http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/21/opinion/the-fading-mideast-peace-dream.html?ref=opinion
Dear Editor,
First I read the delightful story The Christmas Frog, and then I read your somber editorial "The Fading Mideast Peace Dream." I can not help but keep thinking of that little frog- the magic of finding him in the first place, and the miracle that he lived to swim and sing... a miracle made possible by the writer's conscientious care, and listening skills.
The news from Palestine really is dire. Both Israel's continuing investments in the settlements and anti-Palestine policies, as well as Hamas/Islamist rockets and bellicose rhetoric certainly are not leading to peace or security for anyone in the region. The Holy Land is inspiring the worst in many people- on both sides of the Israel/Palestine conflict with many very negative ramifications all through out the region and beyond.
Ziad Asali of The American Task Force on Palestine wisely points out that "The only way to honor our tragic histories is to create a future for our children free of man-made tragedy. This means making peace fully, completely and without reservation, between Israel and Palestine."
Obama is not the only American who should "be exhorting both sides to halt retaliatory measures". Every elected leader, every pundit, every editor, every writer, every reader should do their part... help the word spread. We all give peace and both Israel and Palestine a much better chance by clearly calling for an end to the conflict with a negotiated two state solution- in line with international law and fully respecting basic human rights on all sides of every border.
Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab
Notes
Palestinian
cause redefined as Hamas spins Pyrrhic victories: "Either the Palestinian
national movement will continue to seek an independent state
through negotiations and by building the national
institutions on the ground. Or it will be defined by an
open-ended "armed struggle" against Israel under an Islamist
banner.... This is not simply a Palestinian choice. Israel,
above all, but also the United States, the European Union,
and other international actors, will have a major role to
play in influencing which of these two visions predominates
in the Palestinian national movement in the years to come.
Regional and international incentives will be a major, if
not a decisive factor, in the outcome." Hussein Ibish
The Arab Peace Initiative
The Golden Rule... Do unto others as you would have them do unto you
Palestinian
Refugees(1948-NOW) refused their right to return... and
their right to live in peace free
from religious bigotry and injustice.
"Where, after all, do
universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home -
so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of
the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person;
the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he
attends; the factory, farm, or office where he works. Such are
the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal
justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without
discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they
have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action
to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for
progress in the larger world."
Eleanor Roosevelt
The
Office of International Religious Freedom ( http://www.state.gov/j/drl/irf/)
Given the U.S. commitment to religious freedom, and to the
international covenants that guarantee it as the inalienable right
of every human being, the United States seeks to:
Promote freedom of religion and conscience throughout the world as a fundamental human right and as a source of stability for all countries
".... it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine..."
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