In
In the dying days of the Bush presidency, where political theatre passes for substance, the whole Middle East peace process is more to do with guilt then anything else.
The Arab-Israeli conflict rest on three fundamental issues;
1, The Pre 1967 borders
2, Jerusalem
3, The right of return of Palestian refugees.
Bush's so called peace process fails to address any of the above issues, therefore I suggest the following, in order to settle a conflict which nobody is winning.
1, Pre 67 - The Jewish state of Israel, has to hand back all terrorities gained as a consequence of its military action in 1967. This includes jewish settlements that would have to be handed over to the Palestian authorities, or an independent/foreign NGO who could allocate land and property, based on need or prior ownership. Israel has to turn over every square inch of terrority.
2, Jerusalem - Both Israel and Palestians lay claim to govern Jerusalem, because of the religious signifiance of the city. Jerusalem is a red line for both parties, who could neogiate for a million years, and still not agree. One idea, that I think is fair, is the create Jerusalem into a seperate sovereign terrority, like the Vatican City, which would be ruled by Israelis/Palestinians/Christians/neutral legislators.Any government would have to be on a rotational basis, with each seperate constituent taking it in turn, to administrate Jerusalem.
3- The right of return- At the moment, there are 4 million people, scattered around the Middle East, who are in effect stateless, holed up in conditions that would make even Michael Vick blush.
It would be physical impossible for the state of Palestine to absorb 4 million people,therfore it is not practical.The only sensible solution would be for the entire world to absorb these people, with Europe, the Americas, Aisa and the Pacific regions all taking there fair share. Any mass immigration policy would have to be funded by the World Bank, private instuitions, Middle Eastern oil producing countries and any other nation who wont take in any Palestinians.
But instead of just dumping millions people all over the world, it would need the co-ordinated efforts of the UN to set up a system to integrate the Palestinians into their adoptive country. An example would be say Spain, who for example would have to take 5,000 Palestinians. It would be incumbent for Spain and the UN to work out a plan, which took care of the educational, cultural and financial needs of 5000 new passport holders.
If we are serious about promoting world peace, the Arab Israeli conflict has to be on top of the agenda.