The recent clashes between young Palestinians and Israelis in Jerusalem and in the occupied West Bank are a reminder of why it is so important to understand that the challenge of peace in that region of the world is actually the challenge for all of us who have been witnessing for the past 70 years a murderous and horrific conflict between Arabs and Jews.
A common humanity
The refusal to kill or to legitimate murder is the starting point where Palestinian-Israeli reconciliation can begin. The question is can Israelis or Palestinians imagine each other’s death and their shared responsibility for it? Can they perceive themselves as perpetrators of violence as well as its victims? Can an Israeli father or mother imagine that a Palestinian child is as precious as his/her own? Can a Palestinian feel the same sense of horror, disgust and sorrow when he or she sees the image of Israeli children blown up by rockets or suicide bombers?
Forming an answer to these questions begins with Palestinians and Israelis recognising their common humanity and shared values beyond a continuous reinvention of their victimhood, and beyond a persistent tendency to blame the other. The moral courage to accept one’s wrongdoings can help stop the perpetuation and a deepening of a war between the two nations. Fearful men and women who cannot visualise a goal or goods beyond a mere instinct to survive cannot help the process of peace. A fearful person cannot love, have desire, or have hope. It is perhaps too much to hope that a community, a state or for that matter, even an isolated individual, can admit being wrong. But to hope is already a step forward and to do one’s best for such hope is a giant leap forward.
There is no doubt in anybody’s mind that the clash between Israelis and Palestinians is a clash between two versions of the same lived experience. There are no good guys and bad guys in this conflict, as most people living outside this region tend to perceive it. We are talking about two nations that have been living with their shattered dreams and broken hopes. In a way, dying together, more than living together, has brought Israelis and Palestinians to share the same fate. They are burning in the same fire. So either each nation can run for its own life and let the other fade or both nations can try to fight the flames together. This is because neither Israeli Jews, nor Palestinian Arabs can find a national homeland anywhere else. This is why the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is neither a clash of cultures nor a clash of religious traditions, but a clash of intolerances and prejudices among two nations who share the same boat.
For too many years an iron wall of hatred, violence and fanaticism has separated the world of Israelis from that of Palestinians. As a result, we have a traumatised and untrusting peoples on both sides. For much too long, the Palestinians and the rest of the Arab world have treated Israel as an infection that will simply go away. for their part, many Israelis have treated the entire Palestinian issue as no more than a vicious invention of a pan-Arab propaganda machine, aimed at undermining Israel’s legitimacy in order to destroy it. In terms of violence committed in the region, the major human rights violations are generally perpetuated by the Israeli military and various Palestinian militant groups that claim responsibility for killing civilians. However, the peoples of both countries are in broad agreement that it is never justified for an individual person or militaries to target and kill civilians.
Grounded in reality
Many young Israelis and Palestinians reject violence in the long run and favour non-violent forms of negotiation as the best approach to achieving self-determination and security. Is this an idealistic dream? Maybe. But perhaps idealism is the most realistic approach at this time, because non-violence is the solution most grounded in reality. As we have seen in the past 70 years, violence has not worked and submission to domination has been intolerable. Non-violence, it would seem, is the only alternative. This is the only strategy that can assure Israelis their security and Palestinians their state. The key requirement for any peace settlement is that violence must end. This does not mean that we have to be silent in an undignified way in face of the deaths of innocent civilians on both sides. It means that we need to launch a global movement of non-violent resistance to the violent policies of those who are against a coherent and proactive negotiating position.
Wheel of victimisation
The path to a workable peace — one with a Palestinian state alongside Israel, and both with internationally recognised borders — has been well known for long. But a succession of Israeli and Palestinian leaders have been reluctant to pick up the challenge. If each side has refused to understand the other, it is because each side has seen itself only as a victim. A sense of victimisation has accompanied both sides, with a justification and legitimisation of violence. There is doubt on whether there can be a partner to deliver peace. But how can we get out of this cycle of violence and how can the two sides reverse direction and start looking towards the future? No realist would believe that today there is a brilliant formula or shining piece of paper that will end the Palestinian-Israeli tragedy in our time. This is true, but the years and decades to come will be very challenging for both Israelis and Palestinians.
Roughly speaking, Israel is caught in a dilemma. If it does not end the occupation and retreat, it will lose both its integrity as a Jewish democratic state and its international legitimacy. But if Israel does end the occupation and withdraw without a peace accord, it will be perceived by its neighbours as an act of weakness. To solve this dilemma, Israel must get its act together. It must reform its political system; it must come up with a government of wisdom and common sense. But it must do more than that. It must create a new, relevant narrative, which is a narrative of tolerance and dialogue.
As for the Palestinians, they have no way of regaining their rights without the active participation of Israelis in their democratic effort. If there is a permanent agreement with the Palestinians on this issue, Israel will no longer be able to view its Arab citizens as permanently suspect and unofficial enemy agents. In the coming decades, Israelis will be confronted with a fundamental question — whether to ensure the peaceful transition towards an egalitarian society in which Palestinians are given the same rights as Jews. However, this does not mean that they have to artificially engineer solutions. On the contrary, it means that for one people to realise their dreams, another should not lose everything. It is time for Israel and Palestine to underline the renunciation of violence and murder as a moral imperative and an alternative course of action. But for that, they both need to understand that they are victims of the same fear, prejudice and intolerance. Undoubtedly, light and hope can only come from a non-violent dialogue between young Palestinians and Israeli youth.
Ramin Jahanbegloo is Director, Mahatma Gandhi Centre for Peace, Jindal Global University, Sonipat
