イスラエル／パレスチナ和平

Stop wasting time

Israel should get on with making peace

Leader
Tuesday July 22, 2003
The Guardian

Ariel Sharon, Israel's prime minister, may have been buoyed up by his recent fence-mending meeting with Tony Blair in London. Silvan Shalom, Israel's foreign minister, apparently enjoyed cordial talks yesterday in Brussels with EU counterparts who have often been critical of his government. But neither man, nor any other member of the Likud-led coalition, should be under any illusion that improving relations are not contingent on positive, timely Israeli steps towards peace.
Any sign of Israeli foot-dragging over implementation of the "road map" with the Palestinians cannot be tolerated. Yet suspicion that Mr Sharon is again engaging in delaying tactics was strengthened by his bruising weekend meeting with Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian prime minister. Mr Sharon gave no ground on prisoner releases, further army withdrawals, Israel's new West Bank "security fence" and settlement closures - even though Israel concedes that terrorism and incitement have been sharply reduced and that Mr Abbas is making genuine progress.

Mr Sharon is wasting valuable time. His latest, familiar excuse appears to be that he is waiting for a meeting in Washington next week with George Bush, who will also meet Mr Abbas on Friday. As in the past, it is to be feared that Mr Sharon will portray any new but limited Israeli "concessions" as a great and risky good-faith gesture, beyond which he cannot at this point safely go. In return, he will seek increased US pressure on the Palestinians, especially over disarming Hamas and Islamic Jihad, plus other, bilateral favours.

This is an old game that Mr Bush should refuse to play. As ever, Israel holds most of the cards. It must do more, more quickly or risk, as Mr Sharon doubtless knows, losing Mr Abbas as a partner for peace. Beset by unfair accusations of collaboration and on bad terms with Yasser Arafat, Mr Abbas needs to show results. If he fails, and falls, so too probably will the current ceasefire. Is this what Mr Sharon wants?

Nor must other issues be allowed to divert attention. Iran's weekend flaunting of its Shahab-3 missile was politically inept. But justified worries about Tehran's weapons and regional policies are not a good reason to back-pedal on Israel's basic commitment to peace with Palestine.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/comment/0,10551,1003412,00.html



○ガーディアンが、何かイスラエルに対して「べきだ」を述べている。

○ガーディアンに限らず、メディアがイスラエルに対して「べき、べき」言うことは多いが、パレスチナに対して何かを要求しているような記事というのは、ＪＰ/ＷＳＪ以外では読んだ記憶がない――ということをふと、思い出した。

○パレスチナは今度こそ自らの力で国家を勝ち取る「べき」だ。他者の助けを求めるのはもうやめる「べき」だ。そのためには率先して武装解除に踏み出す「べき」だ……そんな「主張」が、メディアから聴かれたことがあったか？

○せいぜい「世論調査によれば１割程度のパレスチナ人のみが…」というアンケート結果を「紹介」するのが関の山。そうした「民意」を踏まえて国連/ＥＵも踏み込んだ対応を「すべきだ」などとはどのメディアも書かなかった。

○要求先は常にイスラエル。そして、介入したりしなかったりで責められるのはいつも「覇権国」だ。自己責任を追及する正論など、ほとんど書かれない。

○と言う次第なので、ガーディアンが言ってる「べき」について、詳しく紹介しようとも思わない。どうでもいい。ああ、そうですかってなもんだ。




○「先進国」のメディアには、半世紀前に自分たちが「ならず者」であり「帝国主義/植民地主義」であった記憶がまだべったりと残っている。「心優しき人権時代の言論」の正体など、所詮は「罪悪感」の裏返し程度のものでしかない。二十世紀的な「人命」より「人権」という病は、いずれは厳粛さを学び直していくだろう。