Democratic Palestine : 26 (ص 10)

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Democratic Palestine : 26 (ص 10)

المحتوى

not empowered to undertake such con-
tacts. Rather his mission was to prepare
for Arafat’s subsequent meeting with
Mubarak. He was chosen for this mis-
sion because he is one of the most open
advocates of relations with the reac-
tionary regimes, and thus highly accep-
table to them. One Jordanian official
put it bluntly. When asked why Prime
Minister Zeid Al Rifai would meet Al
Hassan despite the problems between
the PLO and Jordan, he said: «A
distinction should be made between Al
Hassan and the others in the PLO» (Al
Qabas, July 9th).
Al Hassan is serving as_ the
troubleshooter for the pro-Jordanian
right wing in the PLO, that see their
political future in cooperation with the
Jordanian regime. This faction was
loath to cancel the Amman accord; they
would have preferred to freeze it so it
could be resurrected at a later date.
This same faction also resisted the PNC
resolution that conditioned relations
with Egypt on prior PNC resolutions
that spelled out the positions and prin-
ciples of Palestinian struggle. After the
Egyptian regime closed the PLO offices
in Cairo, in response to this resolution,
Hani Al Hassan offered an apology to
the regime by making his own inter-
pretation of the resolution.
SHIELDING THE CAMP
DAVID REGIME
The Egyptian regime has long
demanded that the PLO recognize UN
Security Council resolutions 242 and
338; that it participate in a joint
Jordanian-Palestinian delegation and
abandon violence as conditions for be-
ing included in an international con-
ference. Hassan’s visit to Cairo was
neither preceded nor followed by a
change in the Egyptian regime’s posi-
tion. Furthermore, the PLO’s offices in
Egypt were not reopened.
On July 9th, Mubarak met Israeli
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres in
Geneva. On July 11th, Mubarak told
reporters that he is calling on the
Palestinians «to look for a way
whereby they can join the conference.»
On July 20th, Egyptian Foreign
Minister Esmat Abdel Meguid arrived
in ‘Israel’, the first visit by an Egyptian
foreign minister since 1982. This chain
of events indicates that the Egyptian
regime is exploiting the resumption of
relations with the PLO as a cover for its
new steps to further normalize relations
with the Zionist state. It proves that the
10
PLO’s having relations with the Egyp-
tian regime does not help in distancing
this regime from the Camp David ac-
cords. On the contrary, such relations
shield the regime as it continues to
consolidate its relations with ‘Israel’.
MEANWHILE IN JORDAN
Jordan’s conditions for restoring
relations with the PLO were set by King
Hussein in February 1986, when he
broke off coordination with Yasir
Arafat. These conditions have not
changed, but have been echoed by more
than one Jordanian official since then.
should be based on the PNC resolutions
which confirm the PLO’s sole,
legitimate right to represent the
Palestinian people, and their right to
return, self-determination and_ the
establishment of an independent state.
Added to this is the resolution asserting
the PLO’s right to participate in an in-
ternational conference on an equal
footing with the other parties. Rela-
tions with Jordan should also be con-
ditioned on the regime halting all plans
to create an alternative Palestinian
leadership in cooperation with the
Zionist occupation authorities, through
hej
mar x4 *|
MK
Contradictions between the reactionary Arab regimes
The four conditions are: The PLO must
recognize UN Security Council resolu-
tions 242 and 338; it must agree to par-
ticipate in an international conference
as part of a Jordanian-Palestinian
delegation; it must agree to resolving
the Palestinian problem in all its
aspects, 1.e., give up the Palestinian
people’s historical rights in Palestine;
and it must renounce violence and ‘ter-
rorism’.
Jordanian sources have said that
Hani Al Hassan will pay another visit
to Amman. So far, the results of his
first visit are unclear, but it is clear that
the trend he represents is eagerly seek-
ing the restoration of relations with
both Jordan and Egypt. While, in
principle, it is not wrong for the PLO to
normalize its relations with Jordan, this
the so-called development plan or the
joint administration plan.
THE MUBARAK—ARAFAT
MEETING
On July 28th, PLO Chairman Yasir
Arafat met Mubarak at the OAU
summit in Ethiopia. Arafat called the
meeting «warm, constructive and
fruitful». AFP (French Press Agency)
reported that Mubarak had promised
Arafat to reopen the PLO offices in
Cairo, and that Arafat would soon pay
a visit to Egypt. In fact, Hani Al
Hassan later visited Cairo. However,
these seeming changes in the Egyptian
position are strictly superficial. Egyp-
tian officials continued to reiterate the
regime’s long-standing position on the
PLO and relations with it.

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Democratic Palestine : 26

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