Anyone remember the story of the Trojan Horse? The Greeks besieged Troy, and couldn't get in, so they built a horse, which was supposed to be a gift, out of which came dozens of enemy soldiers, who wanted to destroy Troy, and they tore down the whole place?
Now, I'm have no opinion on who I would have sided with: the Greeks or the Trojans. But the idea of letting those who may be hostile to you in thru something which is perceived as "good," in that case a big horse as a "trophy," or in this case, an idea built on shoddy ground is absolutely nothing but a thinly veiled plan to destroy a state thru demographic, cultural, economic, and political means.
And I am referring to the claimed "right of return" many Palestinian political figures and their supporters believe Palestinian refugees and their millions of descendants should have: into Israel, a sovereign state with its own immigration policy. These people point to UN Resolutions, groups which claim "human rights" even tho they are funded by the same people who cut off limbs, kill adulterers, kill gays and people who dare carry around another holy book other than the Koran, etc. The problem with this idea called "right of return" is that it is nothing but a Trojan Horse. Unfortunately, Israel's refusal to allow one in 2000 is why Arafat walked away from the best peace deal the Palestinians were ever going to get, for that time. Luckily, Bibi has brought the idea of peace back, and this is going to be an issue once again. Here, I will explain my principled opposition to a "right of return" for those dubbed Palestinian refugees.
First, why Israel has a right not to allow one, and be unfairly singled out.
- Israel is the nation state of the Jewish people, and a sovereign state with a right to self-determination, and its own immigration policies, just as any other state has.
- The million Jews and million Arabs who fled from Middle Eastern Islamic countries and Israel, respectively, constitute an exchange of populations of the ethnic groups. This is similar to how the exchange of 2.5 million people between the Soviet Union and Poland, and the 13 million Hindus and Muslims who crossed the Indo-Pakistan border happened, yet no one ever in the international law community expected nor required a reversal of population exchanges.
- Precedent does not require even one-direction refugee migrations to be reversed, such as the 900,000 Sudeten Germans out of Czechoslovakia, many who had lived there since medieval times.
Now given this, why is Israel any different? These refugees I mention from other countries were repatriated, and didn't look back. Why can't the Arab countries, who keep Palestinian refugees and their families in the filth and squalor of the refugee camps do the same? Or could there be a motive behind this? According to a a 1952 memorandum submitted to the League of Arab States by the Higher Arab Committee, the motive was clear: the memorandum said
Arab leaders and their ministries in Arab capitals ... declared that they welcomed the immigration of Palestinian Arabs into the Arab countries until they saved Palestine.
What could they have meant by "save Palestine?" Perhaps, destroy Israel. Why should Israel pay for the hatred from the countries with which they warred? After all, why did all the Arab states declare war on Israel after the Arab states rejected the UN partition plan?
Now, why Israel not only has a right to refuse a "right of return," but why doing so is essential to Israel's sovereignty, security, and why doing so would be in essence allow Trojan Horse, with Neville Chamberlain's face in place of the horse's head, to enter the Jewish State.
First, I will quote the UN resolution supporters of the right of return point to:
Resolves that the refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return and for loss of or damage to property which, under principles of international law or in equity, should be made good by the Governments or authorities responsible.
Now, I will explain why Israel refusing a "right of return" would NOT violate that non-binding resolution.
- The resolution no where says "must" but "should," which implies a non-imperative.
- It says "wishing to live at peace." I will get into this later, but the actions of Palestinian leaders and their followers would easily make one believe they don't want to live in peace with their neighbors, who would now be the Jews.
- It says "earliest PRACTICABLE date." Moving 4.5 million people into a new country isn't always the most practicable thing.
- The resolution, again, is not binding.
Now to the meat part, which is why I will explain why the right of return is a Trojan Horse into Israel.
Through the actions of the PLO over the years, and then to subsequent groups, such as Hamas, which have either claimed to be the "sole representative of the Palestinian people" and supported by the people at large as such, or elected by vote, such as Hamas, through the suicide bombings, rocket launching, cross border raids, and war provocations, the Palestinian people cannot adequately be claimed to want to "live at peace with their neighbors." We have seen thousands of children, raised on a hatred of Israel and the Jews become militants as they age, and eventually, suicide bombers, rocket launchers, and such. The indoctrination of hate goes all across not only Palestine, but in the countries in which Palestinian refugees live. Children are exposed to Farfour the Mouse, whose video you can find on YouTube easily, Protocols of the Elders of Zion is a commonly read book all across the Arab world by children and adults, and textbooks leave Israel off the map altogether.
Now, I am not accusing all Palestinian refugees of being jihadists, or even mass anti-semites. But given the history of their opposition to Israel as the Jewish State, and the people who support them, and the propaganda they receive, there is no reason to believe there would not be mass unrest and violence. After their experience in the camps, and what they've been told, it would be expected they would be hostile. And Israelis would not be happy about this, as after the bad experiences the Jews have had with the Arabs, given the vast cultural differences, social differences, etc., all we would see is resentment, tension, and hate, which leads ultimately to violence. This could lead to a huge civil war within Israel. It would be the perfect time for the extremist groups, and their supporters, like Syria and Iran, to step in and wipe out the Jewish State once and for all. Not to mention, these refugees come from countries without democratic tradition or ideals, so why would we expect them to have them in Israel, without an ulterior motive, to vote in anti-Israel parties, or Islamist parties?
Moreover, why would anyone want a "right of return" when most of the homes Palestinian refugees and their families lived in years ago are either gone or owned by someone else? Why would there be a demand for them to get what no other refugee group usually asks for: to go to a land which is culturally different in every way from what their forefathers had? Jews who use law of return do it to return to the Jewish homeland, as Israel now is. It is not the Palestinian homeland anymore. Israel won the war after Palestinians rejected the UN Partition plan. They are the victors in this battle. After all, why would we create a Palestinian state so Palestinians could go back to someone elses country instead of the one made for them with land Israel won from Jordan in 1967? The Palestinians and Jews are too separate a people try to a Yugoslavia. it will never work. The reality now is Israel is the JEWISH STATE. Israel, as a sovereign state can do whatever pleases with its immigration policy, even if it is to maintain its Jewish character, which is why after the "international"(as Ford and Hitler put it) Jews were brutally exterminated in the Holocaust, it was created. Allowing people, who even if they're not all, but many of them are LIKELY to hate the people who now live there, to just come back, with no historical precedent. Why haven't Jews asked for right of return to Arab countries? Maybe because they know they are not wanted. The Palestinian refugees must know that the feeling is mutual. Give Palestinian refugees monetary compensation, from all sides, Israel, and the Arab states. But simply put, a Right of return, given the history of violence and ethnic tension, would be the Trojan Horse of the 21st century, and throw Israel and the Middle East, and possibly the world, into a violent, long, brutal, and possibly nuclear war..