Speaking with the enemy

Former Palestinian presidential candidate Mustafa Barghouti has good reason to treat the Israeli government with disdain.

He has been arrested around eight times, four of which for simply trying to drive to Jerusalem, his birthplace. He was once held at gunpoint for well over an hour and allegedly beaten up twice by Israeli forces, once on the eve of the Palestinian presidential campaign.

Yet even though he perceives Israel as nothing more than a relentless tormentor, Dr Barghouti remains an advocate of non-violent resistance and is doing his utmost to build a national unity government, which would incorporate both Hamas and Fatah.

A medical doctor trained in the former Soviet Union, with post-graduate training in Jerusalem, Dr Barghouti remains one of the most prominent leaders of the Palestinian struggle.

Despite originally being written off as a no-hoper, many believe he could become a major political player in the future. In fact he was elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council last January.

Addressing a news conference in Malta yesterday, before taking part in a Euro-Med seminar, the leader of the National Palestinian Initiative dismissed any cowboy talk. He urged Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to stop using the Palestinian cause as an excuse to pursue regional interests. Mr Ahmadinejad's taunts that Israel will soon be wiped off the map does not help the Palestinian cause, he argued. Even the Hamas government, which was originally created with the intention of destroying Israel, was also trying to disassociate itself from the Iranian president's tough talk, he said.

Asked what he thought of Mr Ahmadinejad and US President George Bush, he cut in with an abrupt "I guess the two deserve each other."

In a clear English accent, though sometimes also testing his Maltese, Dr Barghouti told journalists about the humiliation and impossibility of moving around his own homeland - it was easier for him to travel to Malta via Jordan then drive to Jerusalem.

The 620 military checkpoints had cut the country into pieces. Most communities had become isolated and the Israeli "withdrawal" from Gaza was nothing more than a myth. Suffice it to say that no less than 41 Palestinian ministers had been put in jail.

The wall being constructed by the Israelis spans 860 km, destroying life and the economy, according to Dr Barghouti, who insisted: "We need bridges, not walls."

The number of security forces in the occupied territories now outnumber the number of people working in the public sector. When he was granted a meeting with US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice recently, he was only given a five-hour permit.

"I'm not a member of Hamas and yet I wasn't allowed to go into Gaza for six months."

The GDP per capita in the occupied territories is down by 60 per cent and unemployment is up to 60 per cent.

The Palestinians have created the only democratic system of the Arab world and yet they continue being attacked, he pointed out.

Though Hamas had spoken of destruction in the past, on the ground, it was Israel which was bent on destroying the Palestinians' land. In reality, Hamas was speaking maturely and was ready to accept a two-state solution, Dr Barghouti said.

The possibility of peace in the Middle East hinged on the world's determination to stop Israel's "aggression".

After demonising Yasser Arafat, the Western World backed Abu Mahzen (Mahmoud Abbas) for president. And yet, when he took office, it took the Israelis an entire year to establish contact with him.

"The Israelis don't want to negotiate, not even if we get Mother Teresa from the grave to be Palestinian President."

Probed on why the Palestinian people have nothing to show for the millions injected by the EU and the international community, Dr Barghouti admitted that corruption was rife until recently.

This, after all, was why the Fatah party was punished in the last elections, paving the way for Hamas.

"Ultimately, occupation creates corruption," Dr Barghouti said.