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The beginning of a rebellion in the Palestinian Authority: in Ramallah they suppress attempts to establish bodies "bypassing the PLO" | Israel Hayom

2022-11-17T16:24:53.972Z


In the shadow of Abu Mazen's arbitrary presidential appointments and orders, calls for reforms in the PLO are growing on the Palestinian street • Palestinian activists: "The PLO no longer has legitimacy, Abu Mazen needs to be replaced, he does not represent us"


In Ramallah they are indeed disturbed by the results of the elections and the composition of the new government in Israel, but what preoccupies the Palestinian leadership more these days are actually internal affairs.

Earlier this week, the members of the PLO Executive Committee, the supreme institution of the Palestinian leadership, gathered and announced that they "reject the attempts to create alternative bodies to the PLO."  

The announcement came in response to several moves initiated by Palestinian activists and opposition elements to Abu Mazen recently, and which are seen in Ramallah as defiant steps designed to bypass the chairman of the Palestinian Authority, and to build alternatives to the existing Palestinian leadership.

One of the main events that angered Abu Mazen and his people was a large political gathering organized by the political activist Amr Assaf in Ramallah, which was supposed to be televised on Zoom to the Gaza Strip and Palestinians abroad.

The purpose of the conference, branded under the title "Palestinian People's Conference - 14 million", was to call for reforms and rebuilding of PLO institutions. The conference was blown up before it even began. The Palestinian security forces raided the building where the convention was held and arrested Assaf, who has since been released. The arrest was made on the grounds that Assaf and the organizers Row under the PLO.

Row under the PLO. Assaf, photo: Palestinian networks

Assaf's arrest at the beginning of the month, photo: Palestinian networks

"We need to rebuild the PLO on democratic foundations and hold elections in it in order to inject life and vitality into the Palestinian political regime", this is one of the claims put forward by the supporters of the reforms in the PLO, some of whose institutions have become outdated, suffocated, and deprived of public and legal legitimacy after not meeting this years and no internal elections were held in them.

One of these institutions is the "Palestinian National Council", a body whose role is to serve as a kind of "super parliament" of the Palestinians here and abroad.

Both in Palestinian political circles and in the public itself, the claim that the PLO has lost its legitimacy and ceases to hold the title of "the sole and exclusive representative of the Palestinian people" has been raised recently. Much criticism is directed at Abu Mazen on the grounds that he is preventing the infusion of "new blood" into the leadership institutions, while he takes care Appoint his loyalists to key positions, while keeping potential rivals away from centers of influence.

Efforts to establish an "alternative body to the PLO" increased in the last year and a half after Abu Mazen announced the postponement of the elections for the presidency and the Palestinian Legislative Council, a step that caused anger, disappointment, and also the desperate step of building "bypass roads".

Severe criticism is directed towards him.

Abu Mazen, photo: Reuters

Many of the Palestinians who are fed up with the way to Oslo claim that it is necessary to "fix the PLO from within", and introduce changes and new policies into it. "If the PLO sees itself as representing the entire Palestinian people, it cannot stick to the same old slogans, but must bring All the groups in the public, and listen also to those who want change. You can't say, whoever is in the opposition, I don't want him in the PLO.

This repression only increases the desire to confront the ruling leadership," Palestinian sources explain.

The famous Palestinian businessman from Nablus, Munib al-Masri, called for democratization of the organization's institutions.

"It is necessary to strengthen the PLO and attach all the factions to it.

Leaving the situation as it is will not serve anyone, and will only contribute to the marginalization of the PLO," he wrote in an opinion piece published in the Palestinian "Al-Quds" newspaper.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad are not members of the PLO, the umbrella organization of the Palestinian factions, the largest of which is Fatah.

Abu Mazen, who also wears the hat "Chairman of the PLO", is not enthusiastic about the idea of ​​reforms since the existing situation serves him and prevents possible political shocks.

The fear in Ramallah is that the rebuilding of the PLO could lead to the trampling of Palestinian representatives who are considered "hostile elements" to Abu Mazen's rule, and thus could damage the existing order, something that the chairman of the Palestinian Authority is trying to prevent.

His hesitancy regarding "amending the PLO" is part of the desire to fortify his position and maintain his power as much as possible. The power of the Fatah movement in the labor unions and student associations in universities has gradually eroded in the past year, and the disgust of the Palestinian public with the ruling leadership has increased.

Fatah's power has declined in universities and labor organizations. Fatah supporters in Bir Zeit, photo: AFP

The accusations that Abu Mazen is working to concentrate many powers in his hands increased following a series of presidential orders he received.

In one of them, he ordered the dissolution of the Palestinian Doctors' Association and its replacement by a new association made up of his loyalists, a move that provoked a lot of protest among the doctors and threats of a strike.

Another decision, significant and sensitive, was also made within the framework of a presidential decree and concerns the establishment of a "Supreme Judicial Council".

While Barmallah insisted on the necessity of the new body being an "arbiter" in cases of conflicting rulings from the various courts, Abu Mazen's opponents claimed that he wanted to ensure total control of the courts, thus completing his takeover of the judiciary alongside the legislative and executive authorities, while being able to invalidate rulings, laws and decisions.

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Source: israelhayom

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