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MIDEAST: Another Nobel Message for Peace
Analysis by Jerrold Kessel and Pierre Klochendler
JERUSALEM, Oct 11, 2009 (IPS) - In the week of Nobel Prize announcements, the most intriguing comment from
the Middle East came not, as one might have expected, as a straight reaction to
the shock of U.S. President Barack Obama being awarded this year's Peace Prize.
It came from another Nobel winner - Israeli professor Ada Yonath, one of this
year's three recipients in chemistry.
The shock treatment prescribed for the conflict by the 70-year-old
Weizmann Institute was even more of a shock to many of her fellow Israelis.
Asked by Israeli Army Radio Saturday whether she believed the award to
Obama might spur him to advance peace in the region, Yonath chose to focus
not on what the U.S. President can or cannot do, but on what Israel must do.
"A change in the status quo" is what is required, she declared, somewhat off-
beat: "All prisoners should be returned to Palestine regardless of a prisoner
exchange deal (with Hamas). I don't understand why we incarcerate them in
Israel in the first place.
"Many Palestinians," argued the Nobel Laureate, "have no hope for the future
- despair gives them every reason to jump at the opportunity to better their
prospects for a better afterlife (by becoming suicide bombers)."
Israelis are currently wholly absorbed not by prospective hopes for
peacemaking but on whether the Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, abducted three
years ago by Palestinian militants, has a chance of being released in an
imminent prisoner swap.
In contrast, other reactions about the choice of Obama for the peace prize
were much more predictable.
Actually, there has been an unexpected show of unity among Israelis and
Palestinians: even with the fresh wind blown from Oslo, scepticism dominates
the mindset on both sides, widespread doubt whether the U.S. President will
really push them down the peace road - and whether he has the clout to do
so.
"You have already inspired so many people around the world, and I know that
this award expresses the hope that your presidency will usher in a new era of
peace and reconciliation," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"I look forward to working closely with you in the years ahead to advance
peace and to give hope to the peoples of our region who deserve to live in
peace, security and dignity," added Netanyahu in his message to the White
House.
The Israeli leader deliberately steered clear of whether that "hope" for peace
would have any effect on his own policies.
Only hours before the announcement from Oslo and the warm
congratulations from the prime minister, a banner headline in the liberal Tel
Aviv daily Haaretz had referred to "fury" in the White House about "Israeli
incitement against President Obama."
Administration officials were said to be "stunned" by the attempts to portray
Obama to the U.S. public as an enemy of Israel because of his efforts to
restart peace talks and freeze settlement construction, the report said.
Still, not all Israeli officials were prepared to line up with what they were
expected to say about the peace laureate.
"It is very strange that Obama has won," commented a leading colleague of
the Prime Minister, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin. He voiced his "concern"
that "now that he has won the award, it is very possible that he might force
Israel into a peace deal."
On the Palestinian side, chief Palestinian peace negotiator Saeb Erekat played
up the same expected line as Netanyahu: "We truly hope that he will be able
to achieve peace in the Middle East," he said, choosing to focus on Obama's
role as peacemaker, and steering clear of the commitment of the Palestinian
Authority itself to move towards peace.
The difficulties that lie ahead for the President were exemplified by the
weekend of abortive shuttle diplomacy conducted by his special envoy,
Senator George Mitchell, who has been spearheading the Administration's
efforts to re-launch Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations.
There was no surprise in the scepticism of the Islamist movement Hamas,
which controls the Gaza Strip and opposes a peace treaty with Israel. It played
up the other expected line - of the peace spoilers in both camps - that the
award is, at best, premature.
"Obama has a long way to go still and lots of work to do before he can
deserve a reward," said senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri. "He only made
promises and did not contribute any substance to world peace. And, he has
not done anything to ensure justice for the sake of Arab and Muslim causes."
Uncompromising Israelis relish this kind of uncompromising Palestinian talk.
"There is no chance of an early solution to the conflict. People just have to
learn to live with it," Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman had said only
a day before the Oslo announcement.
"Anyone who thinks Israelis and Palestinians can reach a deal "does not
understand reality and is sowing illusions," Liberman added.
Both applauders and critics of the award to Obama agree that it was a shock
decision.
That's precisely what the Nobel Committee clearly intends - for the U.S.
President to apply shock treatment to the Middle East.
Not necessarily the same kind of shock therapy suggested by the Israeli
chemistry Laureate, but one which stops the parties getting away with
allowing all peace hopes to slide into a torpor.
Faced with myriad complications - Netanyahu's obduracy on settlements and
the virulent pressure by Palestinians on their President, Mahmoud Abbas, not
to let Israel off the hook of charges that it perpetrated war crimes in Gaza -
some analysts believe that Obama was on the verge of backing away from his
commitment to peacemaking.
With peace hopes seeming about to flounder, the Nobel message to the White
House couldn't have been clearer: Yes, Mr. President, you can (make the
parties make peace); No, you can't (walk away from your peace commitment).
And, you must (inflict shock treatment to the parties).
(END)
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