Parliaments and the situation in the Middle East

From left to right: Mr. Raymond Forni, Speaker of the French National Assembly, Mr. Avraham Burg, Speaker of the Knesset, Mr. Yves Tavernier, President of IPU Committee on Middle East Questions, Mr. Ahmed Fathi Sorour, Speaker of the Egyptian Parliament and Mr. Ibrahim Abu Al-Naja, Deputy-Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council. Photo: Bounhar Abdeljalil/Associated Press.

The situation in the Middle East dominated the 107th Inter-Parliamentary Conference in Marrakech. Apart from the resolution adopted by consensus, on a proposal from Morocco for an emergency supplementary item on "The role of parliaments in supporting implementation of resolution 1397 adopted by the United Nations Security Council on its attachment to a vision of a region in which two States, Israel and Palestine, live side by side within secure and recognised borders", IPU's Committee on Middle East Questions also held a meeting in Marrakech. Presided over by French MP Yves Tavernier, the Committee met with an Israeli delegation led by the Speaker of the Knesset, Mr. Avraham Burg, and a Palestinian delegation headed by the Deputy-Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), Mr. Ibrahim Abu Al-Naja. They were joined by the Speaker of the People's Assembly of Egypt, Ahmed Fathi Sorour as well as two Jordanian delegates.

The Speaker of the French National Assembly, Raymond Forni, invited the Speakers of the various European parliaments in attendance at the 107th Inter-Parliamentary Conference to a breakfast meeting with the Speaker of the Knesset and the Deputy-Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council. Following the tragic events which took place after the 107th Conference in Marrakech, the Inter-Parliamentary Union is ready to organize a meeting between the Speaker of the Knesset, Mr. Avraham Burg, and the Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), Mr. Ahmed Qoreï "Abu Ala", under the auspices of the IPU Committee on Middle East Questions.

In a letter sent to both Presidents, the President of the IPU Council, Dr. Najma Heptulla, and the IPU Secretary General, Mr. Anders B. Johnsson, stressed that a political dialogue at the highest level between the Israelis and Palestinians is today more necessary than ever. The IPU reiterates its commitment to facilitating this dialogue and recalled that the Committee on Middle East Questions has sought to promote such dialogue between the representatives elected by the people of the two sides over the last years. To this effect, it held a meeting at the National Assembly in Paris in June last year, and then visited the region. On that occasion, the Committee recommended that, under the auspices of the IPU, the Speakers of the Knesset and of the Palestinian Legislative Council meet to pursue this dialogue.

Mr. Raymond Forni, Speaker of the French National Assembly
"MPs can change the course of events if they have the will to do so"

Q: What was the purpose of the meeting you organized in Marrakech?
Raymond Forni: This informal breakfast meeting, at which Speakers of a few European Union Parliaments, a delegation from the Palestinian Legislative Council and the Speaker of the Knesset were present, was intended to formalise the commitment I made in Paris in January (see IPU Website www.ipu.org/The World of Parliaments, March issue) to accompany the Speaker of the Knesset, Abraham Burg, invited by the Speaker of the PLC, Ahmed Qorei "Abu Ala" to Ramallah to meet with the PLC in an effort to illustrate just how important this step towards peace is for European Parliaments. Since then, events have escalated and the Middle East situation has worsened to the point where there is a serious threat of widespread confrontation spilling over beyond the borders of these two countries. This step towards peace, in our view, is needed now more than ever. We will work with the Speakers who are present here, namely: Mr. Casini (Italian Chamber of Deputies) and the Speakers of the Parliaments of Luxembourg, Ireland and Belgium to try and make this visit happen very quickly. We were pleased to also have the Speaker of the Egyptian Parliament, Mr. Sorour, with us, and we know that the Speaker of the Moroccan House of Representatives, Mr. Radi, is also thinking along the same political lines. Mr. Sorour assured our group of Egypt's support. He urged us to come to Egypt as a further step towards a rapprochement of the Israeli and Palestinian peoples. The situation is obviously a difficult one but I feel that no initiative along these lines should be overlooked. It became clear that our European parliaments, within the framework of parliamentary diplomacy, finally expressed themselves above and beyond the political differences which exist in Europe in an effort to underscore the will of Europeans to find a solution to the conflict in the Middle East. We all agree that it is impossible to remain in this state of perpetual escalation, in this bloodbath which plunges Israel and Palestine into mourning with each passing day. From all appearances, we need a solution other than military confrontation and we are pleased to state that in Palestine like in Israel, there are men of peace who are driven by the same will and who share the same goal, living in two separate States, because it is in their interest and in the interest of the international community at large.

Q: Can MPs change the course of events in the Middle East?
R.F.: MPs are politicians and politicians can always change the course of events provided that they have the will to do so.

Q: In concrete terms, how will you follow-up your initiative? Will you travel to Ramallah?
R.F.: I hope so! It is difficult to put things in place when you have to juggle the schedules of the Presidents of fifteen European national Parliaments. But we have the will to do it. The Israelis and Palestinians must also have the will for there has to be a convergence of will on three sides: the Israeli, the Palestinian and the European sides.

Q: Did you get the impression in Marrakech that some sort of understanding had been reached between the Israelis and the Palestinians?
R.F.: There was dialogue. That is the important thing. As long as the sides are in discussion, the situation is not beyond repair. We are not in a deadlock situation where there is no longer any exchange. The dialogue between the Israelis and the Palestinians, through us, is already a positive step to my mind. Abu Ala and Burg have this same will because they realise that, to put it very simply, the line of action adopted by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is not forward-looking, neither for Israel nor for Palestine. It is not by lining up corpses that the situation will be resolved because one would have to exterminate a whole nation and that is obviously impossible. Dialogue is the only solution.

Mr Avraham Burg, Speaker of the Knesset
"If members of Parliament do not try to change the situation they do not fulfil their mission"

Q: Mr. Speaker, you want to go to Ramallah. Why ?
Avraham Burg: The motivation is there for a long time and I think that the help of the European Parliaments and President Forni is very crucial, because we try now to crystallize the resolutions to be drafted by the group that will come with us, which will be European Heads of Parliaments. I hope that all the fifteen or at least most of them [will come]. It is very important to have this conference in Morocco as the beginning of the end of the process.

Q: Is the IPU going to be associated with this process ?
A.B.: I hope so !

Q: Can MPs change the situation ?
A.B.: I don't know. The situation is what it is, but I believe that if members of Parliament do not try to change the situation they do not fulfil their mission. And therefore if we can help, we should help.

Mr. Ibrahim Abu Al-Najah, Deputy-Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC)
"We will not leave any stone unturned in search for peace"

Q: What do you think of the initiative taken by the Speaker of the French National Assembly ?
Ibrahim Abu Al-Najah: The French initiative is very useful, very courageous, because it seeks to achieve peace.

Q: Do you think that the Speaker of the Knesset and the Speakers of the European Parliaments will be able to go to Ramallah to address the PLC ?
I.A.A.N: It is not a problem for us to receive Speaker Burg and the Speakers of the European Parliaments. The problem is with the Israeli government and Mr. Sharon, who is preventing Mr. Burg from taking this initiative.

Q: Do you think that MPs can change the situation and help to restore dialogue among Israelis and Palestinians ?
I.A.A.N: To some extent they might influence the decisions of their governments, but effectively it is the executive branch that has the final decision.

Q: During this meeting, did you have a chance to talk to Speaker Burg ?
I.A.A.N: This meeting was not intended to establish a direct bilateral dialogue between the Palestinians and the Israelis. They are meeting everywhere. They met in the streets of Balata refugee camps, in Kalandia check point, they are meeting in Marrakech. The idea is not the meeting itself, but the outcome of such a meeting. How does it serve the cause of peace? We hope it will. We will not leave any stone unturned in the search for peace. Whatever success there is will be a "plus" for us and for them. If it does not succeed we will try again.

Mr. Ahmed Fathi Sorour, Speaker of the People's Assembly of Egypt:
"I appreciate the initiative to push for a meeting between Israelis and Palestinians"

I appreciate Mr. Forni's initiative to push for a meeting between the Speaker of the Knesset and the President of the Palestinian Legislative Council. This initiative was accepted by both sides and the aim of today's meeting in Marrakech was to come up with ways of implementing this initiative. In principle, an agreement was reached to visit the Knesset and travel to Ramallah as well as to a statement on the peace process issued by both parties.