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Al-Ahram Weekly 1 - 7 April 1999 Issue No. 423 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 1 - 7 April 1999 Issue No. 423
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Interview Profile Features Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Palestinian lobby in London
By Amer Sultan
Despite its long presence in the British House of Commons, little is known about the British-Palestinian Committee. Only in the last two years since the Labour government came to power has the committee, made up of nearly 40 members of the houses of Commons and Lords, started playing an active role to make sure that the Palestinian view is heard in decision-making circles. What follows are extracts from an interview with Labour MP Phyllis Starkis, who heads the committee
What are the general aims of the British-Palestinian Committee at the British parliament?
Our aims are to give voice to Palestinian interests within the parliament and to inform other members of parliament about the issues in the Middle East from the point of view of the Palestinians.
We also seek to organise meetings between members of the British parliament and members of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) because it is important that we speak to each other as fellow parliamentarians, and that we, in Britain, give whatever support and help we can to develop democratic structures within the areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority. We also need to inform ourselves better about events that happen within Palestine, to have meetings with leading Palestinians whenever they are over here and to make sure that there is an active group within the parliament that raises issues of concern to the Middle East generally, and about Palestinians in particular.
It seems to me as if it is an attempt to form a Palestinian lobby within the parliament?
That is true. We believe in the Palestinians' right to express their point of view and position towards problems and causes of these problems in the region, including their own saga.
What are the achievements of the group up till now?
We have raised the profile of the Palestinian issue within parliament. We used to question the British foreign secretary in the House of Commons and we usually manage to have one or two questions about the Middle East peace process to find out where exactly we can press the British government to make sure that both sides (Palestinians and Israelis) stick to the signed agreements. In our view, most of the non-compliance was on the Israeli side. That allowed the British foreign secretary to restate the British government's view that both sides should stick to the commitments they have made. For example, the suspension by the Israeli government of the Wye agreement because they have an election campaign has been rejected by the British government and it stated that agreements between the two states should continue despite the election campaign.
A recent campaign you were personally involved in was over allowing the Israeli Travel Office in London to advertise the holy city of Jerusalem as part of Israel in posters at London underground stations. Can you tell us about this campaign?
A few weeks ago the Israeli Travel Office in London started a campaign, in accord with the underground authorities, to place posters which allegedly enhance the concept of East Jerusalem as being part of Israel. These posters call on the British youth to visit the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque in the millennium celebrations. (In these posters, the pictures of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock are shown with the following sentence: "Why are you building a dome here in the millennium? Come to Israel -- we have built the Dome already"). I complained about these posters to the advertisement sponsoring authority which is the organisation supposed to make sure that advertisements are honest and truthful. The authority was not persuaded by my complaint and did not do anything about the posters. I am hopeful that other people are raising the issue with them as well and trying to make sure that these advertisements are withdrawn, or at least changed, because they give the impression that Jerusalem is part of Israel, which of course it is not.
According to the Oslo agreement, 4 May marks the end of the interim period and after that the Palestinians have the right to declare statehood. What do you think of this?
The fourth of May is a very significant date. We really regret that the peace process has not been properly concluded and that there has been no progress. I think that everybody knows the sensitivity of the moment in Israel with the election campaign going on. And I think that people would be brought to consider the effect that any action might have on Israeli voting patterns. It seems to be quite clear that the re-election of the current government would be very detrimental to the interest of the Palestinians, and also, I believe, to the interest of the whole region and to Israel itself.
What do you think of the current escalation by Israel on the Lebanese front?
I think it is disgraceful. I listened this morning to the spokesperson of the Israeli government on the radio. He was implying that any country would do what Israel had done in order to protect its citizens. The reality is that Israel is in occupation of a foreign state, that is Lebanon. Although everybody is concerned about the death of anyone, including soldiers, those who are occupying another state have deliberately put themselves at risk from attacks from people who wish to defend themselves. There are actually many Israelis who wish to end their occupation and to come to a proper agreement with other countries they occupy and respect their sovereignty.
Finally, how do you evaluate the policy of the current Labour government towards the Middle East?
Britain has been very outspoken and firm about the rights of the Palestinians, about the unacceptability of Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, of continued Israeli expropriation of Arab property and the expansion of Israeli settlements. The foreign secretary has stated this very clearly and he has the strong support of the prime minister. I feel that our role in parliament is to support the foreign secretary in his effort and to keep reminding the parliament of the reality of the situation in the Middle East, which is that there will be no settlement and no peace, for either the Israelis or the Palestinians, unless there is a settlement which is just and which recognises the rights of the Palestinians, just as it recognises the right of Israelis to live in peace within their secure borders.
