All posts tagged Salam Fayyad

On the same day that Fatah and Hamas, the main Palestinian parties, were signing their merger agreement in Egypt and arguing about who gets to sit in what chair and speak first and for how long — Fatah translated merger into takeover and Hamas didn’t like that interpretation  — I was part of a small group that met in Ramallah with Salam Fayyad, Fatah’s number two leader and, as we soon found out, its number one numerologist.  (More on that later.)

Fayyad is the only Fatah member known to have earned a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Texas, which at least in the humble opinion of this fellow U.T. graduate, should be enough to sell most American politicos, except for a few Aggies’ and Sooners’ fans, on the man’s solid bona fides.  If only Fayyad could get Hamas, Fatah and Israelis arguing about changing the B.C.S. system instead of endlessly debating borders and security, the entire region would be better off. But I digress….

Fayyad clearly knows and loves to share his improving economic numbers with an appreciative audience.  He is also a good host — starting on time, posing for pictures, and offering sweets, always a Jewish fan favorite. ( Go for the baklava with tiny pistachios.) He also knows how to provide a better police escort than the one we received in Israel. (Actually any police escort would have been one more than we received in Israel.)

While Hamas and Fatah eventually solved their sitting and speaking negotiations (perhaps by consulting with Henry Kissinger about his famous Vietnamese circular table disagreement), they did so withoutFayyad present or  involved with any of the negotiation details. That has led some to speculate that Fayyad might be a unification casualty.  ( That “some” would have included me, up until recent comments by Palestinian National Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas.) 

 Maybe what we all missed is that the Hamas and Fatah deal, at Egypt’s prodding, was simply to get a deal. Both groups agreed to defer the trickier governance issues. That actually makes a lot of sense. Hamashas to first decide whether it is prepared to join with Fatah in building toward a Palestinian state or whether it wants  to continue to act as an enablor of the professional “we have no bargaining partner” crowd by reserving its “right to resist the occupation” through violent means. If Hamas and Fatah can’t agree on a more permanent cessation of violence, then who leads this sinking ship will be irrelevant.

Although our meeting with Fayyad ran slightly over the hour scheduled, he was unable to add any clarity as to what he thought Hamas would eventually elect to do.  It became clearer later that this was mainly because he was unsure what was in the actual agreement.  (The agreement has more of a fill in the blanks quality to it, so it’s really not a surprise that one week later Fatah and Hamas still differ in their interpretations.)

What Fayyad did offer was reason for hope — a rare Middle east commodity — that Hamas, as part of a combined government, would slowly moderate their positions. Israeli President Shimon Peres later agreed, and  in interviews with Israeli media he said,”Even when I began with Arafat they said ‘there’s no chance.’  I think the same thing about Hamas. The name does not interest me. What matters is the content. Anything can happen, because Hamas has problems too, and it’s not too strong.” Still, Fayyad did express deep disappointment that Hamas’ Prime Minister, Ismail Haniyeh, praised Osama Bin Laden and criticized America’s actions:  “No one with any sense of decency could make a statement like that.” (Haniyeh and his ministers have not been big fans of Fayyad ever since he started using Palestinian security forces to arrest and jail Hamas activists and Fayyad is clearly not angling for any near term rapprochementwith Haniyeh.)

Fayyad was quite open in discussing his plans, goals, accomplishments, and the issues the Palestinians still needed to work on. When asked to identify what he saw as his key accomplishments, he first noted the tremendous improvement in West Bank security and policing. (Our group experienced both, and I am personally thankful for the restroom escort I was provided at our lunch meeting with several Palestinian businesspeople. I took a wrong turn and possibly looked suspicious — or desperate — and received  protected guidance as well as  preferential line-cutting.)  

Fayyad also gave us some numbers. He cited 195 new schools, 3000 kilometers of more paved roads, specific sanitation and water development initiatives and  improved health, childbirth, life expectancy, infant mortality and education metrics. His self-described proudest achievement, and the one he dwelled on longer than any other,  was the ability the Palestinians now have to offer transparent statistical reports. He believes a key sign of a country is an ability to offer relevant statistical data.

What about all of the changes in the Middle East and the growing influence of the Muslim Brotherhood? Fayyad’s view is that the democracy movement in the region, and specifically in Egypt, was “overdue.”   He said that political leaders should respect the demand for changes and not resist and that “the world will be better” once the process concludes.  He also professed not to be overly concerned about the Muslim Brotherhood and pointed to the democratic process as being a key legitimizing factor. (Unfortunately, we were unable to ask him to contrast his respect for the democratic process with Fatah staying in power even though Hamas won the last election.)

Fayyad also said that as part of the process of Hamas joining a new government, he thought it would be a very good idea for Hamas to release kidnapped Israel soldier, Gilad Shalit, and “if I have any influence” he would encourage Hamas to do so. Of course, Fayyad’s influence has been a key issue in the negotiations between Fatah and Hamas. Some reports insist that Fayyad is on his way out — Fatah members have also been unhappy as Fayyad has significantly reduced  the rampant corruption, which has reduced many officials’ incomes — but other reports suggest he may be the key player in getting America and other key nations to support the new government.

With Hamas’ role in  sanctioning violence, that support will be tough.  If  Fayyad is really in charge that would help a great deal.  Plus, Hamas agreeing to eliminate the use of violence, as Abbas has said Hamaswill do in their role as part of the new government, will also be critical. But  Hamas will be judged based on their actions to actually control and stop the violence.
In December 2010, Haniyeh stated at a news conference in Gaza that, ‎” If the Palestinian electorate approves…a peace agreement with Israel” (his government will) “abide by it notwithstanding previous Hamas’ positions on the issue.” Hamas’ previous positions are based on their Charter, which calls for the destruction of Israel. So there is some distance to travel to get all parties singing “Kumbaya,” but Fayyadindicated to our group that the world should wait to judge its reaction to the Fatah and Hamas marriage based on what occurs, not what it fears may occur.

Shimon Peres went further in an interview with Ynet News when he discussed Hamas, Fatah and negotiations in general: “If they want to unite, let them unite….Each side wants to prove to his people that he is strong, aggressive, that he does not give up, but the leaders know in their hearts that there’s no choice and that peace must be reached. No one wants to return to the bloodshed….This is why we have to differentiate between outward appearances and the hidden potential.”

The Fatah and Hamas agreement has that hidden potential, even though Israeli leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, has condemned it as a “blow to peace.”   While both statements could be true, we can still hope that a combined Hamas and Fatah government is wise enough to renounce and act to prevent violence and continue their infrastructure improvements, and that Israel is smart enough to capitalize on what could be a historic opportunity to put an end to a 43 year old conflict. Fayyad told our group that he did not want to be part of a new government that did not address the  security needs of both sides and that renouncing violence was a key for him too.

Perhaps a peace that many on both sides have seen as impossible will soon become possible. Clearly having a Palestinian leader so interested in security and infrastructure improvements that is appointed to lead both Fatah and Hamas could be a helpful and important first step. Even Aggies and Sooners (and Israelis and all of their supporters) should root for this  Longhorn to succeed.

Photo: [Catholic Church (England and Wales), Flickr]