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Wednesday, September 26, 2012
PA Finance Minister Asks Donors to Help Build Up Area C in West Bank

Finance Minister Asks Donors to Help Build Up Area C in West Bank
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=20738

NEW YORK, September 25. 2012 (WAFA) - Minister of Finance Nabeel Kassis
asked the Ad-Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC) meeting New York on Sunday to help
the Palestinian Authority to reclaim area C of the West Bank, which is under
full Israeli control.

In a report entitled “Moving Beyond the Status Quo: Safeguarding the
Two-State Solution,” Kassis presented the Palestinian vision regarding the
need to reclaim and develop the so-called Area C in the occupied West Bank,
including East Jerusalem, which makes up over 60% of the Palestinian
Territory and is home to vital natural resources.

The report also includes an actionable plan that outlines measures the
international community and Israel must take in order to preserve the
foundations of the Palestinian state.

“Developing Area C is necessary, not only because this area is important for
the viability of the State of Palestine, but more so and primarily because
this area is part and parcel of the Palestinian Territory and as such cannot
and should not be excluded in any development effort,” said Kassis.

He also emphasized that the PA's priorities in this regard are areas that
affect lives and livelihoods, in particular health, education, employment,
water, electricity and agriculture in addition to encouraging the private
sector.

In his speech to the AHLC, Kassis emphasized, “the greater part of
Palestinian lands is being gradually emptied of its Palestinian inhabitants
in order to provide room for more colonization by Israel.”

He pointed to the fragmentation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory
through the continuous expansion of illegal settlements and attached
infrastructure, including the Wall, the continued Israeli policy of
demolition of Palestinian homes water wells and fruit trees, land
confiscation, and forced eviction of Palestinians from Area C and occupied
East Jerusalem.

The Minister of Finance also warned that Israel's permits policy “is
strangling the economy and destabilizing the seed of the two-state
solution.”

The Minister discussed the current fiscal crisis confronting the Palestinian
National Authority (PNA). He affirmed that the crisis threatens the
sustainability of the PA’s institutions and the integrity of its social
fabric and communal well-being and sense of security, adding, “No doubt, if
the status quo is allowed to persist, it will have dire consequences to the
international enterprise of peace making in the Middle East.”

“We have been trying to get as close as possible to self-reliance in
covering the recurrent budget. This goal could not be achieved and cannot be
achieved as long as the occupation regime prevails and its restrictive
measures continue,” said Kassis.

He added, “The PNA has been trying to narrow the deficit in its budget by
cutting down on expenditures, implementing measures to enhance revenues, and
supporting private sector activity,” measures he stressed enjoyed support
from donors and local banks.

In the meantime, said Kassis, “continued financial support by the donor
community, combined with sustained efforts by the PNA and necessarily
augmented with tangible roll-back of Israeli occupation, is the only way out
of the fiscal crisis.”

The minister also reiterated that despite this crisis, the international
recognition of the Palestinians' institutional readiness for statehood is
still valid.

But he warned, “Unfortunately, equally valid is the conclusion regarding
impediments to private sector activity and Palestinian economic development.
Israeli restrictive measures which bar freedom of movement and access to all
Palestinian areas, including East Jerusalem, are still preventing
Palestinians from realizing their full development potential.”

Establishing a sovereign and viable independent Palestinian State was
crucial to securing peace and stability, Kassis stressed.

“Without united international action to enforce the provisions of
international law and the UN resolutions relevant to the Palestinian cause,
we will face the prospects of an irreversible collapse of the two-state
solution,” he concluded.

M.S.

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