Text: Palestinian Peace Coalition Calls for Reform of PNA, PLO[Keep
murdering Israelis]14 August 2004
www.palestine-pmc.com/details.asp?cat=2&id=321
[Official PA website]

[IMRA: It is noteworthy that the"Palestinian Peace(sic) Coalition" calls
for continuing the murder of all Israelis in many parts of Jerusalem as well
all other locations beyond the Green line as well as the murder of Israelis
not considered "civilians" anywhere in Israel (" Support the right of our
people to resist occupation, settlement and aggression while excluding
civilians on both sides from the cycle of violence" ) and say nothing about
disarming the various illegal militias, limiting their concern only to "
resorting to violence and the use of arms in settling internal accounts or
differences" - thus, by exclusion, not opposing the "resorting to violence
and the use of arms" against Israelis.

Thus we find that many of the very same Palestinians who participate in the
various photo opportunity "peace initiatives"
bankrolled by foreign governments and other foreign interests have no
problem with the continuation of the attacks against Israel in gross
violation of the signed agreements that enabled the creation of the PA and
the presence of tens of thousands of armed Palestinians this side of the
Jordan River in the first place.

This call by this so-called "Peace Coalition" should serve as a reminder as
to how out of touch with reality their Israeli and other counterparts are.]

Palestinian Peace Coalition
The Geneva Initiative
Making Peace Our Horizon

P.O. Box: 4252, Al Bireh/ Ramallah/ Tel: 972 2 2407721/ 2/ 3/ Fax: 972 2 240
7730
E-Mail: media@geneva-initiative.net/ Or: eliasz@netvision.net.il

Close to 150 Palestinian officials, ex-officials and public figures called
in a one-page public statement advertisement for setting up a national
salvation government to address the latest deterioration in the Palestinian
lands and to introduce immediately all reforms ratified by the Palestinian
Legislative Council. The signatories urged the Palestinian people to
continue their resistance to the Israeli occupation but to exclude civilians
on both sides from the cycle of violence. The demand was seen as directed to
suicide bombings inside Israel, continued shelling of Qassam rockets into
Israeli towns and continued Israeli army activities against Palestinian
civilians.

Follows is the full translation of the public statement as published on Page
2 of Al Quds, the largest circulation daily in the Palestinian territories,
on Saturday 14 August 2004:

PUBLIC STATEMENT

The Palestinian land has been witnessing a devastating escalation in the
Israeli aggression on our people, our institutions and our capabilities,
especially during the latest events in Beit Hanoun, Rafah, Nablus and other
areas. The Apartheid Separation Wall continues to be built and settlements
continue to be enlarged with the blatant cover of the US Administration.
Along with this deterioration, there has been an unprecedented state of
loose security, violation of law, attempted political assassination, violent
events, kidnappings and assaults on public properties.

Today, more than ever before, there is a need to confront this deteriorating
crisis which has affected the Palestinian political system in all its
components. Cosmetic, administrative and partial solutions are no guarantees
that this crisis will not endanger the whole Palestinian national scheme.

Facing those challenges and the threats posing before us requires the
restoration of our political initiative in confronting the Sharon plan that
aims to prevent the creation of a fully sovereign Palestinian state. To face
those challenges, we should also revive our Palestinian national program and
introduce deep-rooted reforms into our political regime structure and into
the decision making process. Add to this everything we need to rehabilitate
the executive, judicial and legal authorities, enforce law and order, spread
the basis of equality and justice, immediately cease all forms of
corruption, anarchy and security chaos and prevent the phenomenon of taking
law into one's hands.

Dangers of the US-backed Israeli plan threaten to destroy the basic
foundations of our Palestinian people's unity and our territorial integrity.
Therefore, there is a fundamental need to restructure our internal
conditions and put our home in order in order to be able to confront this
plan.

We, the undersigned, call for the unification of all forces, figures and
institutions that are loyal to our national goal in order to fortify the
steadfastness and to introduce reforms and change. We emphasize the
following:

ONE: Our commitment to our national legitimate rights to return, self
determination and to set up our fully sovereign independent Palestinian
state on all the land occupied in 1967 with Jerusalem our capital. We
strongly adhere to the PLO as the sole legitimate representative of our
people.

TWO: Support the right of our people to resist occupation, settlement and
aggression while excluding civilians on both sides from the cycle of
violence. We stress on the importance to revive the populace intifada and to
enhance forms of public resistance.

THREE: Our condemnation of, and fight against, all forms of corruption and
our support for genuine, serious and persistent work to uproot corruption,
to expose those involved in it to accountability within the framework of
law.

FOUR: Our condemnation of all forms of anarchy and security chaos, including
assaults or takeover of public and private lands and properties, all kinds
of armed demonstrative rallies, resorting to violence and the use of arms in
settling internal accounts or differences.

FIVE: The immediate launching of comprehensive reforms into the PLO
institutions and the institutions of the Palestinian National Authority and
its security apparatuses, as well as all civil society organizations. This
endeavor represents a fundamental national need to strengthen our internal
powers and to augment our capabilities of steadfastness in the face of the
Sharon plan and against outside pressure. It is also needed to improve the
performance of the PNA and to enable it to provide the best services to the
people mainly in the fields of employment, health, education and social
welfare. To achieve all these calls, we demand the following:

Enable the government to shoulder its responsibilities and to carry out its
duties with full powers as stated in Basic Law and call on the Palestinian
leadership and all political forces to work together in order to reinforce
political partnership and to form a national salvation government based on
the widest coalition possible and to implement the reforms that were
ratified by the Palestinian Legislative Council.

The supremacy of the rule of law and the independence and impartiality of
the judicial system while following up all corruption files, subject those
involved to accountability and punishing the convicts. Work should be
accelerated to introduce the law of "illegal wealth" and the law that
regulates works, structure, authorities and the terms of reference for all
the Palestinian security apparatuses so that they would shoulder their
responsibilities in protecting the safety of the people and of the homeland
and in enforcing law and public order. This law should ban the security
apparatuses from interfering in political, financial or economic fields or
in the works of civil society organizations, except when deemed necessary
under the law. The security apparatuses should be rehabilitated and their
commanders be renewed.

Call on all political forces to shoulder their historical responsibilities
and to start a serious and comprehensive dialogue based on the foundations
and results reached in previous dialogue sessions in such a way that would
crystallize a national program that reinforces partnership and centrality in
the decision making process.

Serious preparation for public (presidential and legislative) and local
elections based on a modern democratic law that adopts rules of mixed gender
and guarantees posts for women. Call on the international community to
assist the Palestinian people in organizing the elections through
guaranteeing the withdrawal of Israel and preventing her from interfering,
whether directly or indirectly, in the democratic process.

Call on the Palestinian Government to treat all forms of social congestions
and to distribute with utmost justice and balance all resources in order to
face the ramifications of occupation and aggression, through giving top
priority to areas struck by aggression and by the Apartheid Separation Wall,
and through finding the appropriate methods for achieving these goals by
cooperating with civil society organizations and augmenting the rules of
justice and equality.

SIX: Call for democratic dialogue to prevail and condemnation of all forms
of breaching this rule and urge the people not to get drawn after attempts
aimed at splitting national unity or imposing dangerous polarizations and to
renounce all those who assail the rights of our society and endanger its
very existence.

The signatories of this public statement hereby reiterate their insistence
to follow up all the listed items above while inviting and welcoming the
participation of all those interested, including public, national and
political figures and forces. This is a Grand National duty for all of us.

Signatures:
Abdul Aziz Q'deih, Abdul Karim Ashour, Abdul Qader Husseini, Abdul Rahman
Abu Arafeh, Abdul Rahman Awadallah, Abdullah Abu Al Ata, Abdullah Abu
Samahdaneh, Adi Al Hindi, Ahmad Dahbour, Ahmad Daoud, Andalib Adwan, Dr.
Anton Sh'heiber, Dr. Awad Hijazi, Aziz Abdul Jawad, Dr. Azmi Al Shu'aibi,
Baker Abu Baker, Basel Jaber, Bassam Musleh, Bassam Salhi, Daoud Talhami,
Dhiab Al Louh, Elias Zananiri, Dr. Faiha' Abdul Hadi, Dr. Fat'hi Waheidi,
Dr. Fawaz Abu Sitta, Fuad Rizeq, Dr. Ghassan Al Khatib, Ghazi Lutfi, Dr.
Goerge Geacaman, Dr. Haidar Abdul Shafi, Haidar Awadallah, Dr. Hanan
Ashrawi, Hanan Taha, Hani Al Hayek, Hani Al Masri, Hani Habib, Hani Saba,
Hanna Amireh, Hanna Siniora, Hassan Khader, Hatem Abdul Qader, Hiam Abu
Ghazaleh, Hisham Abdul Razeq, Huda Elayyan, Ibrahim Dughmeh, Dr. Ibrahim
Khreisheh, Ibtisam Salem, Dr. Ilham Abu Ghazaleh, Ismail Abu Shamala (Abu
Nidal), Dr. Issa Ja'anini, Issam Abdul Hadi, Issam Arouri, Issam Younis, Dr.
Iyad Sarraj, Jaber Washah, Jamal Abu Nahel, Jamal Shobaki, Jamal Zaqout,
Dr. Jamil Hilal, Jiries Qassis, Dr. Kamal Al Sharafi, Khaled Al Khatib,
Khaled Jum'aa, Khaled Mansour, Lama Al Horani, Maha Abu Dayyeh, Maha Al
Tamimi, Mahmoud Sh'qeir, Dr. Mamdouh Al Aker, Mamdoun Noufal, Mansour Abu
Radwan, Marwan Jilani, Mazen Al Jarbawi, Dr. M'kheimer Abu Sa'ada, Mohammad
Abu Sham'a, Mohammad Adel Al Masri, Mohammad Al Horani, Mohammad Al
Masrouji, Mohammad Dahman, Muhannad Abdul Hamid, Mustafa Al Rantisi, Nabil
Amr, Nabil Kutari, Nabil Qabalan, Dr. Nabil Qassis, Nabil Tarazi, Dr. Nader
Said, Nadia Abu Nahleh, Na'ela Ayesh, Nafez Ghneim, Naim Nasser, Nassar
Nassar, Nasser Al Shurafa, Nasser Aleiwah, Dr. Nasser Jab'r, Nawal Zaqout,
Dr. Nazmi Al Ju'beh, Nibras Bseiso, Ni'meh Al Hilo, Omar Sha'ban, Qaddoura
Fares, Qais Abdul Karim (Abu Laila), Ra'ed Abu Al Sa'oud, Rafiq Abu Dhalfeh,
Reem Abboushi, Rida Nattil, Dr. Riyad Za'anoun, Sa'ad Khurma, Sa'di Abu
Abed, Sa'ed Abdul Hadi, Safi Safi, Saji Salameh, Sakher Bseiso, Salah Abdul
Shafi, Dr. Salim Tamari, Sama'an Khouri, Samer Shihadeh, Dr. Sami Kilani,
Sami Sa'idi, Dr. Samih Al Abed, Samih Khalil, Dr. Samir Abdallah, Samir
Hleileh, Siham Al Barghouti, Subhiyeh Jum'a, Suheil Jad'oun, Talal Owkal,
Tal'at Safadi, Dr. Taleb Awad, Tamer Issawi, Dr. Taysir Arouri, Taysir
M'heisen, Terry Boullata, Tewfiq Abu Ghazaleh, Tewfiq Abu Khousa, Dr. Usama
Farra, Wafa' Abdul Rahman, Walid Abu Baker, Walid Al Awad, Walid Atatrah,
Dr. Walid Mustafa, Yasser Abed Rabbo, Yousef Abu Safiyyeh, Zahira Kamal, Dr.
Zakaria Al Agha,
Dr. Zaki Abdul Majid, Zeinab Al Ghanimi