroyed by Israel. They are condemned by the US. Any friends they have are politically weak on the International stage. When the United Nations passes resolutions against Israel, as it has done hundreds of times, it is ignored by Israel and the US.
The Palestine “Nation” is forbidden to have any weapons except small arms. They are incapable of defending themselves against Israel’s tanks, helicopters, and F-16s. So they fight their war the best they can. They use the weapons they can make with the materials they have. If you don’t like their weapons then convince Israel to allow the Palestinians to get their own weapons of mass destruction like Israel has.
Now could you explain to me the difference between dropping a 1000 lb bomb on an apartment building and exploding a belt made of explosive? How can you condemn one but ignore the other? How can you justify the denial of food and medicines to hospitals and civilians? How can you ignore the detention of pregnant women on their way to deliver their babies. How can you allow the imprisonment of men without charge for years.
Oh, I can answer the last one, its called the Bush / Sharon Manifesto. “If I have the bigger gun then I win and you go to jail. We’ll figure out why later, maybe. Or we’ll kill you, whatever. In the meantime, give us your land and shutup.”
I don’t agree with the extermination of Israel. Nor do I agree with the extermination of Palestine. And if you want the second, don’t complain if someone else wants the first. If you will work to make Palestine independent and secure within its own borders then I will work to continue having Israel secure within its own borders. Just quit crying because some oppressed people are fighting back the best they can.
Oh, and those rockets? They were actually fired at Palestinian territory that was stolen and squatted on by Israeli settlers. The Israelis have no right to be there. And don’t hand me the bull that this land was all barren before the Israeli’s took it over. It wasn’t.
“…the social and economic services that Hamas was providing them. Instead the US’s first reaction was to cut off the aid to them. And we sit here and wonder why they hate us, it’s because all they’ve seen from us are our american made Apache’s and missiles for 50 some years and a promises of a state without delivering on them for the last 10 years.”
Who do you think is paying for the services “provided” for Hamas? Are you claiming they hate us because we provide the munitions that kill terrorists but they don’t love us for the immense quantity of food, medicine, and money the West provides?
Jason
Currently Hamas lives on donations from countries other then the “West”. In case you were unaware, it is illegal to donate to any of Hamas’ charitable causes in the US and the Treasury Department will prosecute you if you do. But it is fine if you give any amount of money to any Jewish extremist group.
In response to Pat:
the quote you quoted is from Hamas’ own charter. They themselves reject the idea of these groups helping them and are stating that the only solution is “Holy War”.
As to the size of the bombs. One is used on military targets(like terrorists), the other is used on pizza restaurants, and shopping malls (non-combatants). I’ll leave it to you (and your fellow readers) to figure out which is which.
Historical issues aside, as far as I know, Israel has never advocated the total destruction of the Palestinian territories, only that they stop the terrorism/bombings before Israel will recognize them.
Pat,
The “West” includes more than the US. The EU only recently (2003) froze funding to Hamas. I briefly searched for a breakdown of aid to the Palestinians by country but came up empty. I’d be quite surprised if the West sends less money than the Muslim world.
Jim,
You didn’t answer the question.
What has the International Community done to help the Palestinian people? What has the International Community done to stop the murder and killing of innocent lives. What has ANY conference done?
These people are disparate. They have nothing. So they resist. If you were in their shoes, because of this “accident of birth”, would you do different? A blog above this about guns suggest that Americans would. But because we are siding with Israel, their enemy is ours.
For two years there was a truce between Israel and Palestine. Well, it was a one sided truce. Israel continued to arrest and to kill Palestinians while the Palestinians stood by waiting for someone to do more then say “bad Israel, you shouldn’t do that”. Israel can not afford peace between them and Palestine. They receive too much money and have too much stolen land to allow that to happen.
Now what is the difference between dropping a 1000 lb bomb on an apartment building and exploding a belt? It all depends who’s side you are on. If you hate the Palestinians, as you do, the giant bomb is justified. If you are for peace, then neither is right. If you are fighting against annihilation as the Palestinians are then the belt is right. But which ever side you choose, don’t take some high road that your side is justified in killing innocent people, or stealing their land, or imprisoning their men.
You’re complaining about Israeli occupation. Perhaps the Palestinians shouldn’t have launched their war in the first palce, and kept what they had. Instead they fought and lost Gaza and the West Bank, just as Syria lost the Golan Heights, Lebanon lost the South, and Egypt lost the Sinai. Israel gave Sinai back in return for peace, while withdrawing from Lebanon and Gaza Netanyahu offered the Golan Heights to Syria in peace negotiations, but these didn’t happen. Israel never defined it’s own borders? The Palestinians have made it clear that they think Israel’s borders should be nothing. Iran’s PM said the same thing lately, and the UN has actually wiped Israel off its maps recently. One good result of these elections is that the US will not be sending any more money there. Now if they’d just drop the UN funding too.
I don’t get it. Why are they holding up a picture of Saruman(or is it Dooku)?
AB CD
With an attitude like that, it is no wonder that so many other nations hate Americans. God, what a slanted, blind view of history. Israel’s borders have been fixed for decades by the United Nations which created Israel in the first place. Israel was never in any danger of annihilation or defeat, it has always been supported by the US, UK, and most of Europe. Because the Arabs sympathized with the Nazis, they were not on the Allies good side.
Very few Palestinians today were alive when the first Israeli conflict broke out. Yet you find no problem with blaming them for whatever happened 60 years ago.
Yes, you made a very racist statement. The era of taking land by conquest is over. Long over, yet in your myopic view, somehow you justify it as being fine.
Terrorism is the war of the poor, and, war is terrorism of the rich
All war is wrong, an eye for an eye is not justified. We in the UK did not defeat the IRA through bigger bombs, destruction of relatives property (illegal by UN charter), building a wall that divides peoples land (illegal by World Court) etc. We talked, negotiated and took the higher moral ground when possible. When the UK adopted Guantanmo type internment it made things worse. Learn our lessons and lets bring some peace to the world. History shows only negotiation stops war
“History shows only negotiation stops war ”
Maybe, if you count as “negotiation” (a) negotiating peace treaties after war (b) paying tribute (appeasing) to prevent war.
Then again, wars have been stopped without negotiation by simply wiping out the enemy and/or exerting indefinite control over their lands/people.
As a Palestinian myself, I have to tell you that I am very happy that Hamas has won the elections. But it is so discouraging to see that some of you have fallen victim to American and Israeli propaganda aiming to make you think that Palestinians are nothing more than brutal terrorists. I can’t believe that #16 actually believes that Israeli military strikes are against “military” targets. How many military facilities do Palestinians have? Would you like to sit there and watch your people be ruthlessly exterminated by F-16s and Apaches while you do nothing? Martar bombings are the only weapon in their arsenal and the Israelis are terrified by them. By the way, I think that the fact that young men are willing to push a button and sacrifice their lives for their countries is unbelievably brave and noble. I don’t think that any of the cowardly Israeli settlers could do anything other than killing unarmed school children with their pistols or bulldozing Palestinian farms. I would also like to ask AB CD what kind of egotistical, uneducated jerk he is. Aside from his comment being extremely offensive, it shows how little he knows or cares about what happens around him.
On a final note, I want to thank Pat for his sane and rational comments on the subject.
Asking Hamas to give formal recognition to the state of Israel is a strange request.
There are Israelis in the government who claim that the West Bank, or substantial portions of it, should be part of Israel. How can Hamas recognize the state of Israel when Israel has not yet defined its borders? What is it that Hamas would be recognizing or accepting?
Why don’t the US and the EU ask Israel to formally acknowledge its borders before asking Hamas to recognize Israel?