The South Africans managed to pull it off. I suppose the world was surprised when the South African situation went as well as it did.
The South Africans have a statesman named Nelson Mandela. To put it mildly, Yassir Arafat is no Nelson Mandela. The white South Africans were persuaded (correctly, as it turns out), that the ANC was more interested in equality and prosperity than revenge and slaughter. When Israel listens to the teachings of the PA, what message does it get?
Also, unlike Israel, South Africa was not surrounded by neighbors with a vested interest in the continuation of the conflict.
Nevertheless, if the Palestinians ever acquire a stateman who is more interested in prosperity than destroying Israel, they will get a state. Yassir Arafat would be president of a state right now, corrupt terrorist thug that he is, if he had been willing to settle for 98% of the territories and a negotiated schedule for refugee return.
But, as Shlomo Ben-Ami says, he is a creature of the conflict and he could not stand up and say 'the conflict is over' unless Israel breaks her neck. He never made a proposal in the negotiations. He just said no. |
