Abbas: Every Palestinian Should See Palestine
Date : 14/5/2011 Time : 18:57
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=16130
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RAMALLAH, May 14, 2011 (WAFA) - President Mahmoud Abbas said Saturday that
every Palestinian should see Palestine, stressing that the right of return
should be a practice, not just a slogan.

“We want every Palestinian to see Palestine,” he said during a meeting with
members of the Palestinian Cultural and Educational Forum visiting the West
Bank from different Arab countries. “The return is a practice, not a slogan.
Palestine is for us. Whoever comes from the north, the centre or the south
and lives anywhere in it, is in fact in the homeland. When I return to
Ramallah or Nablus, I have my foot in the homeland,” he said.

Abbas said that “when we signed the Oslo agreement, the main subject of the
core issues was the refugees. Of course the other side (Israel) did not want
to discuss the issue of refugees, Jerusalem, the land and water. That’s
their business. But do we do what they want, of course not.”

“The Palestinian leadership will never give up the right of return,” he
said. “It will take practical steps to return to the homeland and to end
life in exile because the homeland is our final destination.”

On the national reconciliation, Abbas said that the dream of an independent
Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital can only be achieved through
uniting the two sides of the country (the West Bank and Gaza Strip). He said
there is a real will to achieve reconciliation.

He said establishing a government of technocrats is the first step to
achieve internal reconciliation, and after that other steps will be taken to
end all forms of internal rift.

“We are looking for a government of technocrats that will be agreed on by
everyone,” he said. “This does not mean it will be a Hamas, or Fatah, or
Popular Front government. It will be the government of the Palestinian
people.”

He said, “I will tell the world that I am practicing my right; how and when
this will happen. As long as there are steps forward, there is movement. We
tell the world that we want a state on the 1967 borders and a fair and
agreed on solution based on the Arab peace initiative. But we will never
accept a Palestinian state without Jerusalem as its capital.”

Abbas said that “we want an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as
its capital that will live in peace and harmony after solving all the core
issues. We believe in the two-state solution. We do not deny that. We have
accepted this solution for more than 17 years. But they (Israel) do not
accept the two-state solution.”

M.A.