In two recent articles in the Kuwaiti daily Al-Siyassa, Saudi columnist Yousef Nasser Al-Sweidan argued that the Palestinian refugees' right of return is an idea that cannot be implemented, and that the only solution is for the refugees to be naturalized in the countries where they currently reside The Right of Return - An Idea that Cannot Be Implemented ..."It is patently obvious that uprooting the descendents of the refugees from their current homes in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and other countries, and returning them to Israel, to the West Bank, and to Gaza is a utopian ideal and [a recipe for] anarchy. More than that - it is an idea that cannot be implemented, not only because it will upset the demographic [balance] in a dangerous and destructive manner, and will have [far-reaching] political, economic and social ramifications in such a small and constrained geographical area, but [mainly] because the return [of the refugees] stands in blatant contradiction to Israel's right as a sovereign [state], while the Palestinian Authority lacks the infrastructure to absorb such a large number of immigrants as long as the peace process... is not at its peak..." The Refugee Problem is the Result of Mistakes By the Host Countries "Clearly, the refugee problem is mainly the result of cumulative mistakes made by the countries where [the refugees] live... such as Syria and Lebanon, which have isolated the refugees in poor and shabby camps lacking the most basic conditions for a dignified human existence. Instead of helping them to become fully integrated in their new society, they let them become victims of isolation and suffering... Later, the worst of all happened when Arab intelligence agencies used the Palestinian organizations as a tool for settling scores in internal Arab conflicts that probably have nothing to do with the Palestinians... "The Israelis, on the other hand, were civilized and humane in their treatment of the thousands of Jewish refugees who had lost their property, homes and businesses in the Arab countries, and who were forced to emigrate to Israel after the 1948 war. The Israeli government received them, helped them, and provided them with all the conditions [they needed] to become integrated in their new society... The Refugees Don't Need Another 60 Years of Misery In the second article, published March 16, 2007 and titled "Naturalization is the Solution," Al-Sweidan wrote: "There is no doubt that the Palestinian refugees in Syria and Lebanon - who have for many long years been fed by their Arab hosts on impossible dreams and on shiny promises that were soon broken - do not need another 60 years of misery, wretchedness and suffering... in order to figure out for the thousandth time that all the talk about the 'bridge of return' is [nothing but] nonsense and deceit - a fairytale that exists only in the old, worn-out demagogy of the Arab propaganda... "In reality, there is no 'bridge [of return]'... except for the bridge that we now must pass... called the peace process and normalization of relations between the Arabs and Israel... The Inevitable Solution is to Naturalize the Refugees in the Host Countries "As the Middle East peace process gains momentum, and as the regional and international forces remain committed to the need to resolve this [conflict]... there is a growing necessity for a realistic, unavoidable and bold decision that will provide a just solution to the problem of the Palestinian refugees by naturalizing them in the host countries, such as Syria, Lebanon, and other countries. ..."By every conceivable and accepted criterion, naturalizing the refugees [in the Arab countries] is the inevitable solution to [this] chronic humanitarian problem. http://memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=SD154007#_ednref1
Scandal: the welfare state of "Palestine" By Moshe Dann According to UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) tens of billions of dollars (one-third from US taxpayers, the rest mostly from Canada and European countries) have been spent over the last 50 years providing "Palestinian refugees" and their descendents. An estimated half million people 60 years ago, that number is now over four million and increasing daily. UNRWA's purpose: to insure the "Palestinian Right of Return" - the destruction of Israel. No Arab country except Jordan -- where they constitute more than two-thirds of the population - accepts them as citizens. Saudi Arabia, for example, recently passed a law allowing all foreigner workers in the country to apply for Saudi citizenship next year - except Palestinians. More than 400,000 "Palestinian refugees" living in UNWRA-supported "camps" in Lebanon cannot work or even go to school outside their designated areas. Ditto for Syria. Most "Palestinian refugees" listed by UNRWA (which includes Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and Gaza) in 2002, don't even live in the camps, but in nearby villages and towns. All receive free assistance and services for the rest of their life, including their children, their grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, ad infinitum. According to UNRWA's rules, anyone who applied for relief, claiming they lived in Palestine for at least two years prior to 1948 (when Israel was attacked) and claimed to have lost property and livelihood was entitled to assistance, regardless of where they came from, or where they live today. Once a "Palestinian refugee," always a "Palestinian refugee." That explains why the number of "Palestinian refugees" who receive aid has grown from a few hundred thousand to four and a half million (although no one really knows the exact numbers because of UNRWA's faulty records). That number could double in a generation - along with UNRWA's nearly half-billion-dollar annual budget. UNRWA is supposed to verify that those who receive assistance don't work. Not surprisingly, however, no one checks. No one confirms the validity of those who receive benefits from UNRWA. After death, certificates of eligibility are simply passed on to others. No one checks bank accounts, automobile registrations, or property ownership. With multiple wives, families can comprise scores of children - all "refugees." And, according to UNRWA rules, even if one parent is "Palestinian," the entire family is eligible for assistance and "refugee" status. UNRWA openly admits that they don't monitor programs that support terrorism, or payments to families of terrorists by the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, Hezb'allah and (until recently) Iraq's Saddam Hussein. In fact, nearly all teachers employed by UNRWA are members of terrorist-controlled unions. Funding these teachers and the curriculum of hatred and bigotry, supports terrorism and terrorist organizations. This may explain why so many children are willing to blow themselves up, carry weapons and explosives and place themselves as shields for terrorists. Although responsible for what goes on in the areas it administers, UNRWA ignores the fact that terrorists are being trained there, including the next generation of homicide bombers, that bomb-making factories flourish inside the camps, and that arms and ammunition are stockpiled there. UNRWA ignores the launching of thousands of rocket attacks against Israel from within territory under its responsibility. And most outrageous, UNRWA is accountable only to the UN General Assembly, dominated by the 56-member Organization of Islamic Conference which is also part of the 115-member Non-Aligned Movement -- an automatic majority in the 191-member U.N. UNRWA violates its own UN mandate (Resolution 302), which states (Paragraph 5): "constructive measures should be undertaken at an early date with a view to the termination of international assistance for relief." UNRWA (Paragraph 7) indicates only two responsibilities: to work with Arab governments to provide jobs for the refugees and to help Arab governments end (not perpetuate) international assistance. UNRWA has been doing the exact opposite. The "Palestinian Right of Return" (to Israel) -- their basic, non-negotiable demand - encourages the refusal to accept Israel's existence and fuels Palestinian terrorism. It reinforces Palestinians' belief in their victimization, promotes a culture of denial and self-destruction, and sabotages any hope for change. UNRWA facilitates this mess. And we pay for it. Had enough? Stop the funding, now. The author, a former asst professor of History, is a writer and journalist living in Jerusalem. http://www.americanthinker.com/2007/04/scandal_the_welfare_state_of_p.html
I wonder if doing what the USA has done for its Native American people may work for the Israelis and their Palestinian problem. Set them up on some reservations in their homelands, and let them build casinos.
Hahahah So a Saudi and a European Jew is deciding if I should go home to my land or not! How exciting!! The Palestinian people will decide...and, backed by international laws, have the right to decide on that issue. Not a Saudi, as well intentional as he might be, and definetly not a thieving fake Jew from Europe. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDK_c8dORa0 Nuff said.
I knew you were not going to like the article. People insisting on the "right of return" are either delusional or not interested in peace and a two state solution, they hate Israel and want its destruction.
And where did you read that in what I wrote? Are you going on one of your delusional trips again dddooo? Your attempt to bait me is so stupid! You wanted to make the above statement, taken from your monotonous and redundant broken record, go ahead! But you do not have to post an article waiting for my reply! The difference between you and I ddd is that you are defending a state built around a mish mash gang while I defend a nation as rooted in that land as the olive trees you love to uproot. We have went through hell and came back yet we are still in our land or around it. Doesn't the idea that we are not leaving penetrate your thick skull? No one...No one has the right to decide on our behalf. We are the ones who got ethnically cleansed and lost everything. And we have decided!
And during the last 100 years you have never missed an opportunity to make a wrong decision. And your absurd decision to insist on the right of return (which will NEVER happen) will only cause another 100 years of suffering that you'll have no one to blame but yourselves. Then again the Palestinians don't work and get far more aid (welfare) per capita than anyone else on the planet. The status quo may well be what they really want.
We haven't? Buddy...It is a waiting game! And while you are waiting, the playing field will never be constant. It is not an issue of making peace with the state of Israel or with Jews for it will be a natural thing to do so. It is an issue that no peace can be made with Zionists. And I especially loved the "Palestinian don't work and get far more aid (welfare) per capita than anyone else on the planet" Thank you Zionist publisher! If the Americans knew how much money you have milked out of them! But then again...they already do know who is the leach and which state is the "welfare" sucking billions of dollars a year from the pockets of American famillies.