Tips for leftists and settlers

Op-ed: Ahead of direct talks, leftists should step aside, settlers should stop saying ‘no’

Hanoch Daum|Published: 08.29.10 , 11:01

Part 1 of article

A tip for leftists: You tried before, so now let others try. You brought Oslo upon us, you ran one hell of a disengagement, you dragged Israel into more than one war, and you failed in the effort to turn Syria into something it isn’t (an Israel lover.) Now let others try.

Let the Right, which brought the peace treaty with Egypt, try to do it differently, in a more measure, suspicious way, which assumes that there is something to lose on the peach path too. Give the Netanyahu government time – you may even be surprised, dear leftists. You may find out soon that Netanyahu is willing to go for interim agreements, that he is willing to show flexibility, and that he is ready to take political risks. Maybe this won’t be the case, but if you don’t give him a chance, how will you know?

We should hope that you’ll be decent and honest enough, and that if the talks end because of the Palestinians (and that’s a reasonable possibility) you’ll be able to admit it, instead of arguing that everything would be different if you were running the show. After all, we already saw you, in more than one round of talks, and peace did not come out of it.

Tip for the settlers: Your concern is understandable. Moreover, it’s justified. You are the victims of the diplomatic mistakes made here in the past. You are the victims of the automatic media enlistment to the cause of peace moves. The Intifada that broke out after Barak offered the Palestinians the Kotel, and the unilateral evacuation of Gush Katif hurt you mostly. This prompts you to go on high alert every time we’re about to enter talks.

Nonetheless, dear brothers, we must not reject the process out of hand. We must not ignore the international pressure and dismiss it. We must not forget that there’s a new Administration in America, and we must also not ignore the European Union. Saying “no” to every initiative didn’t get us anywhere. The settlement enterprise became less legitimate and more hated with the passage of years, because of the feeling that the settlers never attempted to propose something positive.

Uttering an automatic “no” in the face of any process is easy, but it isn’t necessarily wise.

All or nothing is an approach that never proved itself. The Right toppled the Shamir government and resisted the Madrid Conference. The result was Oslo. If Israel is destined to engage in talks and sign interim agreements (there will be no final-status deals around here in the coming years),) perhaps this better be done when the government is dominated by rightists, for whom uprooting a community is indeed like cutting off a limb.

The settlement blocs that Netanyahu shall insist on are something that Livni wouldn’t, and the security arrangements which the Likud would not proceed without may be no more than a recommendation for Kadima. And so, alongside the understandable concerns and resistance, settler leaders would do well to be attentive to the public mood and to the limitations of power.