The PLO Covenant

I referred earlier to the PLO Covenant, made up in 1968. I thought it would be a good idea to go into it a little deeper, as it is so very relevant to the attitude of the 'Palestinians' of today towards Israel.

Articles that I have no comment on (usually because they are no more than hot air) have been omitted from this post.

Articles of the Charter:

Article 1. Palestine, the homeland of the Palestinian Arab people, is an inseparable part of the greater Arab homeland, and the Palestinian people are a part of the Arab Nation.

[Ed: Remember this part later. Palestine is the homeland of the Palestinian Arab people. ]

Article 2. Palestine, within the frontiers that existed under the British Mandate, is an indivisible territorial unit.

[Ed: Ambitious too. Not only does all of Israel belong to the 'Palestinians', they are entitled to present-day Jordan as well. ]

Article 5. Palestinians are Arab citizens who were normally resident in Palestine until 1947. This includes both those who were forced to leave or who stayed in Palestine. Anyone born to a Palestinian father after that date, whether inside or outside Palestine, is a Palestinian.

[Ed: Jews cannot be 'Palestinians' then. No matter if they were born there. And never mind anyone who has only a 'Palestinian' mother... ]

Article 6. Jews who were normally resident in Palestine up to the beginning of the Zionist invasion are Palestinians.

[Ed: Jews are designated 'Palestinians' here. It contradicts the previous article. It also leaves the matter of when the 'Zionist invasion' began. It could be 1250 B.C... ]

Article 7. Palestinian identity, and material, spiritual and historical links with Palestine are immutable realities. It is a national obligation to provide every Palestinian with a revolutionary Arab upbringing, and to instill in him a profound spiritual and material familiarity with his homeland and a readiness for armed struggle and for the sacrifice of his material possessions and his life, for the recovery of his homeland. All available educational means and means of guidance must be enlisted to that end, until the liberation is achieved.

[Ed: They took this article particularly serious. The world has not seen such incitement and hate-education since the Hitler jugend was disbanded. ]

Article 9. Armed struggle is the only way of liberating Palestine, and is thus strategic, not tactical. The Palestinian Arab people hereby affirm their unwavering determination to carry on the armed struggle and to press towards popular revolution for the liberation of and return to their homeland. They also affirm their right to a normal life in their homeland, to the exercise of their right of self-determination therein and to sovereignty over it.

[Ed: 'Armed struggle'. 'Liberating Palestine'. There is no other way for the 'Palestinians' to deal with Israel's existence. ]

Article 10. Commando action constitutes the nucleus of the Palestinian popular war of liberation. This requires that commando action must be escalated, expanded and protected and that all the resources of the Palestinian masses and all scientific potentials available to them be should be mobilized and organized to play their part in the armed Palestinian revolution. It also requires solidarity in national struggle among the different groups within the Palestinian people and between that people and the Arab masses, to ensure the continuity of the escalation and victory of the revolution.

[Ed: I was a 'commando' once. I trained with 'commando's' of various nationalities. I was never trained to target women and children. I never instructed children and people with diminished mental capacities in the use of explosive belts. But to the 'Palestinians', this is the 'nucleus of the Palestinian popular war of liberation'.

Article 11. Palestinians shall have three slogans: national unity, national mobilization and liberation.

[Ed: Make that four slogans: "Yahood, Yahood, Yahood". ]

Article 14. The destiny of the Arab nation, indeed the continued existence of the Arabs, depends on the fate of the Palestinian cause. This interrelationship is the point of departure of the Arab endeavor to liberate Palestine. The Palestinian people are the vanguard of the movement to achieve this sacred national objective.

[Ed: I kept this one because it's a prime example of hot air. A cheap attempt to link the rest of the Arab world to this problem. ]

Article 16. On the spiritual plane, the liberation of Palestine will establish in the Holy Land an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity in which all religious institutions will be safeguarded and freedom of worship and the right of visit guaranteed to all without discrimination or distinction of race, colour, language or creed. For this reason, the people of Palestine look to all spiritual forces in the world for support.

[Ed: At least they remembered to include some humor in their Covenant, albeit very sarcastic. 'peace and tranquillity' Yeah right. ]

Article 19. The Partition of Palestine, which took place in 1947, and the establishment of Israel, are fundamentally invalid, however long they last, for they contravene the will of the people of Palestine and their natural right to their homeland and contradict the principles of the United Nations Charter, foremost among which is the right of self-determination.

[Ed: The partition of 1947. Which was when the remainder of the original Mandate was divided into Israel and what was to be another Arab nation. In other words: Israel has no right to exist. ]

Article 20. The Balfour Declaration and the Mandate Instrument, and all their consequences, are hereby declared null and void. The claim of historical or spiritual links between the Jews and Palestine is neither in conformity with historical fact nor does it satisfy the requirements for statehood. Judaism is a revealed religion; it is not a separate nationality, nor are the Jews a single people with a separate identity; they are citizens of their respective countries.

[Ed: Talk about presumption. Declaring null and void. Designating Judaism any way they want. ]

Article 21. The Palestinian Arab people, expressing themselves through the Palestinian armed revolution, reject all alternatives to the total liberation of Palestine. They also reject all proposals for the liquidation or internationalization of the Palestine problem.

[Ed: more repetitions, but important: There is NO alternative to 'the total liberation of Palestine'. ]

Article 22. Zionism is a political movement that is organically linked with world imperialism and is opposed to all liberation movements or movements for progress in the world. The Zionist movement is essentially fanatical and racialist; it objectives involves aggression, expansion and the establishment of colonial settlements, and its methods are those of the Fascists and the Nazis. Israel acts as cat's paw for the Zionist movement, a geographic and manpower base for world imperialism and a springboard for its thrust into the Arab homeland to frustrate the aspirations of the Arab nation to liberation, unity and progress. Israel is a constant threat to peace in the Middle East and the whole world. Inasmuch as the liberation of Palestine will eliminate the Zionist and imperialist presence in that country and bring peace to the Middle East, the Palestinian people look for support to all liberals and to all forces of good, peace and progress in the world, and call on them, whatever their political convictions, for all possible aid and support in their just and legitimate struggle to liberate their homeland.

[Ed: It is not enough that this Charter aims for a homeland at the expense of another. It needs to villify and demonize another group of people to reach complete fulfilment. And of course here it becomes clear that way back in '68, the Arabs had the Nazi card down pat. Never mind that it was the Arabs/Muslims who collaborated with the Nazi's on a grand scale.]

Article 23. The demands of peace and security and the exigencies of right and justice require that all nations should regard Zionism as an illegal movement and outlaw it and its activities, out of consideration for the ties of friendship between peoples and for the loyalty of its citizens to their homelands.

[Ed: An element of blackmail: If other countries do not agree with us where Zionism (= the Jews) is concerned, then our peace and security is threatened. In that case, bring on bombings, shootings and hostage-takings. ]

Article 24. The Palestinian Arab people believe in Justice, freedom, sovereignty, self-determination, human dignity and the right of peoples to enjoy them.

[Ed: How can you believe in something you have never, EVER known? Seriously? And why doesn't it specifically say ALL peoples? ]

There is no dispute that this charter was written 37 years ago. Its age causes many people to dismiss its language, and even its content because it so old (yes, most people have trouble remembering why President Bush deposed Saddam Hussein, so 37 years ago is when the dinosaurs still roamed the earth).

But the content of this charter has been the subject of many negotiations between Israeli's and Arabs. The Arabs have stated more than once that they acknowledge Israel's right to exist, and have promised to change the charter so it will call for Israel's destruction no longer.

It would have been the easiest, cheapest concession they ever had to make. And they didn't do it. Not even this piece of paper they would change in order to gain some trust with Israel. They never wanted to. They were never pressured to. They never felt the need to.

And nothing about their attitude, desires and intentions has changed, in 37 years.